Editor's note: If you heard that a boy's dream is to become a pilot, you might say, "What a wonderful dream." But what if you then found out that this boy is blind? Would that make you pause; maybe even think it sounds absurd? In our reality-driven world, dreams are often forced to give way to circumstances, limitations, and what's deemed "possible." When a child is both abandoned and blind, is he automatically excluded from the right to dream? But Joanne, a single mother in her 60s, chose to believe in this seemingly impossible dream.
Joseph's story challenges all the things we take for granted. He came from China, abandoned, neglected, never taught how to live or learn, let alone how to dream. And yet, in the heart of this very child, a single sentence quietly lived "I want to become a pilot." This is not a fairy tale, but a true story that happened right around us. There is no magical miracle, only a mother's determination, a boy's resilience, and countless days and nights in which they protected and uplifted each other. He cannot see the sky, yet he never stops looking up. He cannot control his fate, yet he never stops believing in flight.
We invite you to read their story. It just might lead you to rethink what it means to "dream" and to "see" and discover how love and faith can transcend the limits of the body.
The Beginning of a Dream
Joanne is an ordinary American woman and a veteran with two adult daughters, Sondra and Laura. She describes her past as filled with a sense of failure: a failed marriage, a broken family, and drifting relationships, which had left her feeling lonely and lost in her sixties. The emotional blow from the loss of her grandson due to brain cancer plunged her into a deep low point in life. It was then that she witnessed a friend's experience of adopting an abandoned child from China. A thought began to grow in her heart: maybe there was still something she could do.
"It truly was God's guidance," she recalled. "I happened to come across Joseph's profile, an 11-year-old boy from China, completely blind. The moment I saw his photo; my heart was deeply touched."
She knew it was far from an easy decision. At the time, she was already 61 and had a history of heart disease. Her family was strongly opposed. Her friends said, "Are you crazy? Life has already been hard enough for you. Why would you take in a blind child who doesn't even speak your language?" She herself hesitated: "I'm old, I don't have much money. What if something happens to me one day? Would I end up hurting him instead?"
But after prayer and reflection, she began to feel more and more clearly that this might be exactly what God was calling her to do.
Eighteen months of preparation, endless paperwork, medical exams, psychological evaluations, international travel arrangements, and long periods of waiting... She endured it all. She wrote, "I never imagined I'd be 'pregnant' again, but this adoption journey felt like an 18-month 'spiritual pregnancy'."
In February 2017, she boarded a flight to China to meet the child she had never seen before. She would never forget that moment: "When Joseph walked into the cold adoption room, he looked like a quiet and shy little boy. As I looked at him, it felt like something struck me hard in the chest. I knew this was the mission God had given me. I was scared, nervous—but I couldn't back out."
According to the adoption process, they had 24 hours to decide whether to accept each other. At the time, Joseph didn't speak a single word of English. However, when he learned that he could fly to the United States, he agreed without hesitation. Later, he told Joanne, "I said 'yes' because I could ride on an airplane."
She smiled and said, "He had no idea that this flight would not only change his destiny but also reignite my own life." In her heart, she made a promise: "Joseph boarded that plane to America with someone he didn't even know. I have to be worthy of his trust. I can't let him down."
After returning to the U.S., they faced a flood of challenges: language barriers, cultural differences, educational gaps, and emotional wounds. Joseph had never been to school, didn't speak English, had no birth certificate, and did not even have a real birthday. The date he was found was used as his official birth date. He also showed signs of autism, often silent, sensitive, and slow to respond. He was diagnosed with autism.
They couldn't communicate with words, but little by little, they learned to communicate through "love" in their daily lives. When he flew on a plane for the first time, he was overjoyed. Joanne said, "He pressed his face against the window, touching the walls of the cabin with his hands. His face lit up with a joy I had never seen before. He couldn't see the clouds outside, but I knew he was cloud nine 'flying.'"
At that moment, he quietly said to Joanne, "I want to be a pilot when I grow up."
This was the beginning of Joseph's dream of flying.
Breaking Free into the Light
Perhaps fate does not favor him from the very beginning. Shortly after Joseph was born, probably around a week old, he was abandoned and sent to an orphanage.
At the age of one, he was given a chance and placed in a children's home called Bethel. It was the first time in his life that he had a relatively stable and safe environment. There, he received basic care and rehabilitation training. His emotions gradually stabilized, and his language skills began to develop.
However, the good time didn't last. When he was six, the government suddenly ordered all orphans placed in external institutions to return to welfare homes. Upon returning to the welfare home, Joseph was met with indifference, neglect, and even abuse from the other children and the workers. This experience left deep and unhealable scars on his young heart.
