“Town Crier” newsletter – Briefs from the Region (1) – 3/30/20
Twelve-year-old Alex Reyes finally has a forever home and family following his March 27 adoption in Great Falls. The youngster had it tough, bouncing from foster home to foster home over the 12-or-so months, but his woes came to a halt and at light speed when Pamela and Philip Reyes took him into their family, where he joined nearly a dozen other siblings. There was a twist to the new hope Alex experienced last Friday: per his request, the adoption process in the Cascade County District Courthouse in Great Falls opened to the “drumbeats of the Imperial March,” reports U.S. News, developing into a lightsaber battle between the juvenile and Judge Greg Pinski, both donning the iconic faceplate of the series’ antagonist—Darth Vader. Star Wars theme music blasted across the courthouse as the parties involved signed the paperwork. Why the Star Wars theme? Well, Alex, a fan of the iconic franchise, had seen Pinski’s courthouse proceedings on TV and felt the magistrate looked like Darth Vader due to his long, black robes. “Everybody needs something positive in their life right now, and I can’t think of anything more positive than to have this family come together,” Pinski said. “Notwithstanding everything that is going on, this is their time to celebrate, and I couldn’t not be a part of their special day.” Alex was allowed to keep all the decorations from the event, and when asked what the day meant to him, he said, “It means the Force has awakened. I’m glad that I was Darth Vader. That’s all.”
