From the moment they were born, twin brothers Daquane Shamar Jacobs and Tavon Lamar Jacobs already experienced hardships.
Their biological mother, who used drugs, didn’t know she was pregnant with them. She didn’t even go to the doctor until she gave birth.
When the brothers came out, they weighed a mere two pounds each. They were so tiny that doctors said they could have fit in a shoebox together. Worse, they were born addicted to crack.
The Department of Social Services had them removed from their mother’s supervision, and they were sent to foster care.
Daquane and Tavon stayed in the system until they were two years old, when they were adopted by the Woods family. Their names were then changed to Davon and Tavon Woods.
Adoption is often a wonderful blessing for foster kids, but that wasn’t the case for these twin brothers.
“We had a very difficult childhood with our adoptive family. We got physically and verbally abused, we were never given a voice, and they never once told us they loved us. It felt like we were just a paycheck, but we were too young and afraid to tell anyone what was happening at home,” Davon wrote to Love What Matters.
As a young boy, Davon remembers making up a story that their mother was white and lived in Alaska. But the truth was, they had no idea who they were or where they came from. They also didn’t know much about their adoptive family.
Their rough childhood led the twins to rebel in their teens. Davon even attempted to end his life more than once because of the unbearable treatment they were receiving from their adoptive family. But what stopped him every time was Tavon—he didn’t want to leave him alone with them.
The brothers turned to bad habits and other reckless activities to deal with their unresolved hurt—basically anything they could do to cover up the pain.
But after the death of their 17-year-old brother in 2016, Davon and Tavon decided to start fresh. They moved to Georgia but soon got involved in gang activity.
Thankfully, everything changed when their brother-in-law and sister invited them to church. They went, and that became the real turning point in their lives. Davon and Tavon finally walked away from street life and started working in different jobs.
Davon worked at a car dealership and sold a vehicle to the Wilkinson family. He told them about his life story, and they were moved to tears.
Davon said he felt an instant connection with them—just like the one he had dreamed of having with his biological family.
On his birthday, the Wilkinsons took him out to dinner. And from that day on, they adopted him into the family!
“I spend holidays with them, and I know my kids will never be short on family with them around,” Davon said. “It was very emotional to me because they gave me love that I’ve never received, and often we think because of the color of our skin, we’re supposed to be separate, but I’m blessed to have them in my life.”
Because of the Wilkinsons, Davon got a new family—a mom, dad, brothers, sisters, and a niece.
“I’ve gained the white family I made up as a confused child. It goes to show: color doesn’t make you family, and neither does blood. Love makes you family,” he said.
Today, Davon and Tavon are speaking up for kids in foster care. They’re on a mission to build the biggest facility in the world for children in the system to have the loving family they deserve and a place where they can just be themselves.
“We refuse to sit by and do nothing while children are suffering and facing the deadly failures of this system. There is hope for a better future for them, and by any righteous means necessary, we will bring them that hope,” said Davon.
Davon uses his platform on social media to raise awareness about issues within the foster care system. You may follow him on Instagram and donate to this GoFundMe to support their cause.
What a beautiful story of redemption! We’re so glad that Davon and Tavon survived foster care and are using their voice to bring about change.