You can hear their footsteps traveling up the spiral staircase to the second floor of the Bartholomew County Courthouse.
For two years, Desi, 8, and Payten, 6, have called the Martins “family.”
On Wednesday morning, the sister-pair eagerly awaited a hearing that would change their young lives forever: At the sound of a gavel, the Martins would officially become Desi and Payten’s forever family.
Local judges opened their courtrooms Wednesday to families who have waited years for the moment to adopt a new family member. National Adoption Day aims to increase awareness of the value of adoption. A coalition of adoption and children’s advocates started the day in 2000 when they encouraged cities to open their courts on or around the Saturday before Thanksgiving to finalize and celebrate adoptions from foster care.
This year, approximately 302 children joined forever families across 30 Indiana counties. In Bartholomew County, six families added family members during court hearings Wednesday.
For more on this story, see Thursday’s Republic.
