After 15 years in foster homes, a teenage boy who had been in foster care since he turned three found a forever family.
After 11 years of living with various sets of adults, Alex Madkour, 13, was disappointed to find a permanent home.
He was able to move from one home and not complete a single year at the same school. He also had few to no long-term connections.
“Trust was a really big issue, there was no point in even looking for a family or trying because I thought I would just end up back in a foster home,” he said.
Thankfully, Alex was saved from the endless loop of foster homes when Jenny and Stephen Markour, both lawyers, saw him on Jeff Graniola’s Wednesday’s Child segment in 2017.
After hearing the teen’s story, the couple immediately wanted to know more about him.
“When we saw Alex and read about him, we were just like wow, that kid is made for us,” Jenny said.
Stephen and Jenny were also concerned about the growing number of children in foster care in their community. They had an extra room in their home and considered taking in an older child.
Meanwhile, the Alex’s caseworker at Boys and Girls Aid told him about the interested couple. But after getting his heart broken too many times, he didn’t want to get his hopes up too much.
“I didn’t believe them,” Alex said at the time. “This is not going to happen, you guys are just trying to fool me.”
“It was a really big struggle to [think] ‘OK, I’m going from this home, in two weeks I’m going to another home,” he added.
This time, though, was different. Stephen and Jenny met Alex once. They immediately saw something special in him. It was hard to ignore the strong connection they felt for him.
“Anybody who’s seen that video of Alex, his core awesome comes out in that video,” Jenny said. “It was such a great thing, the way Jeff Gianola talked to him and Alex’s interaction with him, it really gave us a glimpse of who Alex is.”
They met Alex just before Thanksgiving and asked him to move in with us.
Jenny and Stephen started working on his adoption papers, and Alex couldn’t believe it was really happening.
“I didn’t think I was going to find a forever home this good,” he said.
The couple lives on a farm in Oregon and said that Alex “jumped in with both feet” where the animals were involved.
“To have these two people in my life that I can trust is a really big thing because I know it’s going somewhere,” the teen said.
Alex helps out on the farm and loves to commute with Jenny to school. Both of them are adventurous and took Alex on his first ski trip to Colorado. He was also able to finish his first year at the same school by being in a stable house.
Stephen and Jenny wish their adopted son the best, just like any parent.
“We hope for Alex everything that any parent would hope for their kids, hopefully our love and the stability and always having a place to come home to will give him that foundation to do all the great things that his heart desires. There’s a ton of kids out there who are just looking for someone to love them,” Jenny said.
All three look forward to the future.
“From where our family is, it’s just been the best thing. I think we bring a tremendous amount to Alex and I know he brings a tremendous amount to us,” Jenny said.
Many children like Alex are still uncertain about their futures. The insecurity only grows when they reach 18 years of age and leave the foster care system.
This story may inspire other adults who are capable to consider adoption.
Check out the video below to learn more about Alex’s inspiring adoption story.
***Did you enjoy our feel-good and positive story? Support our site by simply subscribing and sharing our stories to your friends.
