Keith and Dawn Campbell are ordinary people who have chosen to embrace the straight and narrow path of living in the extraordinary power of God. They have served others with a love that can only flow from the very heart of Christ Himself. Their impact throughout the Lake Placid community is evident in the lives of countless people who have had the opportunity to interact with them. Keith and Dawn have exchanged the temporary comforts of this world for radical lives of obedience to their Savior. This exchange isn’t a settlement for mediocrity. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. It results in lives filled with purpose and adventure and lives filled with joy and confidence, knowing that they are in the center of God’s dreams for their reality. Here is their story.
Originally from Ohio, Keith and Dawn Campbell relocated to Lake Placid in July of 1990. Over the next few years, the Campbell’s experienced their initial taste of parenthood as they were blessed with their three biological children: Zach, Jacob, and Michaella. Both Keith and Dawn were teachers within the Highlands County School System. Keith is a certified K-6th grade teacher, but is currently the Associate Pastor of Youth and Contemporary Worship at First Baptist Church of Lake Placid. Dawn was a stay at home mom for eight years, returning to teach when Zach, Jacob, and Michaella were all enrolled in school. She is certified in Special Education K-12 and has taught students with varying exceptionalities, as well as those who are severely emotionally disturbed. Recently, Dawn resigned as Pre-K teacher of Special Needs at Lake Placid Elementary to stay home and care for their newest additions to the clan.
The Campbell’s involvement with foster care began with a local ministry organization and the opportunity to foster children ranging from infancy to twelve years of age. The couple continued their involvement for roughly five years. During this time, the Campbell’s became active in a local prison ministry that assisted women who were incarcerated within the Florida Correctional System. This ministry helped soon-to-be mothers establish safe homes for their children while they served their time. Foster parents were responsible for taking the children to see their mothers once a month. Keith and Dawn fostered Khia, who came to the Campbell’s right after her birth. They raised her for two years when her biological mother asked the family to adopt her. It was an offer they couldn’t refuse. After bonding with Khia those first two years, they were overjoyed at the chance, and Khia became a Campbell.
Prayerfully, the couple then decided to focus their energies on their four children and temporarily back away from foster care. However, the last few years, God has renewed opportunities for Keith and Dawn to provide care for even more children, specifically igniting a desire to reach those with special needs.
In June of 2008, the Campbell’s heard God calling. Robin Steele, of the Down’s Syndrome Association of Greater Cincinnati, asked if they would consider adopting an eight-month-old Ethiopian boy in Virginia. The Catholic Charities had exhausted all efforts to find him a family, and Steele knew just where to turn. Prayerfully, Keith and Dawn accepted the call and headed to Virginia, spending a week to pick up their newest bundle of joy, Kaleb.
In August of 2009, Robin Steele contacted the Campbell’s with yet another desperate need. A couple in the West Palm Beach area was no longer able to care for their baby girl, due to her severe medical needs. What started off as assistance and encouragement turned into the beginning of the increasingly familiar adoption process. After several phone conversations and a meeting with her biological parents, Tiffany, now known as Ana Renee (“God’s favor reborn”) was on her way to the Campbell home.
This isn’t where their story ends. Keith and Dawn feel led by God to take in those labeled as unwanted or special needs children and provide a home where they can learn what true love is. The mantra “Just One More” resounds in their hearts and minds daily. Kingdom Builders is partnering with the Campbell’s in an effort to help just one more child understand their worth as a son or daughter of the living God. The plan is to provide adequate housing facilities for Keith and Dawn to live out their God-sized dreams. While this new house will be open for children they may adopt, it will also serve as a temporary shelter for children waiting to find their forever families. “Just One More” is a vision embraced by the entire Campbell Crew (all eight of them!), and it has helped to shape and bond their family into self-sacrificing servants of Christ. As Keith and Dawn would assert and their children would affirm, “We believe there are no unwanted children, only unfound parents.”
This isn’t where their story ends. Keith and Dawn feel led by God to take in those labeled as unwanted or special needs children and provide a home where they can learn what true love is. The mantra “Just One More” resounds in their hearts and minds daily. Kingdom Builders is partnering with the Campbell’s in an effort to help just one more child understand their worth as a son or daughter of the living God. The plan is to provide adequate housing facilities for Keith and Dawn to live out their God-sized dreams. While this new house will be open for children they may adopt, it will also serve as a temporary shelter for children waiting to find their forever families. “Just One More” is a vision embraced by the entire Campbell Crew (all eight of them!), and it has helped to shape and bond their family into self-sacrificing servants of Christ. As Keith and Dawn would assert and their children would affirm, “We believe there are no unwanted children, only unfound parents.” 