Staff Writer
FORT FAIRFIELD — Nearing the final phases of the adoption process, Shelly and Darren Condon of Fort Fairfield are hosting an old-fashioned, family “fun”raiser Sunday to help raise money to bring home their two Haitian daughters, Sheldine and Nephtalie.
A FAMILY “FUN”RAISER is planned from noon-4 p.m. this Sunday, Sept. 23, at 86 Maple Grove Road in Fort Fairfield to help Shelly and Darren Condon raise money to bring their soon-to-be adopted Haitian daughters home to Fort Fairfield. Activities include face painting, a pumpkin scavenger hunt, a bounce house, slip ‘n slide, horse rides, games and more. The Condons have been to Haiti twice this year and are fostering bonds with the 5-year-old girls. Pictured are, from left: Darren holding Sheldine, and Shelly with Nephtalie.
Sunday’s event will be held from noon-4 p.m. at 86 Maple Grove Road in Fort Fairfield. Admission is $5 per person or $15 per family.
Activities include face painting, a pumpkin scavenger hunt, a bounce house, slip ‘n slide, horse rides, games such as a sack race, a dunk tank and, tentatively, a cakewalk. All the activities are included in the admission price except for the dunk tank and the cakewalk, which carry an additional charge.
“We’ll also be selling hot dogs, chips, water and more,” said Condon. “We’re even having a photo booth. We wanted to do something fun to commemorate the event, so people can have their pictures taken and do funny things so we can do a scrapbook for the girls.”
The Condons have held a variety of fundraisers over the last year-and-a-half, but wanted to do something more family-based.
“We’ve done a spaghetti supper/silent auction, babysitting events, my husband has done carpentry side jobs to earn money, we’ve done bottle drives and other types of fundraisers,” said Condon, “and when we sat down to think of another big one, my sister, Tania Boardman, came up with the idea for a ‘fun-raiser.’
“She has two young daughters and she said, ‘You know, it’s hard to find family events to go to up here. They’re rare.’ She thought it would be a fun, family carnival event where families could come and spend time together and help us out, as well,” she said. “She felt this would be something she would be interested in going to with her family, and hopefully others will agree.”
In terms of the adoption, Condon said they’re still in the paperwork process.
“There’s a lot of different little legal steps with Haiti,” she said. “We just exited civil court where we were granted a favorable judgment to continue with the adoption. What we’re waiting for right now is for another legalization process and then they will issue the adoption decree. After we get that decree, the girls are legally ours in Haiti.
“I’d say we’re at least 85 percent done the process. No one tells us how long these steps take. It could take 13 days; it could take two months. They don’t give you any timeline, but we’re definitely on the downhill slope,” said Condon.
When the couple first started the adoption process, they were looking to adopt only one child.
“Now there’s two,” she said. “Sheldine and Nephtalie, or Neffy, aren’t sisters, but they’re only two months apart in age, and they’re both 5 years old. Darren and I have been to Haiti twice. We went over in February and again in May. Meeting them for the first time was the most overwhelming experience of my life. The minute we saw their picture in August 2011 when we got our referral, we felt like they were our daughters. It was like meeting somebody for the first time, but they were so familiar to you.
“We spent a week with them in February and started to build relationships and fostering a bond with them. It felt natural and like it was the way it was supposed to be and the way God had intended it. In May we continued to build the relationship, but leaving them was just brutal,” said Condon. “This is the hardest thing my husband and I have ever done, but also the most rewarding.”
Sheldine and Neffy, who speak Haitian Creole, are learning English.
“The orphanage does school every day and their teachers teach them in English, so they’re learning,” said Condon. “They can’t speak a whole lot right now. They can repeat you and can say their ABCs and sing some songs, and subsequently we have learned a few key phrases in Creole. However, the two weeks we’ve spent with them we never felt like we couldn’t communicate. It’s amazing.”
The Condons, who are optimistic the girls could be home in northern Maine as early as Christmas, invite everyone to Sunday’s “fun”raiser.
“This is open to anybody,” she said, “whether they know us or not. We want this to be a community event whether you’re from Presque Isle or Mars Hill or Fort Fairfield. We welcome everybody. This would be a fun way to make new friends and support us in this venture.”
In the event of rain, the fundraiser will be rescheduled. For more information, call Condon at 554-7399.
