Davis Moon
Who is Davis Moon?
Davis Kane Moon was born on a cot in a cinder block and concrete room early one Sunday morning while his extended family was at a church service. His grandmother had gone to ask a midwife to help and in her absence, his birthmother gave birth to “Adem”. Like so many children, Davis was born into circumstances that required his focus be on survival. Awassa, Ethiopia sits on Lake Awassa approximately 5 hours by car south of the capitol of Addis Ababa. This is Davis’ birth home.
In Davis’ first 16 months, he experienced overwhelming love from his birth family – especially his grandmother and 4-year-old brother. Davis lived in a small room with no running water shared by 4 uncles, his birthmother, his grandfather, his grandmother and his brother. Davis’ birthfather died when
Davis was 12 months old. There is no doubt that Davis was an extremely loved and cared for little boy with tons of personality and endless potential.
Davis’ early life was not without challenges
He dealt with Hepatitis A, parasites, open sores and malnutrition as a baby. His family provided all they could for Davis. Ultimately, they loved Davis enough to allow him to come to America and start a new life. Several social workers tried unsuccessfully to convince his birth mother to keep Davis in Awassa. Davis’ birth mother was so determined that Davis would have a better life than she could provide that she found an orphanage that exclusively matched children with American families. On April 26, 2007 she surrendered Davis to Horizon House Orphanage in Addis Ababa. She would make the 5 hour trip to Addis Ababa more than once to visit Davis at Horizon House before he went hom
e to America.
After 10 weeks at Horizon House, Davis’ parents arrived to bring him home. It was easily the most important moment in his parent’s lives as they saw him for the first time on June 30, 2007. Davis was 17 months old and beginning a new life with access to medical care, education and boundless love.
Today, Davis is 100% healthy and is thriving. He adores his dogs, goats, cows and donkey and lives every moment to it’s absolute fullest. He is an incredible athlete and swims almost every day. He loves to travel and enjoyed a reunion with his birth family in September of 2008 in Ethiopia. They marveled at his progress. One activity that Davis relishes each day is reading time before bed each night.
Davis Kane is named after his step-grandfather – Luther Davis and his paternal grandmother – Anne Kane. These people played an important role in the lives of his parents. Both made Davis’ parent’s feel loved and valued as unique individuals. Although they are no longer with us, they continue to inspire and inform Davis’ family life today. Their expression of acceptance, warmth and healthy ambition are the very sentiments driving the Davis Moon Project.
Books play an essential role in unlocking the unrealized potential in each and every child. Delivering books to impoverished children impresses upon them that someone cares and sees value in their lives. Please join Davis and our volunteers in our efforts to give the forgotten children of Ethiopia the gift of literacy.