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WEST VALLEY CITY — The Waynes aren’t your typical family of four.
Ashley is blind, due to retinopathy of prematurity, an eye disease that occurs in premature infants. She and Luke Wayne have been married for over 10 years after they met during a vacation 15 years ago.
“Both of our families vacationed at the same little spot in Florida,” Ashley said. “His family had been going there for years and mine happened to be there one year at the same time.”
Early on in their relationship, Ashley and Luke decided they wanted to look into adopting a child.
“We had wanted to adopt, even before getting married. That was something that had always been on (Luke’s) heart,” Ashley said. “I worked in the foster care system for a while, so that sort of cemented the desire to adopt.”
Both of the Wayne children, Jonathan, 9, and Lexy, 5, were adopted from Bulgaria. The children are both blind, as well, due to retinopathy of prematurity. Jonathan also has mild cerebral palsy, Ashley said.
“We hadn’t considered international adoption at first, it just seemed too expensive and out of reach,” Ashley said.
Friends of the Waynes suggested international adoption at dinner one night, saying that adopting a blind child might be a unique opportunity for them.
“Both of our children’s caseworkers told us that not many people adopt blind children,” Ashley said. “We weren’t exclusively looking for blind children, but we were open to it.”
Lexy was adopted first, nearly three years ago. Then the Waynes brought home Jonathan, one year ago on Sunday. Ashley recalls that Jonathan wasn’t able to walk or stand on his own when they first brought him home, due to the cerebral palsy. He is now able to do both.
Though the Wayne children are blind, they participate in the same activities as any other child: Lexy is in gymnastics and Jonathan is taking piano lessons, Ashley said.
The Waynes are now setting out to add two new members to their family.
Zoe and Madeline are 3-year-old twin girls from Bulgaria. Madeline is also blind, while Zoe remains sighted. The twins have spent their entire lives in an orphanage, Ashley said.
The Waynes are currently finishing their paperwork to adopt the twins, and then it has to be sent over to Bulgaria and approved. Once the paperwork is submitted and translated, the Waynes can take their first trip to Bulgaria to meet the girls.
“We would be there for about a week,” Ashley said. “Then (the adoption) has to go through the Bulgarian courts which can take anywhere from about three to six months. Then we go back again and pick them up.”
An indoor yard sale has been organized to help raise funds for their adoption. The yard sale will take place Saturday from 7 a.m. to noon at 10288 S. Jordan Gateway in South Jordan. The Wayne’s goal is to raise $12,000 to help cover dossier fees and their trip to Bulgaria to get the girls.
They also have an account* where people can donate online*.
*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
