Live in Georgia? Interested in adoption?

We wanted to share this with you from our Georgia partner DHS/DFCS - State permanency unit.

FAMILY NIGHT

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Hilton Atlanta Airport
1031 Virginia Avenue, Atlanta, 30354

If you are interested in adopting an older child or a sibling group, please plan to attend the “Make It Happen” Statewide Adoption Match Meeting. Case managers from across the state will be presenting children who are waiting to be adopted through displays and video presentations. During the “Make It Happen” Statewide Adoption Match Meeting you may receive more information about a particular child or children through direct contact with their case manager or representative. An informational meeting will also be held for those families who are interested in beginning the adoption process.

For more information please contact your agency’s resource development case manager or Lisa Lumpe, DHS DFCS contractor, at lumpe@core.com or toll-free at (855) 289-0349.

This event is sponsored by the Georgia Department of Human Services Division of Family and Children Services. To learn more about becoming a foster or adoptive parent, please call (877) 210-KIDS.

Behind-The-Scenes with Wednesday's Child

My name is Jin and I am a Development Associate intern at the National Adoption Center (NAC). This is my 4th month of internship, and I have been learning about NAC’s mission, organizational structure, and functions. Mainly, I have worked in the Development Team by fundraising, creating marketing materials, working on special events, and using a database. But this week I had the opportunity to see what the Program Team does.

One of NAC’s functions is to increase awareness of children in foster care. One way they accomplish this is through the Wednesday’s Child Program on NBC10, where they feature children in foster care with Vai Sikahema, doing what the children like to do. I had the chance to be a part of a Wednesday’s Child taping. In this case Jasper, the child to be featured, enjoyed cooking.

My task for the day was to take pictures of the taping. The Wednesday’s Child Coordinator and I drove to Sur La Table in King of Prussia Mall. The activity for the day was making homemade pasta. We arrived on site and met the staff from NBC 10 and Vai Sikahema.

The kitchen in Sur La Table looked very professional. Stainless steel countertops, cabinets, large sink, large gas stoves, pots hanging from the vent, and tasting tables, it looked like a kitchen that would be on Food Network channel.

Jasper walked in soon after with two social workers. He was a quiet and gentle middle school student. After brief introductions, Angie, Vai, and Jasper crowded around the stainless steel countertop and began cooking.

They started by creating the dough for the noodles by mixing eggs, salt, olive oil, and flour.

Which turned into dough…

Jasper rolled out the dough into noodles.

Jasper added garlic, onions, and basil...

... to a pot, to make his own marinara sauce…

Dishing it all up, he topped the noodles off with cheese…

But he doesn't like marinara sauce, so he chose to have pasta with butter.

The pasta must have been good, because he finished the whole plate. Actually, we all got to taste his pasta and it was delicious. I can’t help but imagine that Jasper was proud of his own cooking. He didn't show it much, but I’m sure he was glad that we all enjoyed the food that he made with his own hands. 

As you can see, we finished the plate!

It was a meaningful time for me, because I was able to meet a child that I was helping. As a Development Associate, most of my time is spent at the office. The work I do indirectly benefits the children by supporting the organization financially. But sometimes that’s hard to remember at the office. So it was good to finally see a child that I have been indirectly serving.

But I imagine the day to be very meaningful to Jasper as well. He was eager to learn about cooking throughout the day. And Angie, the instructor, gave him helpful tips about cooking and let him do most of the work. Sometimes instructors are impatient and end up cooking in place of their students, but Angie stepped back and let Jasper enjoy cooking.

I hope that Jasper continues to explore, experiment, and grow in cooking, that it becomes a hobby, and maybe even a career. But more importantly, I hope that he finds a family that is committed to loving and caring for him, because he’s a great kid. (and look for his taping to air on NBC10 in Philadelphia soon!) 

