There is a difference between being anti-abortion and being pro-life. Being pro-life is more, so much more. Amy Hood definitely understood that. As her own nest of biological children began to empty, she encouraged her pastor husband Pat to consider adopting a little girl from China.
And in miraculous fashion, God turned Pat’s heart toward agreement with Amy’s vision, and that precious little one became a part of their family.
That was just the beginning. They may have thought the arrows in their quiver had been launched into the world, but God refilled their quiver. After the first adoption they went on to adopt two more children from other countries.
Seventeen years have passed since that initial God-birthed adoption became reality, and Pat and Amy now have grandchildren from their grown biological children while their three adopted children, two girls and a boy, are now teenagers.
Unfortunately, Amy suddenly went home to be with the Lord this past October. Her passing has been devastating to Pat, family, friends and LifePoint Church Smyrna.
I had coffee with Pat over Christmas and asked him to pray about a way to honor the life and legacy of Amy. Specifically, about the idea of establishing the Amy Hood Adoption Endowment (see related story in this issue).
The endowment will be hosted through the Tennessee Baptist Foundation and provide financial grants for families from TBC churches seeking to adopt a child. Pat and family enthusiastically blessed this endeavor.
The endowment honors the legacy of someone who saw a need and determined in her heart to do something about it. In Tennessee alone there are more than 7,500 children in foster care needing adoption and sadly more than 1,000 of them “age out” of foster care every year. That means that more than 1,000 precious children made by God and created in His image, rise to adulthood unconnected to a forever family.
Nationally, there are more than 107,000 children whose average age is 7.7 years old who need adopting. Fewer than half become adopted. Factor in the number of children globally who need adoption and the number rises to the millions.
And that’s why the Amy Hood Adoption Endowment is so vitally important.
Amy Hood
The goal is to establish a $1 million corpus that will fund adoption grants for years to come. One of the biggest hurdles families face in the adoption process is the cost.
We need to help remove or reduce that hurdle so we can get children in godly homes where they can be loved and taught about God’s love.
This is where Tennessee Baptists can step up. If we are going to stand against abortion and encourage mothers to follow through and birth their babies, then we need to stand for life by adopting children who need to be adopted.
I believe the Amy Hood Adoption Endowment can play a role in helping families from among our Tennessee Baptist churches adopt a child. If you would like to contribute to the endowment and move this dream forward to a reality, then please visit AmyHoodFund.org.
Amy, thank you for sharing your dream, and your life, with all of us. May Tennessee Baptists honor your legacy by grabbing the banner of adoption and advancing it forward for the glory of God and for a whole bunch of kids who need loving homes.
And Tennessee Baptists, it is a joy to be with you on this journey.
— See full story on the Hood endowment HERE.
