I'm Back

Good morning to you all – this is Janel posting and I am home. Jake, JJ, and Samuel are still in Ghana, awaiting the outcome of what has been a disastrous visa situation. Looks like my mom has kept you updated since we’ve been gone. I don’t want to at all take away from the WONDERFUL time that our family had bonding together with Samuel in Ghana, but I do want continue to keep you updated on the visa situation which isn’t quite as uplifting. I will most likely start posting my journal entries for each day tomorrow or the next day, which will give you more details of our awesome time spent with Samuel. For now, this is what we are facing with the visa situation:

1) Last Friday the 18th, we went to the U.S. Embassy in Ghana to see if it was possible to get the visa earlier than our scheduled time on the 21st. They said they were just awaiting administrative processing from the Ghanaian government regarding our case, so there was no way they could get it any quicker. They said once the administrative processing was complete they could then issue the visa. I asked the worker if we would for sure be picking the visa up on the 21st and he said, “I’m sorry, there are no guarantees.” This was a SHOCK to us, as we thought it was confirmed that we would literally just be picking up the visa at our appointment time….that there was nothing left to process. This was when we realized there had been a miscommunication between the Embassy, Kofi and our adoption agency as to what this appointment on the 21st actually was.

2) We changed our flights to leave on the 23rd at 1am.

3) On Monday the 21st we arrived at the Embassy for our scheduled appointment. When we were called to the window, we were told the same thing as we were on Friday “I am sorry, I have no new news for you. We are still waiting on the processing to be completed by the Ghanaian govt.” They then gave us an appointment at 3pm for the next day to check on the status again.

4) Later in the day on the 21st we received a call from the Embassy asking us to come in for an appointment at 7am the next day (the 22nd) instead of 3pm. We all felt that this was going to be good news, that they had finished the processing and were ready to issue the visa.

5) The morning of the 22nd we arrived at the Embassy at 7am. When they called us up to the window they asked Kofi and Samuel to go to a side room to be interviewed. About 30 minutes later they called the rest of us into the interview room. This was when they said that the burial permit we had submitted for Samuel’s father with our paperwork was not ‘good enough’ evidence of Samuel’s father’s death. They said they needed an actual death certificate. I felt like someone had punched me in the stomach. This was something that we could have been notified of MONTHS AGO. Not, this late in the game. I actually couldn’t believe it. How could our case get I-600 approval and all of our documents get approved through the United States Citizenship & Immigration Services, and yet not be ‘good enough’ for the U.S. Embassy come visa time. It just made no sense to me. The Embassy told us they were working with the death registrar in Accra to speak with someone to verify the death of Samuel’s father and that they would call us when they had any updates. We left the Embassy in shock and disappointment.

6) The rest of the day on the 22nd Kofi worked his tail off to go to the registrar for Samuel’s father’s village and obtain the legal death certificate. By afternoon time, he had gotten word that he could pick the death certificate up the next morning, on the 23rd.

7) Meanwhile, we had contacted our case worker back home in Iowa for help. She was working hard for us on her end as well. She was trying to find out why the death certificate was needed because the burial permit is essentially the same information, just typed up and labeled differently. We decided that JJ and I would head home on the scheduled flight at 1am on the 23rd, and Jake would stay behind with Samuel to continue to work on the visa. Later that evening, our case worker received an email from the Embassy that the death certificate was actually not needed for our case. So, we were left very confused as to what exactly the hold-up was for our case.

8) A few hours before we were to head to the airport on the evening of the 22nd, Jake decided JJ would stay with him in Ghana so that he and Samuel could continue to play and bond together (they were having a wonderful time). They all took me to the airport, along with Big Sam & Ezekiel, and we flew out on the 1am flight on the 23rd.

9) Yesterday morning, the 23rd, Jake and Kofi obtained the legal death certificate and took it to the Embassy. However when Jake presented the document to the lady handling our case, her response was only to insist that she 'told him he would receive a phone call upon a decision being made'. Jake’s response was that they had also requested a death certificate which he was there to provide. He said the representative further told him that she would 'put the document in the file but it won't change how quickly the decision will be made' (which is contrary to what we were told the day prior when it was stressed to us that having the death certificate would significantly help our case).

10) And that is where we stand. It has just been one frustrating and confusing battle after another. We now sit and wait for a phone call from the Embassy or any sort of updates. Our case worker has gotten the Department of State involved which is the only entity that has authority over the Embassy. Our case is now high priority with the Department of State. Jake, JJ, and Samuel are scheduled to fly out at 1am on the 26th. So, that really gives us today and tomorrow to get the visa printed. Jake cannot miss anymore work, so he and JJ will have to fly back with or without Samuel on the 26th. We are absolutely in complete anguish over this. It is the most awful feeling to think about having to leave Samuel there again, for the 2nd time, not to mention the confusing status of what exactly is going on with the visa.

Here are some text message updates from Jake yesterday:

Text 1: Isaiah 40:27-32 Why do you say O Jacob and complain O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord, my cause is disregarded by God”? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary, and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary and young men stumble and fall, but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Text 2: Ghana lost 1-0 but advanced on tie breaker so everyone is partying. JJ and Samuel are sleeping, my goal was to wear them out! We swam twice, spent two hours at the Embassy, ate at Frankie’s, spent an hour at the bank trying to get money, had a two hour practice with the team, and had Prince over to the hotel for the Ghana soccer game. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Text 3: The guy at the hotel let me use his computer which is faster than my computer at home so I am getting a ton of work done! I may work through the night! However, having two boys 5 and 3 I may need all my rest. All I know is I am going to buy 2 of everything. Whatever one is doing the other automatically wants to do.

Text 4: I also had a very good conversation with Samuel when JJ fell asleep and I explained everything to him. I think he understands. He got big tears in his eyes and I told him this is a great time to trust in God. I also told him he has to trust us as will never leave him here. I set myself up for the conversation earlier by getting him to jump into the pool where he could not touch. I kept telling him he has to learn to trust me to catch him. It took 25 minutes and finally he started to jump freely.

Thanks for praying for our family regarding this visa situation. I know you guys are praying, and we are praying too. We serve a God who comes through in seemingly dire situations. My hope is in Him.

Psalm 27: 3, 14
Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear, though war break out against me, even then I will be confident. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.

Big Sam, me & Ezekiel after we got through immigrations & customs in the Atlanta airport. Welcome to the U.S. boys!