Waiting Family Profiles

Home Location: Twin Cities Metro

Family Status: Couple without children

Children in Home: None

Child Ethnicity: African American, Asian, Caucasian, East Indian, Hispanic/Latino

Thank you for taking the time to get to know us. We are Casandra—or Cass—and Mark, and we live in Elk River, Minnesota, with our lovable Bernedoodle, Farley.

We hope to give you a glimpse of who we are, the people we love, and the life we hope to share with a child. We can only imagine how much you may be considering as you make the decisions that feel right for you and your child. If our lives become connected, we would be honored to build a relationship rooted in honesty, care, and respect.

Our Story

We like to joke that our dog introduced us. Cass was chatting with friends when her dog suddenly pulled on his leash, determined to get to Mark. It turns out he had pretty good instincts!

In 2019, we said “I do” surrounded by our family and friends. Since then, we have built a life filled with love, laughter, and plenty of everyday adventures. We enjoy spending time with our families, cheering on our nephews, celebrating holidays, relaxing at home with Farley, and making each other laugh.

Our path to parenthood has not always been easy, but it has made us even more certain of how much we want to become parents. Adoption is not simply a way for us to grow our family—it is a lifelong commitment to a child, their story, their identity, and the people who are important to them. We are ready to provide a safe and loving home while supporting a child as they grow into exactly who they are meant to be.

About Cass

Cass is loving, outgoing, dependable, and always ready to make life a little more fun. She has spent more than 20 years working with children and families, including leading early-childhood programs, creating memorable experiences for children aboard Disney Cruise Line, and supporting families and childcare professionals through her current work. Caring for children has been at the heart of her entire career, and she still finds so much joy in helping them feel safe, understood, and celebrated.

Outside of work, Cass loves spending time with our four nephews. She can often be found cheering loudly from the sidelines at their games, planning a fun outing, or simply enjoying time together. She also loves walking and snuggling with Farley, celebrating holidays, traveling, and making memories with family and friends. Halloween is an especially big event in our home with the yard decorated, and Cass loves passing out candy to the neighborhood children.

Cass puts her whole heart into the people she loves. She is thoughtful, protective, encouraging, and the person others know they can count on. Mark knows she will be an incredible mother who creates a childhood filled with affection, laughter, stability, and unconditional support.

About Mark

Mark is patient, kind, funny, and incredibly loyal. He is the person his friends and family can always rely on, and he has a calm, steady presence that makes people feel comfortable being themselves.

Mark works as a supervisor in laboratory support services and has been with the same company for nearly 20 years. His loyalty and strong work ethic are a big part of who he is. He enjoys leading and supporting his team, and he takes pride in being someone others can trust.

When he is not working, Mark loves gaming, playing guitar, watching sports, and happily nerding out over the things that interest him, especially Star Wars and Marvel. He also loves spending time with his friends and with Farley, who is never far from his side. Mark will be the kind of dad who gets completely invested in whatever a child loves, whether that means learning every character in their favorite show, coaching them through a difficult video-game level, attending every activity, or teaching them their first song on the guitar.

Mark brings patience, humor, and a sense of security to our home. Cass knows he will be a wonderful father and a safe, supportive person a child can always turn to.

Meet Farley

Farley is our happy, lovable Bernedoodle and a very important part of our family. He was born on May 4, 2019, which felt like fate for our Star Wars-loving household—“May the Fourth be with you!”

Farley loves being outside, going on long walks, and soaking up all the snuggles he can get. He is friendly, gentle, and wonderful with children. We know he will make the sweetest four-legged companion for a little one.

Our Family

Family is a huge part of our lives. We have four nephews that we love spending time with. Whether we are cheering them on from the sidelines or taking them on a fun outing, being involved in their lives means so much to us. They are excited about the possibility of welcoming a new little cousin.

Our child will grow up surrounded by grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and close friends who are ready to welcome them with open arms. We are fortunate to have people in our lives who have supported us throughout our adoption journey and are eager to become part of a child’s village.

We also love creating traditions. We celebrate every holiday to the fullest, but Halloween is an especially fun time in our home. We decorate the yard, stock up on candy, and look forward to seeing all the neighborhood children in their costumes. We cannot wait to experience holidays through a child’s eyes—choosing costumes, carving pumpkins, decorating together, and creating traditions that are uniquely ours.

Our Home and Community

We live in Elk River, a community northwest of the Twin Cities that gives us the comfort of a smaller town while keeping us close to everything Minneapolis and St. Paul have to offer. Our area provides plenty of opportunities to spend time outside, explore parks and trails, participate in activities, and connect with other families.

Our home is a comfortable place where we enjoy spending time together, welcoming family and friends, and relaxing with the pup. We picture a child growing up here surrounded by laughter, holiday decorations, family gatherings, toys, bedtime stories, and ordinary moments that can turn into the most meaningful memories.

We understand that supporting a child means helping them build strong connections to their racial, ethnic, and cultural identity. If we adopt a child whose background differs from ours, we will intentionally seek diverse relationships, mentors, books, activities, cultural events, communities, and professionals who reflect and celebrate who they are. We will continue learning, listen to our child’s experiences, and advocate for them so they can grow up with pride in every part of their identity.

The Parents We Hope to Be

We hope to raise a child who feels safe, deeply loved, and free to become their own person. We will provide structure and consistency while making room for curiosity, creativity, big feelings, and plenty of fun.

We promise to listen, answer difficult questions honestly, apologize when we make mistakes, and keep learning as our child grows. We will celebrate their accomplishments, comfort them through disappointments, encourage the interests that light them up, and make sure they always know they have people in their corner.

Most importantly, we will speak openly and respectfully about adoption from the beginning. A child’s adoption story will never be treated as a secret, and every part of their identity and history will be honored in our family.

Openness in Adoption

We believe open adoption can give a child meaningful connections to their history and to the people who love them. We are open to an ongoing relationship through photos, updates, calls, visits, and other forms of contact that feel healthy and comfortable for everyone involved.

While we do not necessarily picture daily communication, we understand that relationships and needs can change over time. We are willing to revisit what openness looks like as a child grows and will always center their well-being. Our hope is to build a relationship based on honesty, flexibility, compassion, and mutual respect.

Thank You

Thank you for spending this time getting to know us. We know that a few pages cannot fully capture our lives, but we hope you can see the love, laughter, stability, and support that surround us.

If you choose us to parent your child, we promise to honor their story, celebrate who they are, and love them through every stage of life. We will encourage their dreams, support their relationship with their culture and birth family, and make sure they always understand how deeply they are loved.

Please contact us at:  [email protected]

 

Going on a hike with Farley

 

Timberwolves game with a couple of our nephews

 

Watching the Vikings football game with our friends

 

Pirate Night on a Disney Cruise vacation

 

Celebrating Halloween