Jason Smith with Ireon, Tayvon, and Tayveon.Photo:Cliche Photography
Cliche Photography
In March 2022,PEOPLE introduced six groups of siblings in foster careawaiting adoptive homes. Among the siblings featured were young brothers Tayveon, 11, Ireon, 10, and Tayvon, 9, of Las Vegas, an inseparable trio who like to playsportsand joke around together.
Just a month after the article appeared, the boys' lives changed forever. Jason Smith, 45, a human resources executive at Caesar’s Entertainment, spotted a photo of the brothers on an adoption website and was immediately drawn to them. “I was like, ‘Wow, look at these handsome gents,’' Smith recalls.
The Smith family (from left to right): Ireon, dad Jason, Tayvon, and Tayveon.Courtesy Jason Smith
Courtesy Jason Smith
A Fortuitous Meeting
In early April 2022, Smith met the boys for the first time after school at aMcDonald’sand they immediately clicked. “Let’s make sure they like you,” Smith recalls the case worker saying. A playdate and then a sleepover followed. “It just took off,” he says.
“From day one he treated them like they were his own,” says Benaleta Simpkins, a case worker in the Clark County Department of Children and Family Services.
“It was never about Jason,” Simpkins adds. “He was exactly what the kids needed.”
The Smith family (from left to right): Tayvon, Ireon, Tayveon and dad Jason.Courtesy Jason Smith
Making It Official
“We’re living a normal life here,” says Tayveon, the oldest, who has been learning how to cook, clean and do his own laundry. “This home is great.”
Adds middle son Ireon: “We get to have a family, and we don’t have to go to another house again and again and again.” The best part? “Being able to talk, help and love each other,” he says.
The Smith brothers with their sisters (from left to right): Shakaya, Tayon, Tayveon, Ireon and Tayana.Courtesy Margurite Paschal
Courtesy Margurite Paschal
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“We make sure they see each other,” says Smith.
The Smith family (from left to right): Tayveon, Ireon, dad Jason, and Tayvon.Townsley Portraits
Townsley Portraits
A Seamless Transition
“Foster care training prepares you for the worst, but I haven’t experienced any of that,” says Smith, who recently bought a bigger house with more space for the brothers. “The boys have been amazing and have brought purpose and meaning to my life.”
“I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world,” he adds. “It’s like God wanted us to be together.”
For information on adoption, visitadoptuskids.org.
source: people.com
