Thankful for Ivan

A joy for God found tucked inside the hearts of a Medford family has inspired joy for a boy once living in an orphanage in another part of the world.
After two years of praying, waiting and planning, Stephen and Rebekah Zacharias and their three children, ages 17, 15 and 10, welcomed an addition to the family—a 5-year-old boy from Kyrgyzstan, a country in Central Asia. They picked up Ivan on July 17.
But just ask the family and you'll quickly find out this isn't just any adoption. The details leading up to the adoption are perhaps what makes this an incredibly heartwarming story, leaving the family radiating with joy and an abundance of thankfulness.
Gavin, who is 15 years old, was born with spina bifida, the most common permanently disabling congenital disorder. It's a condition that affects the spine and occurs when a developing baby's spinal cord fails to develop or close properly in the womb. About 1,400 children are born with it each year, and it affects one in 2,000 families.
Gavin's road through his short life has been anything but smooth. He's faced 35 surgeries, multiple invasive procedures and countless doctor visits. It's a sequence of events that has brought his family even closer together and left them with a heart of gold.
"He has far beyond defied the odds that have been stacked against him over the years," said Rebekah Zacharias of her son. "The number of people that he has touched and inspired over the years is humbling. He is a miracle."
 
Life Flipped Over
Before Gavin's birth, the Zachariases were missionaries in Thailand. Even though spina bifida happens right after conception, they did not have any clue he had the disease until he was born on Oct. 17, 2006. He immediately went into emergency surgery in Thailand.
One month later on Nov. 17, the Zacharias family packed up their belongings and headed back to the U.S. "We had two babies, four suitcases and wondered what in the world do we do now," Rebekah Zacharias said. "Our life was flipped upside down. It definitely was a shock to pick up and replant our lives."
But it was a move that became necessary for Gavin's life. They needed medical care back in the U.S. to keep Gavin alive.
Their journey back to the U.S. didn't come without a scare of a lifetime. At 4 months old, while living in Oklahoma, Gavin died in Rebekah's arms. "They had to resuscitate him," she said. "The trauma that he went through affected everyone. There were definitely some rough years."
Asked what pulled the family through the crisis, Stephen Zacharias said: "Our faith and trust in God. It's a lot on a family looking to God that everything is going to be okay. We're thankful that he is alive."
The family quickly moved again once they determined Minnesota would be able to provide better medical care. They found the care they needed at Gillette Children's hospital in St. Paul.
The Zachariases found the toughest years for Gavin were when he was younger, with the first year of his life being the worst.
"He couldn't communicate and he had pressure in the brain, which causes headaches," said Rebekah Zacharias.
Outside of dying in his mother's arms, another one of the worst years for Gavin came in 2017 when he faced seven major surgeries. Gavin can tell you about them all.
"Gavin's name means white hawk of battle, the name of one of King Arthur's knights who never gave up in battle," Rebekah Zacharias said. "This is truly Gavin," she added.
His battle involves physical therapy to work on strength and seeing specialists all the time. However, the good news is no surgeries are currently planned. "We don't know if or when it can happen," said Rebekah Zacharias, adding the last four years have been good.
Gavin has taken up hockey with the Minnesota Wild Sled Hockey team. It has been a paralympic sport for the past 10 years. The version of ice hockey uses double-blade sledges instead of skates and two sticks. Gavin's team is based in Coon Rapids. He has also traveled to Madison, Wis., and Florida to play hockey.
"He's definitely having fun and living life like he should," said Rebekah Zacharias. The sport is a family event where his sister gets the opportunity to push Gavin around on the ice.
Stephen Zacharias said players on Gavin's team have physical disabilities, with most of them with spina bifida. "We want to get him around people who are going through the same thing," he said. 
Living with a child with a disability requires many changes for the family. For the Zachariases, they had to find a house that was handicapped accessible, they had to move to find better medical care, their vehicles had to change along with adding various types of equipment. For example, the family has an electric stair chair leading from upstairs to the basement.
"Everything has to be (handicapped) accessible," Rebekah Zacharias said, noting they have a large garage filled with wheelchairs and equipment. "Extra man power is needed to help get from point A to point B."
 
