Slamming open the front door, sophomore Gary Reilly was greeted by his younger brother, who tackled him to the ground and nuzzled his head into his stomach. They spoke short greetings as they took in each others company after being separated for so long. Gary’s sister freshman Cindy Reilly and their younger brother Austin had been in different foster homes. The first time they saw each other in four months was the day Gary was adopted.

Gary and Cindy were both adopted from Kansas City by Lisa and Dennis Reilly. Uniquely all four children are biologically related, having the same mother. They were adopted at the ages of three and two, along with their younger brother Austin and sister Maddie, who are both in middle school. Cindy and Austin were at the same foster care house so they were able to be adopted at the same time. Lisa and Dennis then searched for Gary who was staying at a different foster care house in order to adopt him and reunite him with his siblings.

Dennis and Lisa always had wanted to adopt, but after Lisa was diagnosed with breast cancer nearly 16 years ago, they knew it was their best option. At first Lisa was disappointed that she couldn’t adopt more than three children, since she had wanted four, but she then found out that the birth mother of all the siblings was pregnant and going to give the child up for adoption. They were then able to adopt all four siblings.

“I think we are closer than other siblings are with each other because we have gone through this journey with each other,” Gary said. “I know that it has been a long time since we were adopted, but we’ve always stuck by each other.”

Many students, however, do not know that Gary and Cindy are not only adopted, but are blood-related, having fathers of two different ethnicities. They often find themselves having to explain to their peers their stories and why their family decided to adopt.

Gary and Cindy also share their stories with other students who are adopted, such as senior Katrina and sophomore Brandon Schuster. Katrina and Brandon were both adopted when they were 13 months old from the European country Moldova. Katrina was adopted from the city Chisinau, while Brandon was adopted from Balti.

“In order to adopt me, my parents had to fill out an application through Special Additions Adoptions Agencies, do a background check and go to court over in Moldova in order to approve the adoption,” Katrina said. “They had to go back to the United States and wait 30 days before they were able to fly back and get me.” Katrina and Brandon were adopted after their adoptive mother thought she was unable to have children. They are not related but still feel like a family. In kindergarten, they both were told they were adopted when their parents gave them a book about the country they were from.

“I have been given the freedom to be whoever I want,” Katrina said. “It has also allowed me to have two loving parents to provide and care for me.”

Both the Reillys and the Schusters have special traditions celebrating the dates in which they were adopted. When the Reillys were younger, their parents would dress them up in matching shirts that said “brother one, sister two, brother three and sister four” and take them to Worlds of Fun the date after they were adopted. The Schusters would go to summer and Christmas get-togethers through Special Additions with other families who were adopted through that agency.

Growing up being adopted never caused any of these students to feel out of place. The students have great bonds with their adoptive parents. To Katrina, her adoptive parents feel like her birth parents.

“My family is my family,” Katrina said, “I am so thankful for everything they have done for me and I love them.”

All four students believe adoption is important and a great way to give a better life to a child who deserves a second chance. Katrina hopes to adopt a child with special needs in order to provide a better life for him or her and to give him or her a chance at a happy life, just like any other child.

“It’s important to know that someone is there for you, even if it’s not your birth parents,” Gary said. “I think we were adopted so we could have a better home and be safer. Or maybe someone lost their kid and wanted to have another kid but they couldn’t and so they felt loved when having adopted a kid.”