JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Two brothers have thrived in Jacksonville for more than a decade after being adopted together. One foundation helped make that a reality.
Dawson and Dalton are inseparable and living with their forever family.
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They were adopted 10 years ago by Robbin and Steve Brydges when the brothers were 8 and 10 years old. They moved from Ohio to Jacksonville.
“I am honored that my husband and I were able to make the choice to be able to keep the boys together,” Robbin Brydges said. “And provide them with the best home and future that we could for them.”
The Brydges were able to make that adoption happen through the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, specifically with its signature program called Wendy’s Wonderful Kids.
The foundation’s goal is to get kids lingering in foster care into permanent homes. According to the agency, more than 70% of the children it serves have at least one special need.
Dalton has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. He is also nonverbal, legally blind, and quadriplegic.
“I had asked [the foundation] to send me the child that I could have the most positive impact on,” Robbin Brydges said. “That’s what I asked for.”
She said after the adoption was finalized and the boys moved in, Dalton was very afraid. She says he did not know what to expect. Even with him being nonverbal, he would always cry, whether he was uncomfortable, in pain or just scared.
“He got to know that he was in a safe place,” Robbin Brydges said. “He got to know that he was loved and he was wanted. Dawson refused to leave foster care without his brother. Just because [the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption] did not post them together, they did not shy away from telling me about Dalton.”
She said the Brydges family is whole and constructed perfectly.
Dawson loves football and attends The Bolles School. His mother said he is always willing to help take care of his brother.
Dalton loves music and Mickey Mouse. He also plays baseball at the Field of Dreams in St. Johns County.
Dalton is now in the first year of his adult transition program.
He recently had surgery that now allows him to stand with assistance.
“Anytime we came upon a struggle or what have you, or that kind of thing, let me tell you, it all worked out,” Robbin said.
According to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, more than 100,000 children are lingering in foster care across the country.
Of that number, at least 20,000 young people age out of the system without a family every single year.
The foundation said 1 in 5 youth will be homeless after age 18 without the support of a permanent family.