Path to Adoption
The path to adoption for the Zacharias family has been rocky at best.
Adopting a child has been in the works for many years. "Before we were married, it was on our hearts separately that we were going to adopt," Stephen Zacharias said, adding it got set aside for a number of years.
Having their own child with spina bifida led the Zachariases to seek another child with the same disease through adoption.
"Our hearts went to kids with spina bifida," Rebekah Zacharias said. "We thought there has to be a boy with spina bifida that needs us."
The Zachariases began searching in the U.S. for a boy with spina bifida, but they had no luck. So they expanded their search internationally where they looked at orphanages that have kids with spina bifida. Soon they came across Ivan in an orphanage in Central Asia.
"We were terrified," Rebekah Zacharias said. "We thought how are we going to pay for this," she said, noting the average cost is $65,000 for travel and adoption fees.
They pulled out all the stops to make it happen.
In addition to both working, Stephen Zacharias at Federated Insurance and Rebekah Zacharias at Mayo Clinic, they found grants to help them out. Their work plans offered adoption benefits.
In 2019 and 2020, the family joined together in the kitchen to make pumpkin rolls and pies. They filled the freezer with the treats.
"We had to buy a freezer just to hold the pumpkin rolls," Rebekah Zacharias said.
They took out a second mortgage on their house to secure some of the money for the adoption. "We felt so strongly about this child," Rebekah Zacharias said.
Part of what has brought them to adopting a child with spina bifida is how they are often treated as outcasts. "These kids are not accepted in society," she said. "They are pushed off into institutions."
The couple found 65 kids from birth to 4 years old with special needs in their adoption search.
If the obstacles weren't already enough, a worldwide pandemic added to the frustration. When COVID-19 hit, the family's adoption plans came to a screeching halt.
 
Court Battle
Once they began the process to adopt Ivan, they found themselves engrossed in the battle of their lifetime.
"We were fighting for him in court," Stephen Zacharias said. "We were on trial."
Adding to the complexity of the battle, they had to appear in a foreign court where no one spoke English. An interpreter assisted the family in court.
The family later found out there was a "big power struggle" between the judge and the representative of the adoption agency, which complicated matters in their quest to adopt Ivan. "We had strikes against us," Stephen Zacharias said. 
Court officials, the family said, are often skeptical of people coming into their country wanting to adopt. At the very least, families must prove they have good intentions for wanting to adopt. "They didn't understand why we would want him," Rebekah Zacharias said.
This is where Gavin came into the picture. In court, the Zachariases showed pictures of Gavin and explained he has the same disability that Ivan experiences. "We can give him the tools to be successful," they argued in court.
The family also came up against the barrier of adoption not being widely accepted in Asia.
"You feel like you are kind of undercover trying to rescue this kid," Rebekah Zacharias said. "We're doing what God told us and we're along for the ride."
The Zacharias family made three trips to Asia before the adoption was finalized. They included a bonding trip, the two-day court trial and the last one to pick him up.
The bonding trip consisted of spending two hours a day for 10 days in the orphanage with Ivan.
"He was excited, but he was in shock," Rebekah Zacharias said of Ivan's first encounter with them. "He pulled down his face mask to see my face and put his cheek on mine and held on. It was sweet."
Rebekah Zacharias said the family knew it was meant to be even before meeting Ivan, but the cheek encounter was just "the icing on the cake."
They showed Ivan a photo book of his new grandparents. When he looked through the book and saw pictures of his new family, Ivan blurted out, "Babushka," which means grandma. "He was just so excited knowing that he would finally get a grandparent," Rebekah Zacharias said.
She said Ivan's biological mother gave him up at birth. The father signed off all rights to him at 3 months old.
Nearly two years after they began the adoption process, COVID-19 subsided enough for the judge to sign off and allow the adoption. Finally, on July 17, Ivan was able to go to the other side of the green doors of the orphanage and come home to the U.S. with his new family.
Without the adoption, the Zachariases said Ivan would have been destined to end up with no family and find himself on the streets when he turned 16.
"One thing that is amazing is that Ivan's name means God's gracious gift," said Mackenzie, Ivan's new sister.
 "He is a light wherever he goes," said Rebekah Zacharias.
 
