FEATURES

Couple realizes parenthood dream

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Timothy Young
  • 99th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. --  Some people have dreams of what they want to do or become in life. What Christopher and Glenda Raon wanted most was to be parents.

Christopher Raon, 99th Force Support Squadron recognition program manager, and his wife Glenda, 526th Intelligence Squadron unit program coordinator, tried for years to have a baby until Glenda found out in 2003 that she was unable to have children. From that moment on the couple mostly focused on their relationship until one unexpected phone call changed their lives overnight.

In 2009, they met with a friend who worked with an In Vitro Fertilization specialist and the idea of them having a baby reignited. Chris and Glenda decided to undergo the IVF treatment, a process where an egg is fertilized by sperm outside the body and then placed back into the mother.

During their first round of treatment, Chris spent his weekend at the Wild at Heart Adventure, a semiannual event in Cedar Breaks, Utah, put on by their church for all its male members.

"Quiet time with God was an essential part of that weekend, and that is when I heard God's first promise to me," Chris said. "The promise of being a father sparked inside my heart, and I broke down sobbing."

The promise made that weekend in Utah made the results of the treatment much more difficult for the couple.

"The results came in, and we remained childless," Chris said. "Shortly after hearing and accepting the news, we mourned."

Not long after the news spread of the IVF failure, Chris and Glenda were given the opportunity to stay at a cabin near the site where God spoke to Chris.

"We got to the mountain, and I shared the experience with Glenda. We prayed over the spot where God sparked the promise in my heart," Chris said. "During our time there, we were rejuvenated and brought back to a sense of peace."

They tried the treatment again and received the same result. "Life seemed to pass us by, and it was a bit harder to rise up as we did before, but our faith was deeper and stronger than that," Chris said. "We regrouped and waited; patiently we waited."

After so many letdowns, the idea of adoption was on Glenda's mind, but Chris was set on passing on his bloodline so they attempted a third IVF treatment.

After the third failed IVF treatment and using almost all their savings, the couple decided to take a break from treatments and focus on their relationships and their relationship with God.

"During the course of resting, we were able to purchase a home," Chris said.

They were excited to find out all the cabinets and drawers were child proofed and there was already a baby room set aside. All they needed was a baby.

While giving tours of the new house to friends, Glenda would introduce the baby room as Madeline's room. Madeline was the name they had picked if they ever had a daughter.

"It was wonderful to see her face light up knowing that we could hold onto God's promise," Chris said. "Despite all the hardship in trying to get pregnant she was so hopeful."

It was time again for another Wild at Heart Adventure visit, and Chris was hesitant to go until he read a Bible verse that changes his mind.

"Genesis 22:14 Abraham named the place Yahweh-Yireh (which means 'the Lord will provide')," Chris said. "To this day, people still use that name as a proverb: 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.'

"Each time I've been on the mountain, God has provided, and it has never failed; [God] has never failed," Chris said.

While Chris was at the Wild at Heart Adventure, Glenda received a phone call from a friend. Glenda's friend said her daughter just had a baby girl and was going to give her up for adoption.

"I was excited but didn't know what to say," Glenda said. "I told her that I needed to call Chris."

The event was just about done when Chris was approached by members of his church. They told him his wife had called, and it was an emergency.

"I called, and Glenda simply says, 'We have a baby,'" Chris said.

So Chris rushed home, and on the way home, Chris and a friend stopped to grab some food. He decided to use the bathroom and had to wait in line behind a father and daughter.

"I waited alongside the bathroom, and the father comes out and begins to knock on the woman's bathroom door 'Madeline are you okay?' [came out of] his mouth," Chris said. "My heart raced, and I knew that we were being rewarded for our patience."

All the doubts of adoption left his mind, and he no longer felt that his daughter would have to share the same blood-line as him.

The couple was pleased to find out the next day that Glenda's coworkers at the 526th IS had purchased them every item they would need to raise their new baby.

With the help of their attorney, the adoption is set to be finalized Aug. 12, and after 12 years of trying, Chris and Glenda's dream of starting a family finally came true.

"I wish I would have thought to adopt sooner," Glenda said. "There are so many children out there that can use a good home."