Joanne recalled, "After he came back, he was very emotionally fragile. You could tell that he was constantly thinking, but he rarely spoke. He didn't trust anyone." She described this state as "emotional regurgitation," where he was mentally chewing over painful memories every day.
When Joseph first arrived in the U.S., he refused to enter the supermarket, always sitting in the car with the air conditioning on. When they went to church, he would reach over to her and touch her leg to see if she was still there... Joanne later learned that people at the welfare home had told him, "Your mom is very old and if you're bad, she will send you back to China." He lived in constant anxiety, fearing that he would be abandoned again. He tried so hard not to make a mistake so she wouldn't send him back.
Joanne didn't explain much. Instead, she chose to help him heal his wounds through actions. She made him his favorite chicken soup. Every time he ate it, he would exclaim, "I LOVE HER SOUP!" Until one day, he learned to make the soup himself and proudly changed his words to, "I LOVE MY SOUP!"
They celebrated every "Gotcha Day", the day Joanne received Joseph in China, the anniversary of the day they chose each other to become family.
Challenges in reality are far more than emotional.
Learning became another major hurdle. Since Joseph has missed early education, he was deemed to count past 20. Joanne was told since he couldn't even learn addition past 20, they weren't going to teach him subtraction. The school refused to conduct a formal evaluation on him and even said, "We're not planning to teach him subtraction." Joanne didn't give up. She decided to pay for him to travel to Arizona and have a comprehensive three-day assessment with an expert for adoption and trauma: Dr. Boris Gindis.
"That was the turning point in his life," Joanne said.
Dr. Gindis told her that Joseph's anxiety was like "sitting in a circle of lions every day, having to constantly watch which one would pounce." In such a "survival mode," a child simply cannot learn.
Joanne made a difficult but firm decision, to learn Braille on her own, completely giving up the courses provided by the school, and to teach Joseph at home using the Kumon method. She intentionally let him to make mistakes in the problems to show him that even if he made a mistake, no lion would have eaten you and nothing bad would happen. They played a sound effects buzzer. When they answered wrong, the button would make farting or explosion sounds, which made Joseph laugh. When they answered correctly, there would be applause, music, and cheering. She taught him to recognize the signs this body made when he was anxious. In the midst of their laughter, they quietly chased away the anxiety.
In this relaxed and patient environment, Joseph advanced from kindergarten level to the third or fourth grade in just four months. Joanne proudly said, "We are one of the few families that were not delayed by the pandemic but actually thrived during it."
It was also during this "rebuilding phase" that Joanne gradually gained Joseph's trust. He began to laugh and ask questions. He began to realize that this woman would never leave him.
And Joanne, too, became increasingly certain: this boy was worth all her effort.
Climbing Mountains and Crossing States to Move for You
Joseph's educational journey has never been smooth. With Joanne's dedicated help, his grades gradually caught up with those of his peers. However, they soon realized that environment was still the key factor limiting Joseph's growth.
At first, they lived in Joanne's hometown, near Seattle, Washington. To enroll Joseph in a more inclusive school, she moved to Alabama. There, Joseph's hard work paid off. His grades were nearly all A's by ninth grade. However, Joanne gradually realized that the high school requirements there were not suitable for Joseph's educational needs. She decided to move again for his sake.
She began an extensive search, consulting other adoptive families, and contacting different school districts, and finally found Campo Verde High School in Gilbert, Arizona. This high school is very friendly to students with disabilities and has a full package of supporting resources.
She immediately acted and sent Joseph's evaluation report. The school soon sent back an acceptance letter. Joanne sold their house in Alabama and moved across the state with Joseph. This major relocation was not an easy task for Joanne given her age. Packing, selling a house, buying a new one, adjusting to a new environment... it was an overwhelming amount of work, but she gritted her teeth and pushed through.
After moving to Arizona, Joseph received the support he truly needed to be successful. He has always attended regular schools and Joanne continued to teach him at home after school. He had his own IEP (Individualized Education Program), with a dedicated assistant to help him with learning, Braille aids, and regular mental health support.
In such a warm and inclusive environment, Joseph's confidence grew rapidly. He was no longer just the "special child who needed to be cared for," but a high schooler who dared to participate, challenge himself, and shine. He joined the track team, with a guide during competitions. He also tried out for the swimming training team, working hard to qualify for the school team. He played blind soccer, using a sound-emitting ball to coordinate with his teammates.
