At just 24 years old, Chelsea Haley, a new teacher, adopts her student and his brother. It’s a decision that sounds crazy and cost her entire life’s savings. But Chelsea was following God’s call. And now, this unconventional family is back with an exciting update to one of the best positive news stories!
Chelsea Haley joined Teach For America after God placed a call on her heart to make a difference in low-income schools.
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That’s what led her to Jerome Robinson.
Teacher Adopts Student And His Baby Brother
Jerome started out as the teacher’s “problem child.” The rowdy student caused so much trouble in her fourth-grade classroom, Chelsea nearly quit teaching altogether.
But as Chelsea worked with Jerome, she started making progress and also began realizing his troubled behavior stemmed from a difficult situation at home.
Life at home wasn’t just hard for Jerome, but for his baby brother, Jace, too. And the more Chelsea learned about her “problem student,” the more she wanted to help. That’s when God came to Chelsea in her dreams and revealed that He wanted this teacher to adopt her student.
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After that, Chelsea Haley emptied her savings account and drained her 401k to fulfill God’s call. She brought both Jerome and his brother Jace into her home and into her heart.
“I never thought I’d be a single mom at age 24,” Chelsea said. “Especially of two boys, one of which was my 12-year-old student. And the other one who was only a year-and-a-half.”
God’s plans often sound crazy to us because we can’t think outside of our own limitations. But when we obey, He will always see us through. So, Chelsea stepped out in faith even though it cost her everything.
"My faith played a huge role in this whole situation, and I really felt God calling me into motherhood," she says.
Read the full story of how this teacher adopted her ‘problem student‘.
Teacher Makes Personal Strides
God’s plan isn’t always the easiest. But it is always the most rewarding.
The attorney’s fees to cover a teacher adopting her student and his baby brother devoured all of Chelsea Haley’s life savings. After that, she relied heavily on credit cards while raising them. Add that her deferred student loans and Chelsea was in quite a bit of debt.
She says it was all worth it, though.
“Being their mom is the greatest blessing of my life,” Chelsea says. “I get to wake up in the morning and love two little guys.”
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But Chelsea didn’t want to stay in debt. So she made sacrifices.
The young teacher took on extra jobs tutoring and delivering groceries to earn extra cash. She, Jerome, and Jace even moved in with her parents.
The hard work paid off. In addition to providing a loving home for Jerome (17) and Jace (6), Chelsea also reached her goal of becoming debt-free. She finally paid off the $48,683.41 she owed in credit cards and student loans.
“It doesn’t feel real yet,” Chelsea said. “It’s so amazing. I even logged into my student loans and it said, ‘Cleared. Zero balance.'”
With one major goal down, Chelsea Haley is now focusing on saving up enough money to buy a home and put Jerome and Jace through college.
“It allows me to focus on the boys’ future,” she said. “Saving money for them, and not spending it on my past.”
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Not only has Chelsea Haley showed Jerome and Jace what unconditional love looks like but she’s now showing them how to be responsible with the gifts God gives you. And I’m sure God isn’t done blessing this beautiful family!
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h/t: Good Morning America
Featured Image: Facebook/Chelsea Haley