Martial arts event will raise funds for adoption

Martial arts event will
raise funds for adoption
BYJACQUELYN LANE
Correspondent

MIGUEL JUAREZ staff Michelle and Ronnie Conte play with children Jonah, 3 (left), Faith, 1, (front) and Christian, 6, at home in Old Bridge.

OLD BRIDGE — A local martial arts school will soon be breaking boards to help a student’s family adopt a child from China.

The Board Break-A-Thon, to be held at Black Belt Academy, Route 516, July 10, came about after academy owner John McInerney learned that the family of one of his students was seeking help with the costs associated with the adoption.

The student, Christian Conte, a 6-year-old purple belt aspiring to earn a black belt in tae kwon do, has impressed McInerney in the year and a half he’s taken classes. And it was through their relationship that McInerney learned Conte’s parents, Michelle and Ronnie, were looking to adopt a baby girl from China.

"The family asked me if they could leave a box of candy at the school to fund-raise."

A youngster takes a chop during the last Break-a-Thon in Old Bridge.

Currently, the Contes have three children: Christian, 6, Jonah, 3, and Faith, 14 months. Christian and Jonah are their biological children, while Faith was adopted domestically.

The couple’s desire to adopt a girl from China came about early in their relationship. They discussed, even while they were dating, that many girls from China needed homes due to the one-child policy in a country that, culturally, tends to favor boys.

They started to pursue such an adoption four years ago, but their son Jonah arrived unexpectedly, prompting them to switch to a domestic adoption so there would be less cost and travel. Unfortunately, their first domestic adoption fell through when the biological mother decided to keep her baby.

Their second domestic adoption was successful, and they cannot wait to finally pursue their dream of adopting a Chinese girl.

"Adopting from China was always something we wanted to do, and we’re ready now," said Michelle Conte.

The couple will adopt through the All God’s Children adoption agency, based in Portland, Ore., the same agency through which they adopted their daughter. When they are matched with a child in the next six to eight months, they will have to fly to China to pick up their daughter and finalize the adoption.

The costs of adopting a Chinese child can be prohibitive. In addition to paying for a round-trip flight to China, the family is required to donate $3,000 to the orphanage and travel from the orphanage to the city of Guangzhou to legalize the adoption.

Michelle Conte is a homemaker, while Ronnie works for the New York City Transit Authority. In total, the family hopes to raise $8,000 to help cover these costs.

After learning of the family’s story, McInerney decided to help their cause by hosting the Board Break-A-Thon. Each of the school’s head instructors — who, in addition to McInerney include Cory and Christian McNallan — will break as many boards as possible in 60 seconds. Students and families of students at the school are pledging money for each board broken.

The Black Belt Academy hosted a similar fund-raiser eight years ago to raise money for muscular dystrophy, which had been met with great success. McInerney expects the Conte’s fund-raiser to be equally successful.

"All of our students are helping to raise the funds so this girl can have a happy life in America," McInerney said.

The fund-raiser will take place at 1 p.m. July 10. For more information or to make a pledge on behalf of the Contes, contact the academy at (732) 679-5425 or e-mail John McInerney at mrmac_ata@yahoo.com.