Help Ivy Somdahl Reunite with Her Ethiopian Family

Hi, my name is Ivy Somdahl. At five months old, I was adopted from Ethiopia into a beautiful, Catholic, loving family. When my young birth mother was still pregnant with me, my birth father passed away from malaria. After my birth, she soon followed, leaving her newborn and five-year-old son orphans. Because my brother was old enough to work, my grandmother took him in and put me up for adoption in hopes of a better life for me.

I am confident that God has great plans for me because on the other side of the world, there was a mama of three little boys eager to invite another soul into her heart and home. My mom, Mary Somdahl, traveled to Ethiopia to bring me home when I was five months old. She had every intention of adopting another child and traveling there someday to meet my grandma and brother. Unfortunately, after my dad walked out when I was 5 years old, leaving my mom with 7 children, we were never in a financial position to do that. My brother and grandmother are also so poor they don’t have an address as they live in mud huts in the bush of Africa, so just the process of finding them seemed nearly impossible.

Fast forward to 2024 - my mom took a shot in the dark and paid an agency to try to find them. A couple of weeks ago, I received the shocking news that my maternal grandmother and biological brother are alive and well, still living in Ethiopia. We were told that we could travel in late July or early August to meet them.

Although I am so incredibly grateful in every way to have this opportunity, I am not in a financial position to travel as I am currently volunteering at a private Catholic school.

I am confident that if God wants me to meet my family, He will make things pull through for me, as He always does, but I do ask for your help! Any donation would be greatly appreciated! Thank you for your generosity! God bless!