Every semester, Adoptions From The Heart awards a scholarship to birth parents who are pursuing a degree in higher education. Since the fund started in 2014, AFTH has awarded over 27 scholarships. This semester, AFTH selected birth father Keyur Adhyapak to receive the scholarship for a second semester. This award will help him build on last semester and further his degree in mortuary science.
Keyur’s Story
When Keyur and his girlfriend found out they were pregnant and unable to parent, they knew that adoption would be the best option for them. This decision, however, was hard and emotionally taxing for Keyur. This experience pushed him to begin pursuing a career that gave him more fulfillment and pride. He wanted to provide for his family and make his birth son proud. Keyur is always emphasizing that he wants to be someone his birth son looks up to, and he wants him to understand that making an adoption plan was the best option. Keyur was carrying the financial burden of school on his own until he was informed about AFTH’s Birth Parent Scholarship. The scholarship allowed him to focus on his education.
“[The scholarship] is lifting a huge burden off,” said Keyur. “Eventually I’ll have to pay the money I borrow back, but this money I don’t have to”.
Recipients can be selected up to eight times, though it’s not a guarantee that once selected for the scholarship that it will continue for the rest of their schooling. Keyur decided to try his luck at applying a second time. When he was selected, it gave him the confidence he was doing the right thing.
“I feel extremely grateful,” said Keyur. “It gives me a lot of confidence that you guys keep awarding me money and that’s a lot of motivation for me to keep going and pushing for my degree.”
Future Plans
Keyur has experienced many changes since receiving the scholarship last year. He is about to enter his second and final year of school before he begins applying to mortician school. This past year, Keyur had an unofficial internship as a mortician assistant. While at the funeral home, he was able to work alongside morticians and help organize funeral services. His upcoming plans are to work at a local hospital in the surgery and trauma unit to gain more clinical experience. He hopes to use this experience to guide his future endeavors. Currently, he is considering pathology or research routes.
Adoptions From The Heart provides the Birth Parent Scholarship as part of its many services to support birth parents beyond their placement. Helping birth parents succeed is important to AFTH, and that’s why it prioritizes continuing to raise funds for the scholarship.
“It’s really nice to work with AFTH because they’re not just a one and done” said Keyur. “They keep in contact.”
To donate to the Birth Parent Scholarship Fund and help more people like Keyur realize their potential, you can donate to the fund on our website here.
