When Bishop W.C. Martin and his wife, Donna, adopted four children out of foster care, they did not just give them a loving family. They created a movement.
In 1996, the couple, the leaders of the Bennett Chappell Missionary Baptist Church in Possum Trot, Texas, first adopted the four children, then they rallied their congregation: Between 1998 and 2000, 22 families from their church also adopted difficult-to-place children from the local foster system. In all, 77 children were adopted by members of the church, many of whom had been victims of sexual and physical abuse or unsafe living situations.
The community’s effort is now the subject of the film Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot, which hits theaters July 4. Executive produced by Letitia Wright (Black Panther), the film had a special screening on Juneteenth, ahead of its theatrical release.
