In 2018, Dominique and Kevin Gill from Nashville, Tennessee, opened their home to a 10-year-old boy who had been in custody half of his life.

Andrew was a withdrawn kid who’s been through a lot of trauma.

The child was only six years old when his parents’ legal rights were terminated. Moreover, Andrew’s four siblings were adopted right away, and he was left alone to wait for his forever home.

“People would read his file and get scared away. But I knew he was a good child,” explained Mrs. Gill.

This is a heartwarming story about a family who didn’t want to give up on a kid who needed love.

Andrew was 10 when he first arrived at the Gills’ home.

“During his first week with us, he sat in his room with the door closed and looked at old pictures. He didn’t want to talk,” Dominique told TODAY Parents.

The boy was visibly scared, and he didn’t want to communicate with his foster parents. Dominique and Kevin went through Andrew’s file and found a lot of information about the poor kid whose siblings were already adopted.

Every child needs to grow up in a loving home, surrounded by kindness, support, and understanding. But Andrew had never had that.

The boy was confused, but Mr. and Mrs. Gill were determined to get through Andrew’s walls. They opened their hearts to him, hoping that Andrew would eventually do the same.

One day, The Gills’ son asked Andrew if he wanted to play video games.

Kevin and Dominique also have three biological children, three boys, and a baby girl. Their son Joc and Andrew didn’t hit it off right away. Two boys behaved like total strangers until Joc broke the ice and invited Andrew to play games.

That was when they discovered that they had a lot of things in common. Both of them love Pop-Tarts and games like Minecraft. Dominique jokingly said that “they would eat Pop-Tarts all day long if you let them.”

A year passed and Andrew became close with the Gills family.

“I just really love them,” said Andrew of his new family.

Joc had already become Andrew’s best friend. Everything was idyllic – except for one problem.

The Gills were Andrew’s foster parents, and if someone wanted to adopt Andrew, he would have to separate from Joc and the rest of the family. To prevent that, Kevin and Dominique decided to surprise Andrew by adopting him. The boy’s dream was about to come true.

Molly Parker from Youth Villages foster system took Andrew for a walk.

Amazingly, Andrew didn’t know that the Gills had everything ready for the adoption. The family wanted to surprise him. Dominique, Kevin, Joc, and their friends were all in the park with balloons and signs, waiting for Andrew and Molly to come.

When Andrew saw everyone, a huge smile appeared on his face. He understood what was going on, especially when he saw the sign on Joc’s shirt. It said:

“Will you be my brother?”

On 16th July 2020, The Gill family officially adopted Andrew, and he took their last name.

Joc and Andrew were happy to know that they are going to grow up together. Now, two boys can enjoy Pop-Tarts for many years to come.

Interestingly, when Andrew was asked about the race preference for his foster parents, he checked the “no preference” box. “Because Andrew is white and we’re Black, people will stare at us,” said Dominique.

But race has never been an issue for the Gills family.

“Love doesn’t have a color. Andrew is our son just like Joc is our son.”

Watch the heartwarming video below.

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Source: YouTube/WBIR Channel 10; Today; InspireMore; ParentHerald; WpsdLocal6