Stephen and Pamela Krooth moved to Bethesda’s Green Acres neighborhood from New York City in 2012, soon after adopting their son, David, now 5, from Ethiopia. Stephen, 45, left Wall Street to become president of Pamela’s family’s business, Arlington, Virginia-based Dominion Electric Supply Company. Both raised in Montgomery County, they met 15 years ago when their parents set them up. “I joke that it was an arranged marriage,” says Pamela, 43. Their daughter, Maya, is 9.
Family time: “We have dinner together as a family every night,” Stephen says. Tuesday is tacos; Fridays they might go to Sushiko in Chevy Chase. Some nights, Stephen and the kids make homemade pizza, and then Pamela and Maya watch their favorite show together. “We’re a little obsessed with The Voice,” Pamela says.
Sisterly love: When Stephen and Pamela told Maya, then 5, that they were adopting, she had one request: to be the big sister. “She wanted to be older—we assured her that she was,” Pamela says. “She was really, really wonderful with him—I think she really helped him with his adjustment.”
The wait: “The adoption process was challenging,” Pamela says. “It took us three years, which is actually unfortunately pretty typical, especially for international adoptions.” After they brought David home, the Krooths got help from the Center for Adoption Support and Education in Burtonsville, where Pamela now works as a therapist.
Culture connections: “We wanted the house to have stuff from Ethiopia,” Stephen says, so they filled it with Ethiopian artwork. When David gets older, the couple plans to take a family trip to Ethiopia to show him where he was born.
Getting away: The Krooths have a house in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, where they swim, kayak and ride Jet Skis. “The kids love driving around in golf carts,” Stephen says. “Supervised,” Pamela adds.
