2008 Woodie Awards
It's a Girl!
By Nate Daymut
Rocket Photo Editor
Issue date: 11/30/07 Section: Focus
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Then, in a matter of minutes, the couple turned into a family.
Slippery Rock University professors Chris Kreiser and Melissa Teodoro recently adopted a newborn baby girl, Luisa Mariana Kreiser-Teodoro, from the Bogota-based Foundation for the Assistance of Abandoned Children, known by their Spanish-translated acronym, FANA.
Kreiser, an assistant professor in the English department, and Teodoro, an assistant professor in the dance department, were married in the summer of 2006 with Teodoro's family in Colombia and then held a separate ceremony for Kreiser's family in Cleveland.
Shortly after the wedding, the couple decided they wanted to start a family.
However, Kreiser said while he and Teodoro are in good health, the risk of having a baby at their age was an important factor in their decision to adopt rather than try to conceive on their own.
Kreiser said once the decision was made to adopt, the couple knew they would be using FANA, as Teodoro's family has had several members adopted through FANA and has made financial contributions to the organization as well.
According to the Families of FANA Web site, the organization has been responsible for providing homes for over 10,000 children since its founding more than 30 years ago, with more than 300 adoptions taking place in Western New York and Pennsylvania alone.
To complete the final steps of the adoption, Kreiser and Teodoro arrived in Bogota the day before they were to receive their new daughter and had to quickly adjust to the idea of having of a child and starting a family together.
"We arrived on Wednesday, and Thursday was adoption day," Kreiser said. "Five minutes ago you were just a couple, and five minutes later you're a family."
Kreiser said the scene in the waiting room was like a party, but nothing could compare to the first time he saw his new daughter.
"The first moment when they brought her in, it was the greatest moment of my life," Kreiser said. "I was instantaneously hooked. This is my daughter."
When a couple adopts from FANA, their new child is carried into the waiting room by a former FANA child and handed to them.
Because many of Teodoro's family members, who were unavailable for comment, live in Colombia and were present when the couple received their daughter, Kreiser and Teodoro had the privilege of having Teodoro's cousin, Maria Alejandra, who was also adopted from FANA, bring Luisa to her new parents.
"Having a member of Melissa's family carry Luisa to us made the moment that much more special," Kreiser said.
But though they received their daughter, the adoption had yet to be finalized.
So Kreiser and Teodoro spent the next five weeks in Colombia waiting for the paperwork to go through, and in the meantime, Luisa was able to become familiar with Teodoro's family.
Once the newly formed family arrived in the United States, Kreiser said his family came to Slippery Rock to meet Luisa and help the couple as they returned to SRU.
He said the adoption process was a "whirlwind of activity" but being able to start a family was something he had been looking forward to doing.
"I have thought about myself long enough," Kreiser said. "It's nice to think about someone else. Now Luisa is the first thing I think about in the morning and everything else takes a back seat."
During the process, Kreiser said he was surprised to find out how common adoption is, and said that once some time has passed, he and Teodoro will probably adopt from FANA again.
"(It seems like) about one in every three people I talk to was adopted or at least knows someone who was adopted," Kreiser said.
Although Kreiser and Teodoro decided to adopt, they both said there is nothing wrong with having biological children.
"Whether having biological children or adopting, any time you have the chance to start a family, it's a blessing," Kreiser said.
Ivan Moore contributed to this story.
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