Specialists in special children
Hubleys to welcome another blind child into their family
By Jennifer L. Boen
of The News-Sentinel
Books fill shelves, toy boxes and colorful plastic bins in Rebecca and Ryan Hubley's two-story home on a tree-lined boulevard in south
On the living-room walls are large framed photographs of the blond, blue-eyed Hubley children: Hannah, 6, Micah, 4, and Luca, 14 months. One other photo stands out from the rest. It is of a chubby-cheeked black baby with dark curls and chestnut eyes.
“That's Jonas, my brother,” Micah said. He's eagerly anticipating the arrival of Jonas sometime in November.
The 20-month-old lives in an orphanage in
Adopting a special-needs child for the Hubleys seemed the natural thing to do, the couple said. Hannah was born blind. Micah has spina bifida.
“For us, it's no big deal. I mean, this is just normal for us,” Ryan Hubley said. “Looking from the outside in, I can see how people would wonder why we would want to do this, but this is all we know.”
In a toy box, colored blocks with painted numbers mingle with foam-like shapes on which are raised Braille letters. Micah knows Clifford is red. Hannah just as quickly calls out the color of every shape, her small fingers moving over the raised dots.
The cause of Hannah's blindness is a genetic disorder affecting about one in a million people: familial exudative vitrealretinopathy, or FEVR. When the Hubleys were expecting Micah, they knew he had a one in four chance of having the disorder. Another kind of disability was not foremost on their minds.
But an early ultrasound showed Micah had an opening at the base of his spine, the hallmark of spina bifida. They accepted the news, asked for prayer and support from family and friends, and waited until his birth to know how severe the spina bifida would be and whether he also would be blind.
Micah's eyes are fine. His spina bifida is a milder case; he can walk. However, the birth defect affects the nerves to his bladder and bowel, and his gait is somewhat different from other children. Luca has no apparent physical disabilities.
The Hubleys wanted more children, but after Luca's birth decided if they added to the family it would be through adoption. Ryan wanted to do an international adoption.
In September, Rebecca, a professional artist/photographer and adjunct
Jonas' picture appeared. When Rebecca read he is blind, “I just knew he was the one,” she said. The couple prayed over the matter, discussing the challenges of raising a third child with disabilities. But the day after Rebecca saw Jonas' picture, Ryan called her from
“He said, ‘I can't get (Jonas) off my mind,' ” Rebecca recalled. “Then he said, ‘I can't think of any reason why not to do it.' ”
Rebecca knows
By phone, Dixie Bickel, director and founder of God's Littlest Angels, explained that Jonas was developmentally delayed and not walking yet. Rebecca knew that is common for a blind baby. The two chatted about Hannah and what therapies helped her - therapies Jonas has not had access to. Bickel took notes in hopes of implementing some with Jonas.
Because Jonas is a special-needs child, the Haitian government can expedite a medical visa for him. In addition, $5,000 is available through God's Littlest Angels to cover expenses related to getting Jonas to the
Now the Hubleys await approval for his visa. Because Jonas' parents are unknown and cannot sign papers, the visa takes a little longer. Rebecca hopes to fly to
Hannah and Micah talk excitedly about the arrival of their new brother, although Hannah said she wishes she was gaining a sister, not another brother. Micah is already learning the role of sighted guide for his older sister. He's happiest when lots of people are around, and one day asked Rebecca, “Could we bring home all the kids who don't have a mommy?”
Hannah is the only child in Fort Wayne Community Schools with 100 percent vision loss, school officials said. Until Jonas is tested, the Hubleys won't know how extensive his loss of vision is or if he has additional problems.
“It doesn't matter,” Rebecca said. “We're not sending him back. We know this is what God wants us to do. We have so much to offer him. Hannah can teach him Braille, and Micah said he will teach Jonas how to play games. We're a team.”
