LOUISVILLE, KY. (WHAS11) – After a long, drawn out, and complicated adoption process, a Louisville family returns home with their new, 16-month-old son.
Aaron and Nichole Marshall returned home very relieved and with a word of warning for those interested in adopting.
The family thought adopting the Ethiopian child would be a nine month process but instead it took two years!
"It turned into a real mess of bureaucracy and funk. It hasn't been fun" said Aaron Marshall.
From the Ethiopian courts to trouble with UNICEF and the US Embassy, the family has been through so much in their effort to give their son a better life.
The crowd of family and friends gathered at the Louisville Airport to meet the family’s newest addition, 16-month-old Zurich. As Zurich gazed at his new surroundings, his mom and dad reflected on the journey to get him here.
Nichole had been in Ethiopia since November 13. Zurich's adoption was approved November 17, and Aaron arrived in Ethiopia on December 23. From then until now, there were Visa issues, Embassy problems, and a tormenting court process.
“What happened to us over the last several months was completely inappropriate. Our government, UNICEF, and the [US] Embassy should be held responsible for it and should be accountable for it. We'd really like to see something change so more children can find loving homes like Zurich has," said Aaron.
Those troubles behind them now, the Marshall's look forward to a new life with their new son.
"We've been with him well enough so he knows us well enough he's not freaking out, so it feels pretty good actually. It feels awesome," added Aaron.
The family encourages people to adopt, and plan to use their story to alert others of troubles that could come with the process.
