The Magic of Adoption

Pat Williams is the Senior Vice-President and co-founder of the Orlando Magic pro-basketball organization. Pat and his wife Ruth are also the parents of 19 children, 14 of which have been adopted from other countries. Pat originally had no desire to adopt. However, once his mind was changed he developed a passion for adopting international children and getting them out of the poor situations in which they were living. The Williams family is composed of children from South Korea, Romania, the Philippines and Brazil.

Sarah and Andrew were the first children to be adopted into the Williams family. They came from South Korea at the ages of 2 and 3. Along with their sister Dani, who was one of the last to be adopted from Brazil, they talk about growing up in such a large, diverse family. Stephanie Simmons came into the family 12 years ago when Pat and Ruth were married. Originally an only child, Stephanie easily transitioned to having 18 brothers and sisters. To this day, the family still spends as much time together as possible by vacationing, going to Magic basketball games and spending weekends together.

With eight grandchildren now blessing the family, Pat and Ruth have seen the generational impact of adoption. Their grandchildren will grow up surrounded by a large, diverse family as a result of international adoption. They encourage other families to explore international adoption. They’ve seen the lasting impact it can have, not only on the adopted children’s lives, but also on the entire family.

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