(June 10, 2012,Nearly two years to the day Yodit Derese arrived in Oregon, the
Ethiopian native stands surrounded by the handful of people responsible
for giving her a new life. The once-disabled Derese is poised,
she is grateful, and she is tearful. "I say thank you, God, for all
these people in my life," she says. "I'm so happy to have this great
family."
It's a sunny June Sunday in Portland, and the group has
gathered at a party just for her. They celebrate the recently granted
indefinite asylum that allows her to stay in the U.S. for good,
culminating a three-year effort filled with uncertainty to improve her
well-being and give her opportunities she would never have in Ethiopia.
Before all this, Derese had been a crippled orphan living in poverty. To her, this group of doctors, tutors, lawyers and friends are now family, because they are the ones who paved the way three years ago for her journey.
Derese's introduction to the people who changed her life was in 2005, when Eric Shreves of North Portland first met the now 24-year-old in a mud hut in Ethiopia. Shreves was in the country to pick up Naomi, Derese's sister and an orphan he and his wife, Hilary, had adopted. From that moment, the family became determined to help Derese, who suffered from clubfoot, a congenital condition that causes one or both feet to twist out of place.
As a child, Derese underwent four surgeries to correct it, but her foot grew the wrong way and caused a limp. In Ethiopia, she couldn't work much and was considered a social outcast. When the family learned she was too old to be adopted, they looked for other options. At the very least, they wanted Derese to undergo surgery that would finally mend her foot and ease her life.
After several failed attempts to get her to the U.S., the Shreveses contacted U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who helped them get Derese a "humanitarian parole" designation that allowed her to fly to Portland in June 2010 for medical treatment. Read more from oregonlive »
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Before all this, Derese had been a crippled orphan living in poverty. To her, this group of doctors, tutors, lawyers and friends are now family, because they are the ones who paved the way three years ago for her journey.
Derese's introduction to the people who changed her life was in 2005, when Eric Shreves of North Portland first met the now 24-year-old in a mud hut in Ethiopia. Shreves was in the country to pick up Naomi, Derese's sister and an orphan he and his wife, Hilary, had adopted. From that moment, the family became determined to help Derese, who suffered from clubfoot, a congenital condition that causes one or both feet to twist out of place.
As a child, Derese underwent four surgeries to correct it, but her foot grew the wrong way and caused a limp. In Ethiopia, she couldn't work much and was considered a social outcast. When the family learned she was too old to be adopted, they looked for other options. At the very least, they wanted Derese to undergo surgery that would finally mend her foot and ease her life.
After several failed attempts to get her to the U.S., the Shreveses contacted U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who helped them get Derese a "humanitarian parole" designation that allowed her to fly to Portland in June 2010 for medical treatment. Read more from oregonlive »
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