Couples who have 7 biological children adopted 6 more children from Ethiopia including 2 with HIV

Carolyn and Kiel Twietmeyer already had seven biological kids when they decided to add to their family again -- this time, by adopting a special needs child from India.

The Joliet couple's plan changed when they learned of the need for parents to adopt orphans with HIV.

In 2007, they adopted three siblings from Ethiopia, including now 9-year-old Samuel, who is HIV-positive.

When Carolyn Twietmeyer returned to Ethiopia, she met 11-year-old Selah, who had also been orphaned and was living with end-stage AIDS.

Now, the Twietmeyers have 13 children, including Selah and her two older siblings. And Selah's and Samuel's health has improved significantly.

The family's generosity is featured in the Dec. 6 issue of People magazine. But the Twietmeyers says they feel as fortunate as the children they adopted.

"Our lives have changed so much and our blessings have been so abundant since then," Kiel Twietmeyer said. "We're the ones that were really in need of them."

The couple also started Project Hopeful, a nonprofit organization, to make it easier for other families to follow in their footsteps. Since 2007, the organization has helped almost 200 families adopt HIV-positive orphans. It also successfully lobbied for new government policies to expedite the entry of adopted HIV-positive children into the U.S.

The Twietmeyers admit they weren't always so receptive to adopting an HIV-infected child. "But as soon as we studied up a little bit, we realized . . . there is nothing to be scared of having an HIV-positive child," Kiel Twietmeyer said.

When Carolyn met Selah, now 13, she weighed just 32 pounds and was not expected to live. After receiving a blood transfusion from Carolyn, Selah was well enough to travel to the U.S., where she began receiving treatment at the University of Chicago Medical Center's International Adoption Clinic.

Selah takes anti-retroviral drugs, and her health has improved dramatically, said Linda Walsh, clinical director of the U. of C.'s pediatric and adolescent HIV care team. Samuel, who was not as sick as Selah, no longer takes medication.

"The prognosis of children born with HIV is much, much brighter than it was in the beginning of the epidemic," Walsh said. "It's not always easy, but it's very doable."

Selah says she wants to become a doctor, "so that I can help HIV kids because I think I know how they feel."

Seeing how far she and Samuel have come is "humbling," Carolyn Twietmeyer said, fighting tears.

The Twietmeyers were equally amazed by how quickly their adopted and biological kids became a family.

"We don't want to paint a picture of everything being perfect," Carolyn Twietmeyer said. "But we've had an amazing time, an amazing transition. Our biological children were on board from the beginning."

She home-schools the kids and runs Project Hopeful. Most days, she wakes up between 4 a.m and 6 a.m. to prepare meals and lesson plans for the kids. The older children often help out with the younger ones, and everyone has chores.

The family gets by on Kiel Twietmeyer's income as a painter and decorator. He built a larger kitchen table and added rooms to the house as the family grew.

Though they've already got a full house, the Twietmeyers say they haven't ruled out adopting more kids.

"If more people knew that it doesn't take what we think it does to change and save lives and be part of something bigger than ourselves, way more people would do it," Carolyn Twietmeyer said.

SouthtownStar.com