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3-year-old girl who waited years to be adopted gets drive-by celebration

Posted at 5:31 PM, Apr 18, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-20 06:26:52-04

BRADENTON, Fla. — Three-year-old Reney has been waiting for the Wilsons to adopt her since she was seven weeks old, just like they adopted her older biological sister.

"We’ve just been waiting to complete our family," said Lindsey Wilson, Reney's mom.

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That’s why when they found out Reney wouldn’t be getting her adoption day in court, they were disappointed.

"Because of COVID-19 we don’t get that. She doesn’t get that. We don’t get those pictures to really explain what adoption is," said Wilson.

So Wilson asked family and friends to drive by their west Bradenton home to show support for Reney.

"I put the word out and I was like, 'OK, there’s five cars so maybe we can get a few more.' We were not expecting this at all, and it's just so special," said Wilson.

“One More Child” a foster and adoption advocacy organization says COVID-19 has put a lot of cases on hold. But they’ve had higher numbers of people reaching out, who are interested fostering.

"There’s just an empathy that we have nationally and locally that maybe sometimes we just fast forward too quickly through our lives to really appreciate it. People are asking the really in-depth questions about foster care right now," said RJ Walters, One More Child Director of Communications.

That same kind of empathy was expressed by dozens of friends, strangers and first responders who lined the street showing their support and love for Reney’s new forever family.

"This was super special and amazing," said Wilson.

If you're interested in learning more about One More Child, click here.