He also explored a variety of interests, such as drumming. He learned rhythm skills through a drum teacher on Zoom and even invited to perform as a guest drummer for a local band.
Joanne said, "I've moved twice just so that he could be seen, understood, and supported. Each move was hard, but each one was worth it."
Joseph, too, understands deeply that none of this came easy. He is well-liked on campus. The teachers often say that they have become more patient and compassionate educators because of him. At a school-wide assembly, when the announcer called his name for special awards he earned, the entire student body rose to their feet in applause. At that moment, Joanne stood quietly in the corner, tears falling silently down her cheeks. This wasn't just about switching schools. It was a mother's long march - climbing mountains and crossing valleys to find the right path for her son.
Striving Today for Tomorrow's Takeoff
Joanne often said, "The reason I kept going was not only to let Joseph go to school, but also to teach him how to live." Her health gradually deteriorated over time. Her liver function, digestion, and kidney all began to fail. She suffered repeated episodes of heart failure and eventually developed diabetes. At one point, she underwent long-term treatment in a hospital facility, relying on physical therapy and sheer hope to hold on. Yet it was precisely these crises that made Joseph more determined to become independent. With every illness Joanne goes through, Joseph's anxiety increases and he fears he will lose her and become an orphan again.
Joseph gradually began taking over household responsibilities. He learned to do the laundry, wash dishes, vacuum, and cook. He knew his mother was exhausted and she might not be able to stay with him much longer. He said, "I have to learn to take care of myself, and to take care of her."
They would cook together side by side. Joseph's specialties were chicken soup and pasta. "He used to shout at home, 'I love her soup!'" Joanne said with a smile. "Now he proudly says, 'I love MY soup.'" She joked, "I should sell him my recipes."
Joseph kept challenging himself. He studied all kinds of subjects in braille and even tried riding a tandem bike designed for the visually impaired. He loved learning practical skills, studying history on his computer. All of this prepares him for a future where he can live independently, get married, and build a family of his own.
This pot of soup, he cooks it for himself, and for love. Joanne encouraged Joseph to take part in community activities, to reach out, and to express himself. To help him connect with his cultural roots and build friendships close to home, she hosted international students from Taiwan twice, a boy named Jeffrey, and a girl named Serene, and a boy from Japan.
Joseph lived with them, went to school with them, and shared everyday life with them. He asked them to teach him Chinese, ate and chatted with them, and listened as they shared stories of their childhood in their own countries. Slowly, he began to feel that "China isn't only a painful memory." He even became willing to practice Mandarin again, trying to face the trauma of his past. He's still upset with China denying him an education, but he's determined to do the best he can in everything he does.
"Serene was especially close to him," Joanne said. "They went to school and came back together, cooked together, and shared music together. They weren't just roommates. They were like siblings."
Joseph was no longer just a child abandoned by fate. He began to shape a rhythm of life that was his own, with his own preferences and his own style. He began to find his voice. He began to believe in the future and in himself.
He would still feel anxious and quietly cry when Joanne was hospitalized again. He wrote, 'She may not be on this earth for much longer... I know that's true.' Joanne read the sentences he wrote, heartbroken yet touched: 'Look at his English expression and maturity... That is love. That is courage.'"
Joseph is a grateful boy. Every year on his birthday, he releases a balloon to thank his biological mother for giving birth to him and tell her that he lives well in the United States, attends school, pursues his hobbies, and has a family that loves him very much. He also never forgets to express his love for Joanne in his own way. On Joanne's birthday, he made a cake for her in his culinary class.
Joanne knows that this kid might have to live with anxiety forever, but she also knows that he is strong enough and filled with love to walk his own path.
The Dream Has Never Been Extinguished
If the airplane were the starting point of Joseph's dream of flying, then the day he first truly touched the cockpit, heard the roar of the engine, and felt the flight dynamics – that was the moment he made his resolve.
Joanne took him to join a local youth flying club with a squadron in the Civil Air Patrol, a branch of the US Air Force in Washington State. It wasn't just on paper. It was a place where kids could truly get close to flying. Joseph also got to "operate" the airplane himself. Of course, he had a flight instructor by his side but for him, it was enough to bring tears to his eyes.
"I got to make the airplane turn and gain altitude. I could feel it turning. I knew we were climbing. Even though I couldn't see it, I could hear it, I could feel it, and my body was flying," Joseph recalled.
After that flight, his instructor, Captain Scott, shared their experience on social media: "This kid and his mom are the most remarkable duo I've ever met." The video quickly went viral, and many pilots expressed their support for Joseph's dream. Joseph got many opportunities to join the pilots in their personal planes.
