Jenny Marrs’ Adoption Story: 602 Days of Prayer, Waiting, and the Miracle of Sylvie

In a powerful and deeply moving series of posts and excerpts, HGTV star Jenny Marrs has opened up about one of the most personal and defining chapters of her life—the adoption of her daughter, Sylvie, from the Congo. Now, with her upcoming book Trust God, Love People: Stories of My Openhanded Faith set to release on October 7, 2025, Jenny offers an intimate look into the grueling journey, spiritual battles, and ultimate redemption that defined her family’s path to becoming whole.

A Moment Eleven Years in the Making

Born on January 16, 2012, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sylvie Marrs would go on to become a central part of Jenny and Dave’s journey—a journey that, now in 2025, truly reflects a moment eleven years in the making.

Each year on July 9, Jenny Marrs commemorated what she calls “Family Day” with an emotional Facebook post and a heart-wrenching photo from the airport—one that captures the exact moment Sylvie was placed into her arms after 602 days of waiting. That day—July 9, 2014—marked the first time Sylvie arrived in the United States, carried across continents by her foster mother, and was physically embraced by her forever family. “I bore witness to a miracle,” Jenny wrote, recalling the miracle of that reunion after months of despair, unanswered calls, and unwavering faith.

“The exhale that took place when she was placed back into my arms on US soil was echoed in heaven,” she said. “The spiritual battle that I couldn’t see during those long days and nights was finally over.”

More Than a Homecoming: A Spiritual War

While the image shows tearful joy, Jenny reminds her audience that this was only the beginning. In Trust God, Love People, she writes:

“While the battle to get her home was grueling, the real spiritual war had just begun. As a family, we willingly stepped into her brokenness and committed to remain steadfast as we faced the darkness together.”

Sylvie had endured profound trauma before arriving in America—extreme hunger, abandonment, and a life driven by survival instincts. The newness of America brought fresh fears: unfamiliar sounds, food, language, and faces.

The True Cost of Adoption: Beyond the Headlines

Jenny poignantly addresses the media’s tendency to simplify such adoptions into celebratory moments. “I cringe at the headlines,” she admits, highlighting how phrases like ‘rescued child’ or ‘orphan no longer’ fail to capture the raw complexity of the child’s grief, fear, and loss of identity.

“My daughter experienced persistent grief and debilitating fear on the day she landed in America,” she wrote. “That day, the one I had desperately waited for, for 602 seemingly endless days, was mistakenly seen by outsiders as exclusively celebratory.”

A Whisper in the Dark

Perhaps the most profound moment comes from Sylvie herself. One year after arriving, as they lay singing “Jesus Loves Me” before bedtime, Sylvie turned to her mother and said softly:

“God never left me, Momma. He carried me home.”

That single sentence, delivered in a raspy little voice, encapsulated the faith Jenny had clung to throughout the long and painful process.

Feed Their Tummies: The Spark That Became a Mission

In 2013, during the waiting period for Sylvie’s arrival, her foster mother Dr. Laure reached out with heartbreaking news: the children at Sylvie’s orphanage were low on food and hadn’t eaten in days. Jenny sprang into action. What began as a simple raffle fundraiser among adoptive mothers—cleverly named “Feed Their Tummies”—soon raised enough to feed three orphanages for a month. When Dr. Laure delivered the food, children welcomed her shouting in Lingala: “Maman aye nzala esili” — “Mom comes, finish hunger.”

Inspired by this act of love, Jenny and Dave Marrs officially founded the nonprofit Feed Their Tummies, which grew to provide daily meals to 200 children in Congo. Driven by faith and sustained by miracles—last-minute checks, small donations, and unexpected gifts—they learned to trust that each month, provision would come “just enough, just in time.”

“Honestly, we never set out to do this work. We simply wanted to feed a group of kids we had come to love,” Jenny wrote. “But God moved and breathed life into all of it.”

Eventually, the nonprofit’s operations were handed off to Mwangaza International, and their journey with community support extended beyond Congo to long-term partnerships with Help One Now in Zimbabwe, inspired by the same heart for justice and sustainability.

Faith That Held Through the Storm

Jenny’s book is a testament to how her faith sustained the family even when the trauma felt overwhelming. She writes:

“Even when our home felt like a trauma ward… Even when the brokenness threatened to overwhelm, we could stand firm on His promises of redemption and restoration.”

Trust God, Love People promises to be more than a memoir—it’s a message of hope to families navigating similar journeys, and a bold proclamation of faith in the face of deep pain.

A Foundation of Joy: Jenny’s Reflections on Childhood

In a previous book, House + Love = Home, Jenny shared how she envisions the legacy of love and simplicity she wants to leave for her children. In an excerpt she posted on January 18, 2024, she wrote:

“I want them to remember dirt under their fingernails and laughter on their lips… a home with vases full of handpicked wildflowers… a childhood framed with sweet, content moments of lingering.”

In addition to nurturing creativity indoors, the Marrs family finds purpose and connection through their small blueberry farm in Northwest Arkansas. Over the past ten summers, Jenny and Dave have invited their children to join in the rhythm of farm life—pulling weeds, picking berries, and learning the values of hard work and stewardship.

The farm is more than a space to grow fruit—it’s a legacy project tied to global impact. All profits support a farm training program for orphaned teens in Marondera, Zimbabwe. Jenny explains that this simple field in the Ozarks is sewn with “hopes and prayers and hard work and heaps of love.” It’s a setting where their children are learning generosity, faith in action, and the beauty of cross-cultural friendship.

Jenny wrote:

“We want them to understand that it’s never ‘us’ and ‘them.’ It’s not ‘here’ and ‘there.’ We have shared meals with our Zimbabwean leaders at their table and at ours.”

Through these practices, Jenny and Dave hope their children will grow up as “world changers and light bearers,” grounded in love, humility, and global empathy.

About Jenny Marrs

Jenny Marrs is an American designer, small business owner, and television personality with a background in marketing and communications. She is best known as the co-host of HGTV’s Fixer to Fabulous, where she stars alongside her husband Dave Marrs in restoring historic homes throughout Northwest Arkansas. Jenny is the co-founder of Marrs Developing, a design and construction firm that blends craftsmanship with purpose-driven design. In addition to her work in home renovation, she is the author of House + Love = Home and the upcoming memoir Trust God, Love People, where she shares personal stories of faith, motherhood, and community engagement.