KIMT

By Mike Bunge

WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar recognized Tamara and Jeramy Lawson of Byron as this year's Angels in Adoption Minnesota honorees at the annual Angels in Adoption celebration.

The event, hosted by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, highlighted the Lawsons' journey to adopt their son, Jiang Li, from China. The Lawsons faced delays in adopting Jiang Li, a boy with physical disabilities, due to the pandemic. However, after years of waiting, they traveled to China and brought him home at the age of nine.

“Every child deserves a loving home, a nurturing family and a bright future,” said Klobuchar. “Tamara and Jeramy Lawson waited years to be united with their son Jiang Li, and as he strived to become more independent they provided him with the support he needed – including adaptive equipment purchased with a grant from Children’s Home Adoption Support Fund. Since then, their son has gone from being 20% independent to about 80% independent. If that doesn’t show the power of a loving family, I don’t know what does.”

Klobuchar, Co-Chair of the Congressional Adoption Caucus, has assisted over 1,500 Minnesota families with adoption cases. She has been advocating for the completion of pending adoption cases affected by China's decision to end its intercountry adoption program. Many of these children face the risk of aging out of care systems without permanent families.

In March, Klobuchar led a letter with other caucus leaders urging President Trump to encourage the Chinese government to finalize pending adoption cases, a letter supported by more than 100 members of Congress.