Victory! Baby Eden Is Coming Home for the Holidays

On November 4th, Meghan Wolfe wrote a blog post as she prepared to leave Kenya, where her husband works in a hospital, to head to their hometown in Indiana with their son Andy. National doctor strikes had begun in Kenya, and Meghan was getting ready to give birth in a couple of months. It was a heart-wrenching decision. Meghan would have to leave behind Eden, a baby who had been abandoned in the hospital, and whom the couple were in the process of adopting for more than 2 years.

“You can’t imagine how horrible it feels to separate Eden and Andy. I am so afraid of what that will do to them and their relationship,” Meghan wrote.  “I worry that she will feel abandoned… She might not be there when Grace is born, and she is so excited about helping me with the baby. Ben and I are tired of fighting the US, and we are so sad right now. That leaves us with prayer. “

Although the US government had approved a travel visa for Eden in the past, and the Kenyan government recognized the couple as legal guardians and had approved travel for Eden, US Customs and Immigration Services had not approved a visa for Eden to spend the holidays with her family in Indiana.

But yesterday, after over 35,000 people signed the family's petition on Change.org, Meghan received great news: Baby Eden would be coming home.

Eden’s grandfather, Rob Campbell, didn’t give up hope of seeing his family reunited. On the advice of two family friends who are lawyers, he started a petition on Change.org that quickly garnered more than 35,000 signatures. It caught the attention of local print and TV press, Miami Dolphins player Brian Hartline and Boston Celtics rookie JaJuan Jackson even Tweeted their support, and Representative Todd Rokita got involved.

“On behalf of precious little Eden and the entire extended family, we thank every person who signed the petition and helped spread the word of her situation,” said Rob. “The legal team, Tony Will (Congressman Rokita's aide) and supporters on Change.org were great allies and we are so blessed to have all of them our team.”

The family friends who first urged Rob to start a campaign acknowledged that public pressure was key in the happy outcome.

"Susan Fortino-Brown and I would like to recognize that USCIS worked diligently to adjudicate this very compelling case for the Wolfe family on an emergency basis,” said Deb Trice. “The story of the Wolfe family is quite compelling and seemed to resonate with everyone who heard it.  We share the happiness that this young family will soon be reunited.”

As for Meghan, she stayed up the night she heard the news, eager to tell Ben and Eden they would be coming home. “I can't wait to hold Eden in my arms again!” she said. “Thank you all for making this a Christmas that will go down in history for our family!”

Photo Courtesy of Wolfe family