A boy abandoned in a box in Turkey, now living happily in Wales
GWYNEDD WOMAN TELLS OF REMARKABLE JOURNEY THAT LED TO ADOPTING BEDRI
A WELSH woman has shared an incredible story about how she adopted a baby found on a roadside in Turkey.
Carren Lewis, originally from Penrhyndeudraeth, adopted Bedri nearly 15 years ago.
During a compelling interview with Welsh broadcaster, Beti George, on her BBC Radio Cymru show Beti a’i Phobol on Sunday, Carren talked about her decision to move from Pwllheli to Turkey as a holiday rep following the breakdown of her first marriage.
Speaking to the broadcaster, she said: “I didn’t know what to do with myself. I didn’t want to go back to Penrhyn, I didn’t want to stay in Pwllheli. I was working at this caravan park in Morfa Bychan.
“Somebody told me I would make a good holiday rep, that I was good at talking to people and enjoyed a chat. And I did think, yes, I could do that, it sounds very glamorous, it would be fantastic to live abroad and be paid for it.”
DIFFICULTIES CONCEIVING
Carren moved to the tourist destination of Marmaris in Turkey, where she met her partner.
After the two got married, they set up a holiday business and wanted to start a family, but were faced with difficulties.
Carren said: “I wanted a baby, but when I was expecting, I was losing every time. We decided to try IVF. The hospital was four hours away. Trying to work at the same time was really difficult”.
Carren undertook three IVF treatments, all of which were unsuccessful, an experience she described as “stressful and heartbreaking”.
It was then that the couple decided to try adoption instead.
She explained to Beti: “After a year, nothing came up. They told us it was because we lived in a certain county and it was a rich county, where all the tourists go to.
“So, there was a bit of money in the area and there weren’t many children that come up.”
At this point, Carren admitted that her marriage was in a “bad place” and was breaking down.
She decided to take a week away and visited Diyarbakir in the east.
STREET CHILDREN
“I flew down there, it was such a beautiful place,” she said. “There were so many children living on the streets, thousands of them.
“They were all so lovely, I would talk to them and they would tell me they lived on the streets and there was a lot of children there.
“I went back to my hotel, looked up Google and read 120,000 children lived on the streets in Diyarbakir. I called my husband and told him where I was and he went completely nuts that I was in a place he said was dangerous, especially for a foreign woman on her own.
“He demanded I came home at once but I was determined to stay and go on with my journey.
“I asked him if he could check if we could adopt here – he knew the director of social services where we lived, so we contacted him.
“The next day he said there was a huge welcome for us there to see the kids”.
A DIFFICULT CHOICE
Carren and her husband then went to visit an orphanage in the Kurdish city, where they met two babies – a girl and a boy.
Carren recalled: “I was holding this little girl. She was four months old. She had a lot of hair, these big brown eyes, chubby cheeks and a squished nose.
“Mum was holding this little boy that was called Muhammad and he was six months old.
“He had a dirty little nose, cross eyes and chickenpox scars all over him. But when he opened his eyes and smiled at us, it was the best feeling.”
Carren and her husband wanted to take home both babies, and a day before Christmas they were told that they could adopt.
But when they arrived at the orphanage, they were told that they would only be able to adopt one child and that they had to choose between the two.
“It was a massive shock,” Carren said. “I wanted to take the girl because I felt like I could give her a better life.
“My husband wanted to take Bedri because of the issues he was having with his eyes.
“We talked to the people at the orphanage and they said girls go very quickly here because families feel they can give them a better life.
“They didn’t allow us to take the two was because I was a new mum and they wanted to see how I would do with one.
“We had to choose in five minutes and we chose Bedri.
“It was the best decision I had made.”
Following the adoption, Carren found out how Bedri had ended up at the orphanage.
She explained: “A 15-year-old boy was on his way to school and thought he could hear a kitten crying in these boxes on the side of the road.
“He looked through the boxes and rubbish and there was a baby wrapped in blankets.
“Police were nearby and the boy called them over. They took him straight to the hospital and he was in intensive care for a bit before going to the orphanage.
“They named him Muhammad because that was the best name to give a child in Turkey in order to protect him”.
The couple decided to name their adopted son Bedri as it was a name that was both Kurdish and Turkish, but sounded Welsh.
Carren’s marriage with her second husband eventually came to an end, which prompted her to move back to Wales with Bedri.
WELSH-TURKISH PRIDE
Carren, now a teaching assistant, lives with Bedri and her partner Giles in Pembrokeshire.
Her son will be sitting his GCSEs this year and dreams of becoming a nutritionist.
Although it hasn’t been easy for the family, Carren said she was proud of her son.
She said: “He’s a strong boy, he’s focused, he meditates and keeps himself healthy.
“He knows about his background. Three years ago, we decided to tell him the whole story.
“This year Bedri has decided he would like to go to Turkey for a week this summer.
“I am so happy about that – it’s so important.
“I’ve told him everything about the history of Turkey, we watch Turkish films, and listen to Turkish music in the house.
“He is very proud of his background and that he comes from Turkey.
“Even though he calls himself Welsh, he’s also proud that he is Turkish.”