Daily Mining Gazette/Kurt Hauglie Karen and Rob Winters and their 12-year-old adopted son, Habtamu, who is from Ethiopia, play with the family dogs on the deck of their house in Atlantic Mine.

ATLANTIC MINE — When Karen and Rob Winters were married five years ago, they had an instant family. “We have seven children between us,” Karen said. Karen brought five children from a previous marriage, and Rob brought two. Two of Karen’s children were adopted, and that set a precedent for what they decided to do to add to their family. In August, the Winters adopted a 12-year-old boy from Ethiopia named Habtamu. The process to get him to the United States took about three months. Rob said about six months ago, after he was offered an architect job at OHM he and Karen moved to the Houghton area from downstate Harbor Springs. Before moving, they saw a presentation at their church in Petoskey from two women who traveled to Africa. From that presentation, they learned about the number of orphaned children on the continent, which caused them to think. “Karen and I were looking for what the next chapter in our lives would be for us and for serving God,” Rob said.