He began studying aviation video online and frequency recordings. He even drew a design for his future room, a bed shaped like airplane wings, with walls adorned with his airplane models.
Malta is his most favorite country. He read in a book that this small Mediterranean island was called "the most courageous island" during World War II, having withstood the most intense bombing. He has a deep interest in history, especially military history, the American Revolution, and events like 9/11. His memory is remarkable, as he can recite battles, dates, and the background of historical figures.
Joanne was amazed by his focus and passion: "His love for flying is not just a fantasy. It's driven by purpose and research. He says he wants to invent a flying instrument system for blind people like him." He wants to help more people like him get closer to the sky.
His dream is to go to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University — one of the world's top institutions for aerospace studies. Although the path is not easy, Joanne has been encouraging him to plan step by step. They have already started preparing relevant courses, attending career planning lectures, and trying to connect with professors in hopes of securing admission and scholarship opportunities in the future.
Joanne said, "I don't know if he will ever truly fly, but I know that a child with a dream is already flying."
A Blind Boy Has Seen the World
Joseph's story is probably not about miracles, but about perseverance — about how a blind child struggled, rebuilt, grew through trauma, anxiety, and loss, and ultimately chose to look up at the sky.
His journey began in darkness, born blind, abandoned, and neglected, but fate brought Joanne to him. One decision, one flight, and one phrase, "I want to be a pilot" lit up his life. He has never given up his dream.
He wasn't without resentment. He once said, "I hate China, they made me endure so much pain." However, years later, he learned to speak Mandarin again, but not willing to face that land yet. He is learning to forgive, and to be grateful. He said, "They made me who I am today."
He wasn't without fear. He wrote the words, "She may not live much longer." with sincerity and sorrow - like a letter to the future. However, he also wrote down a blueprint for his future: to attend an aviation university, to invent a flight system for the blind, and to have a home of his own.
He wasn't without limitations. He couldn't see, but his sense of touch was sharp, his hearing was keen, and his memory was extraordinary. He "sees" the world in his own way: reading, thinking, questioning, traveling. He touched every dimension of life with his heart.
He may never truly fly a plane solo, but he continues to surpass the "no-fly zones" that fate sets for him. Joanne said, "I don't know if he will ever fly in the sky, but I know he has already taken me flying."
There are many children in this world, like Joseph, who are marginalized, ignored, and misunderstood. However, they, too, have dreams, desires, and potential. They just need to be seen and believed in.
Joseph and Joanne are like an airplane and its navigator, finding each other's signal in the dark. His story is not the end, but the beginning. He helps us redefine "seeing": seeing how an imperfect life unfolds completely; seeing how love breaks the boundaries of culture, language, and physiology; seeing how a blind boy, step by step, sees the world and the future.
Our Response: The Joseph Fund
Joseph's story is not the end, but the beginning of God's plan.
We believe that God has a special plan for Joseph. His birth, his pain, his dreams - none of them are by chance. Joanne is a vessel in this plan, and you and I can also be a part of it.
To support Joseph's growth and pursuit of his dreams, Village of Stars has decided to establish the Joseph Fund, with a goal of raising $10,000. We are deeply grateful to SAIF Partners for offering to match 50% of donations. This means that for every $100 you donate, SAIF will contribute an additional $50.
The "Joseph Fund" will be dedicated to the following purposes:
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Medical and Mental Counseling — To help Joseph continue healing from past trauma and overcome lingering shadows.
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Independent Living Training for the Blind — To participate in programs that teach him essential life and social skills needed for future independence.
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College Preparation and Supplementary Education —To provide him with preparatory courses and additional teaching, helping him get a stronger starting point for entering higher education.
Your support will directly impact Joseph's future, helping him overcome challenges and reach his full potential.
Joanne has quietly carried all of this on her own. As an older, ailing single mother, her perseverance is truly touching. We believe that, as Chinese, we cannot let her bear all this alone, especially with Joseph being a child who came from China.
Every bit of support is a step taken alongside them on their journey. Every word of encouragement fuels Joseph's dreams. Every time his story is shared, it spreads the hope that "even the blind can fly."
Please join us in adding a spark of light to this brave boy's journey, to this extraordinary family, and to this unfinished story in God's hands.
Village of the Stars (www.villageofthestars.org), acting as a bridge between the Chinese community and American adoptive families, is a nonprofit organization registered in 2022, and all donations are tax-deductible, with receipts provided. (Contact via email at VillageofTheStars@gmail.com or WeChat: ClydeXi.)
- Edited by Clyde Xi, translated by Amy Wang
