Jeff and Tasha Howe have been through the unimaginable trying to form a family over the years. They are high school sweethearts, together 23 years and married for 12 years. Having children was always in their plan. Well that plan has taken many twists and turns over the years. First they dealt with infertility for years while trying to conceive. Then a big surprise occurred when Tasha discovered she was pregnant in 2016. The couple was ecstatic! The time had finally come! They found out it was a boy and named him Brodie Alan. They prepared his room, had a baby shower, etc. Then they got heartbreaking news towards the end of the pregnancy that Brodie's kidneys were not forming properly and that his chances for survival after birth were very slim. This was unimaginable and devastating news to these excited and eager parents. Brodie Alan was born on September 22, 2016 and spent a short 30 minutes with his parents and gathered loved ones before going to be with God. During the delivery process, poor Tasha had complications from being on an epidural for so long that she had to go home in a wheelchair and eventually had to use a walker and cane. This was added insult to injury after the passing of their sweet baby boy.

Once the couple gathered courage to discuss trying to build their family again, they decided they wanted to use a surrogate to carry their child. They went to a fertility doctor and Tasha underwent IVF procedures, spending $20,000+ in order to get embryos for the surrogate to carry. Sadly the procedure resulted in no viable embryos and only a monthly loan payment to pay down that $20,000+ that gave them nothing in the end. This was another huge blow to the couple.

Prior to all of this, Tasha had halted her career in the hotel and event planning industry in order to care for her mother who had severe Alzheimer's. Her mom lived with the couple for seven years and Tasha was her full time caregiver for three years. While Tasha was happy to care for her mom and loved her dearly, she found it ironic and sad that she was caring for her mom when all she wanted to do was care for a baby. And this left Tasha and Jeff living on one income for multiple years while she cared for her mom, making it hard to save up for any necessary family planning expenses.

Again, the couple wasn't ready to give up. They decided to move forward with the adoption process in 2018. They paid a large sum of money in order to get started. Tasha started looking into ways to make money to help them afford the adoption when chosen. Meanwhile, her mom's health started to deteriorate even further and her mom passed away in December 2018, exactly seven years to the day after her father had passed. Way too much loss in such a short time for this couple. Not to mention the loss of her dear aunt who passed away from cancer in September 2019, which came as a big surprise to the family. Tasha's Aunt Renee was like a second mother to her.

Once again, after trying to overcome immense grief at the loss of all these loved ones, Tasha has gotten back up on her feet and has done some working and is still seeking out the perfect job. They also kept waiting and waiting to get good news from the adoption agency, but nothing. She had recently mentioned they feared they would have to call off the adoption process since they would soon owe another fee and just couldn't afford to keep paying all this money without anything in return.

Well, then a Christmas miracle happened! Tasha and Jeff got the call they had been waiting for and just two days before Christmas! They were chosen by a California woman who is due in mid-February. Of course the couple was ecstatic and cried tears of joy, but those tears soon turned to sadness as they realized they don't know how they can pay to complete the process. Adoption is extremely expensive to start and apparently it's even costlier when the mother is located in California. They were informed it would cost them an additional $35K on top of the $20K they have already paid to the agency.

As Tasha and Jeff's friends, we have seen them endure so much pain and loss! This couple NEEDS to have joy in their life. Having to turn this baby down will break them even more. We would hate for money to get in their way of having a baby of their own to raise and love. They have so much love to give. They are a strong couple, have given so much to others and deserve this happiness. Please consider supporting them financially and/or with prayer at this time.  Please also share this with everyone you know. Thank you in advance for helping them to make their dream come true and making this a Christmas they will never forget!