Suzanne Weddle

Washington State, USA

Suzanne Weddle was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. In 1986, at the age of 25, she became a disciple and a member of the Phoenix Church of Christ. She met her husband Dave through the church and they were married and

have three children, Ryan (34), Eric (32) and Shaina (30) whom they adopted from India in 2000.

Dave and Suzanne retired in 2021 and relocated to Spokane Washington and are currently members of the Spokane Christian Church where they serve as a shepherding couple and small group leaders.

After two pregnancies that left Suzanne on multiple weeks of bedrest, she and Dave decided that they would adopt their third child through Hope For Children. After hearing stories of the plight of so many children needing loving families, God placed it on their hearts to adopt a girl from a country where girls were not easily adoptable. This led to their choice to adopt from India. After two years of paperwork and home studies, in January 2000 Dave and Suzanne travelled to new Delhi India to meet their new 5 year old daughter Shaina.

After arriving home, the challenges of adoption issues and behaviors arose and created a stressful home environment and affected the whole family in ways they couldn’t foresee. The timing of the adoption and the changes in the church in 2003 created a perfect storm of challenges to Suzanne’s faith, relationships and parenting. Through it all, Suzanne found her way back to a close relationship with God and other sisters in the church and now has a close relationship with all three of her children. Suzanne shares her story of the highs and lows of being an adoptive mom.

Weathering the Storms of Adoptive Parenting

James 1:27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. Adopting a child allows us to experience the nature of God in a way that inspires us and also challenges our hearts and faith. Becoming an adoptive parent usually starts with this desire to care for an orphan that has little hope of a bright future without a loving family to take them into their lives and hearts. But adopting a child that has undergone loss and trauma is not always smooth sailing. In this class, Suzanne will share her journey through the highs and lows of being an adoptive mother and how she’s grown closer to God as a result of the challenges. If you have adopted a child, this class will hopefully help you feel understood, encouraged and inspired as you grow in God’s love for his children.