Family makes it home from Ghana before all flights to Canada grounded (4 photos)

The Thiessen family, who waited almost nine months in Ghana on a visa for their second adopted son, Samuel, are finally back home in Canada. 

After a 32-hour adventure home, the Thiessens say they are glad to be home safe in Bradford. 

Robert Thiessen and his wife, Lisa, along with their seven-year-old son Solomon, made the trek to Lagos, Nigeria last July, anticipating to stay up to a year while they waited for their newly adopted son, Samuel’s visa to be processed.

In September, they decided to rent an apartment in Ghana, one of the few places Samuel was allowed to go with his Nigerian passport, while waiting for Canadian Immigraion and and Canadian High Commission to verify the adoption paperwork. 

Fast forward to March and the Thiessen family was still waiting for the visa to be processed. Robert had seeked the help of friends and family back in Canada, urging them to write in to their local MPs to expedite their visa application approval so they could get back home safely amidst the global pandemic. 

On March 25, the family received their letter of approval and the following day were summoned to the High Commission where they received a facilitation visa. On Monday March 30, the family boarded a plane in Accra, Ghana at 7:30 a.m., flew to Cameroon, and from there to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. 

“We got off the plane, walked as fast as we could with a three-year-old, passed through security — two times, begged an Ethiopian Airline agent to have us sit together, and then back on a plane for a 15.5-hour flight to Toronto,” said Robert. 

“Our trip consisted of five different countries: Ghana to Cameroon, Cameroon to Ethiopia, Ethiopia to Ireland (fuel stop) and then Ireland to Canada."

They landed in Toronto on March 31 at 7:30 a.m. 

And the family made it back just in time, just as Ghana had announced there were no further flights planned to get Canadians out of the country. 

“It is great to be home,” said Robert. Although it more 'anti-climatic' than they had originally planned.

"Before COVID-19, we had planned a big party at the airport," said Robert. 

You can follow the Thiessen family and their adventures 

"Instead, we just walked into a rather bare hall, out the door, and my friend dropped off our car."

The family is currently staying in an AirBnB in Barrie for their mandatory two-week quarantine. They hope to eventually settle into the area and find a permanent home, where they hope to start the next chapter of their lives.

"It is great to be home. I can’t tell you how great it is."

Robert has a blog documenting the entire family's experience over the past year. He also writes about his experience with adoption and his attempts at living life more courageously. You can check it out here.