A whirlwind of emotions. That’s what Michael Sneed felt when he brought his daughter, Karis, home from an adoption center in China.
“That first night, [I remember] having it all hit me and going, ‘Wow, this is our child,’ ” he recalls.
Sneed, Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Affairs & Chief Communication Officer at Johnson & Johnson, adopted then 15-month-old Karis from a Hong Kong orphanage in 2002. At the time, he had been traveling to China quite frequently for work when he proposed the idea of adopting a baby from the country to his wife, Ann Sneed.
The couple already had two children—a daughter named Taylor and a son, Logan—and as Sneed recalls, “We felt it was right. It felt good for us as a family.”
Johnson & Johnson has a long history of caring for employees—and their families. Recently, the company announced enhancements to its family benefits in the U.S., including surrogacy assistance and adoption assistance, so employees like Sneed can fulfill their dreams of building a family.
“It’s industry-leading in terms of the vision and the impact of the support that we provide for the people of Johnson & Johnson,” Sneed says.
As you will see in this video chronicling Sneed’s journey as an adoptive parent, a loving and nurturing family can take all shapes and forms.
“Family’s about extended love,” Ann Sneed says. “And whether it’s biological or adopted, it’s really supporting these children, helping them grow, building a legacy.”
