A 13-year old boy who was adopted along with his sister has found sudden fame on the web after a “newborn” photo session garnered thousands of likes on Facebook.
Latrell Higgins and his younger sister, Chanya, were adopted by a Florida family recently, and when the mom, Kelli–who was pregnant–talked to the family about how she was setting up a photo session for the baby’s arrival. When one of Kelli’s biological children–she and her husband already had five–suggested that they do the same for Latrell, Kelli jumped on the idea.
“I thought it was funny and that it would be a good idea,” Mrs Higgins said. “I was very sad too because I didn’t have any photos of him. I think it’s really hard to have children and not know what they looked like when they were younger.”
Mrs. Higgins said it’s rare for older children to be adopted, and that’s why she and her husband wanted to do it even though they were already expecting a sixth child of their own.
“These children, once they get past a certain age, they don’t find homes and they age out of foster care,” she said. “They have to figure out the world on their own and there’s no one to go back to as an adult. Where do you go for Christmas? It’s just horrible, it’s heartbreaking.”
The family says they’re hoping that now that they photos have gone viral, they’ll help raise awareness about older-child adoption. Indeed, Latrell and his family have garnered tons of support from people all over the world after the photos began making the rounds on the web.
Image: Kelli Higgins Photography