Michael and Monica Simonsen, the Baltimore couple who have been trying to adopt a Haitian orphan toddler nearly all his life, have happy news -- if all goes well, they're bringing the boy home tonight.

Joe Burris spoke with the couple by phone earlier today and filed this report:

Michael Simonsen traveled to Haiti hoping to bring home Stanley Hermane, a 21-month-old who had been at an orphanage for most of his life. He and a couple of other adoptive fathers were able to bring seven Haitian orphans -- far fewer than they expected -- to the U.S. from Port au Prince early Monday morning. The Simonsens spoke about reuniting with Stanley this afternoon at Orlando International Airport, while awaiting a flight to Baltimore.

The joy of finally bringing Stanley come did not come without its struggles, the Simonsens said.
The couple flew to Fort Lauderdale on Saturday and joined several other families and adoption agency personnel before the fathers flew to Port-au-Prince via private jet, arriving in a small airport on Saturday afternoon. They pitched tents in a small village at the airport for the night, then went to the U.S. Embassy on Sunday morning at 8 a.m. to get the adoption procedures in motion.

Michael said he saw Stanley at about 2 p.m., along with six other children who had been cleared for adoption and were brought to the embassy for photos.

“When they brought him over for his pictures, it was a little bit surreal,” said Michael. “I was excited but it felt bittersweet. Lots of kids were expecting to see their parents and they were not allowed to leave.”

Michael said that the agency he and Monica have been working with to bring Stanley home initially expected more than a dozen orphans to be cleared for adoption, with dozens more to follow.

Michael and the other fathers brought the seven orphans back to the U.S. on a midnight flight that carried about 80 other orphans. The flight had been scheduled to arrive in Miami (about half an hour from Fort Lauderdale) but instead arrived in Orlando -- more than four hours away -- at 3 a.m.

They didn’t get out of customs until 8 p.m.

Monica Simonsen drove to Orlando and met up with her family.

“By the time I got to see him, we were just so tired,” said Monica. “Stanley was sleeping. We had just seen him months ago, so it felt normal. The next day, I woke up and realized that I didn’t have to say goodbye to him anymore.”

She said that Stanley was congested but added, “He’s doing great.”

Michael Simonsen said that it seemed ironic that he would touch down in the U.S. with Stanley in Orlando. “We were joking that maybe we should just go ahead and take them all to Disney World,” he said.

(Photo of the Simonsens with Stanley courtesy of the Simonsens)