A New Life
Not only has life in America been a blessing for Ivan, but it has also been equally gratifying for his new family of five.
Ivan initially, Rebekah Zacharias said, did not understand what a family unit entails because he has never experienced much at all. His first years of life were spent in a very poor country where they have some of the worst air quality in the world, Stephen Zacharias said. 
"His life consisted of the walls of the orphanage," said Rebekah Zacharias, adding that Ivan's social skills were severely lacking as he didn't even know how to play with toys or what to do with color crayons.
But Ivan has quickly taken a liking to his new surroundings.
Rebekah Zacharias said Ivan has bonded well with his new brothers and sister. He currently attends preschool in Owatonna.
With braces on his legs and crutches in hand, Ivan whips around the house as if nothing ever happened to him. As a fallback, he "bunny hops" a lot across the floor in learning how to maneuver around in his new world. He also utilizes a small wheelchair to get around.
The family feels fortunate that Gavin can show Ivan the ropes of getting around. They are noticing Ivan looks up to Gavin. "It's super neat to have that relationship between them," Rebekah Zacharias said.
"Everything is so new and exciting for him."
His first major holiday was Halloween, which the family immensely enjoyed with Ivan. "He was about as giddy as you could be," Stephen Zacharias said. "He dumped a bucket of candy over his head."
"He is the heart of our family," Mackenzie said.
Rebekah Zacharias added, "Our heart is for children, mainly kids with special needs. These kids are amazing… they enjoy life and thrive."
Mackenzie said as soon as Ivan reached out and touched her, she knew it was right for the family.
Stephen Zacharias said one of the family's greatest fears was how the adoption would change their family.
When asked where his passion developed, Stephen Zacharias didn't miss a beat pointing directly at Gavin. "His life was flipped upside down. Being around kids with special needs hooked my heart."
Mackenzie couldn't agree more.
"I wouldn't change any of it," she said.
The family has adopted a motto: "I cannot be defeated, and I will not quit."
"They don't know how they touch so many lives through their difficulties in life," Stephen Zacharias said, referring to both of his sons with spina bifida.
Gavin and Ivan share a room and "they fight like brothers," Stephen  Zacharias said. But most important, the family has found that the duo is an inspiration to other kids. "They inspire and encourage others," Stephen Zacharias said, adding he hopes they pass it on to other people.
Life around the Zacharias household is fulfilling for all of them. "We do everything together as a family," Rebekah Zacharias said.
"Our catchphrase is just roll with it," said Mackenzie.
The 16-year-old is already using the experience to map out her future.
"I have a big heart for kids. I want to go into healthcare to help kids. I feel it's my calling to go into nursing."
For Stephen Zacharias, the entire experience has been eye-opening. "It has really opened our eyes to see things you don't normally see," he said. "It opens the door to hurting people."
Despite the struggles with both Gavin and, more recently, Ivan's adoption, Stephen Zacharias doesn't regret anything about it. "I wouldn't give it up for the world."
As for other parents considering adoption, Stephen Zacharias offered this advice. "Follow your heart. Even though you think it's going to be hard, there is a way and the joy at the end of the journey is great," he said, adding that parents should not be afraid to jump into adoption.
"It takes a big heart to adopt," Mackenzie said.
People who have come into contact with members of the Zacharias family are taking notice of them. Owatonna area real estate agent Gail Buckingham helped the family find a new home and has connected with them in a profound way. Buckingham also has a child with spina bifida.
"The Zacharias family has always had a joy for God in their hearts," Buckingham said. "They breathe compassion for others."  
 
Thankful Hearts
Gavin also shared some advice for people to consider.
"Just because we have a disability doesn't mean we are limited," Gavin said.
As the family heads into this Thanksgiving season, they couldn't be more thankful for what God has blessed them with. "We are just thankful to have a great family," Stephen Zacharias said. "We are thankful to be able to save a life and touch somebody's life. We have so many stories on how God has blessed us."
"I never want them to be held back by anything," he said. "There is always a way to do something."
Mackenzie may be a teenager, but she is already seeing the benefits that Ivan has brought to the family.
"Our family bond is so much more because of the adoption process," she said. "He is a special kid — crazy, wild and adventurous."
Added 10-year-old Owen, "If you need a smile, all you need to do is look at Ivan."