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This article was published Christmas Eve, in a newspaper in Scotland. I don’t know Margaret, but I applaud her efforts and wish her well. It’s no small feat to adopt older children OR to try and adopt from Kenya. She and her family are reaching out in other ways as well.
SUPERMUM Margaret Armour is trying to adopt three HIV orphans from Kenya even though she is already a mother of TWELVE.
Margaret was shocked by the plight of the children on a visit there in September.
Now she is trying to bring some of the magic of Christmas to them.
Margaret was told by the orphans that they didn’t expect Christmas presents because “Santa only visits muzungu (white) children.
Now her own brood have told her not to splash out on gifts for them but instead to send cash to Kenya.
Margaret, of Cumbernauld, near Glasgow, has sent her daughers Naomi, 21, and Erin, 17, to deliver presents to the shelter, which is southwest of the capital, Nairobi.
It will be the first Christmas away from home for the girls and Erin will celebrate her 18th birthday there.
Margaret said: “It broke my heart to hear these children say they never expect presents because Santa only visits white children.
“We decided to do something about that and raised enough money so that each child would have something to open on Christmas morning.
“The gifts aren’t anything grand. They are little things we have bought out of the pound shop like a bag of marbles or a doll or a small radio but to these kids it will mean the world.
“We’ve also got enough money left over to buy them 20 mattresses, two cows and a cow shed. This means the children will now get milk and be able to sleep on clean thick mattresses.
“At a time of year when everyone is getting so caught up in buying big gadgets and presents for their loved ones, I think the fact that you can change so many children’s lives with something as simple as a cow and a shed sums up the real meaning of Christmas.”
The article goes on to detail some of the process required for international adoption from Scotland, but also quotes the shelter’s executive founder Mary Muiruri, who said she was happy about the interest from the Armour family.
She said: “We are very pleased to see so much help coming from Scotland and to see such active girls as Margaret’s daughters.
“Now we can give the children a good Christmas with good food and cakes.
“They will all be able to open a present which will be a real treat.
“These children are very vulnerable. They are either orphaned by Aids or have been abandoned on to the streets.
“Some of them were child brides from Masai tribes who had been married off to grown men when they were only 10 years old.
“We have given them all a safe place to live and want to give them the access to education.
“With education they can grow up to lead lives full of dignity. The children are very bright. Some want to be doctors, lawyers or journalists.
“I know if we can just give them the boost they need they will all be able to reach their dreams.”
I hope that Scotland has good resources for children with post-institutionalized children and that the Armour family is successful not only in completing an adoption, but in parenting these kids. 