Matching Events

It’s always heartening to hear how many towns, cities and states are using Matching Events to identify adoptive homes for children in the United States foster care system. A core service of the National Adoption Center, we were one of the very first organizations to utilize this unique recruitment opportunity. These “parties” are a proven way to connect children with prospective adoptive parents. Just this morning I read about a daylong recruitment program in South Carolina called "The Voyage for Permanence for Our Waiting Children," where more than seventy-four potential adoptive families and foster parents, along with almost ninety foster children, came together to answer questions and introduce potential family matches.

While kids played games and ate cotton candy and snow cones, adults had the chance to mingle with representatives from the Division of Social Services, therapists, families who have already adopted and other adoption experts. Speakers and panels, made up of both adults and children, answered questions and eased fears over the process, and what potential adoptive families could expect upon bringing a child into their home permanently.

The National Adoption Center is a renown leader in the adoption field, and will continue to spread the word about Matching Events to more communities across the country.

Online Matching Events — everyone’s invited!

We are known for hosting matching events to assist youth in foster care in finding their forever families. For more than 25 years, these events have been a core service we offer  in the tri-state area of Southeastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. We host match events designed for specifically for the youth we are serving at that time; for example, we have held events for teens only and for sibling groups only.

Until recently, our events have been face to face, providing the opportunity for interaction between youth, families and workers. What we have learned from our experience hosting these events is that everyone is not appropriate to attend (this includes youth and families). Some youth are quiet and reserved and don't take well to the socializing that comes with an event. Some youth are not physically able to attend, like some of the youth we work with who are medically fragile. The term "medically fragile" means that the youth has a disability, is in stable condition, but is dependent on life sustaining medications, treatments, equipment and has need for assistance with activities of daily living. The disabilities may be due to an accident, illness, congenital disorder, abuse or neglect.

 We believe that "there are no unwanted children...just unfound families" and that all children deserve recruitment opportunities. One way that we have been able to include all youth in the match event process is by participating in online match events. Crystal, one of our Adoption Coordinators, recently participated in one of these parties, presenting six youth from her caseload. Via a webinar format, she shared photos, fun facts and personal stories about each youth. One youth who was featured was Rashawn, pictured above.

Rashawn, or Ra Ra as he is affectionately known, is a handsome and rapidly growing teenager. Ra Ra is nonverbal and legally blind but he is good at distinguishing different sounds and can recognize people by their voices. Ra Ra is affectionate, friendly and loves attention. He can be quite charming and is known for getting his way by batting his eyes and smiling.

Ra Ra had a traumatic brain injury as a baby. He requires assistance with daily living tasks such as bathing, feeding, dressing and toileting. Ra Ra resides at a pediatric medical facility and attends a special education school.

Ra Ra uses a wheelchair but he prefers to crawl about on his own. He enjoys pet therapy and especially likes dogs. Ra Ra has a feeding tube but takes most of his meals orally, eating pureed food. While at school, Ra Ra is learning to feed himself using a special spoon.

An ideal family for Rashawn is one with a medical background or an interest in learning how to provide for his medical care. 

To know more about Rashawn, contact Crystal by phone at: 267-443-1867 or by email at: callen@adopt.org.

Wednesday's Child - Wafiq

Meet Wafiq, featured last week on Wednesday’s Child. Like music? This guy knows all about it. Wafiq taught himself to play the drums and blew the minds of everyone at Elm Studio when he hopped on the set. Wafiq had a blast showing off his skills and spending some time with host Vai Sikahema and Dave Uosikkinen, the well known drummer and founder of The Hooters. Wafiq knows the importance of practice and can’t wait to start learning different instruments as well.

Aside from his love for music, this 7th grader is doing well in school, expresses an interest in his science classes, and is looking forward to possibly joining the school football team. Wafiq is an extremely friendly kid who does best with one on one interaction. When he’s not behind the drums, you can find Waqif rocking out on his Xbox, tossing around the football, or watching some laugh-out-loud comedies.

 

Like all other middle schoolers, Waqif knows the importance of having fun and being a kid. Waqif also knows the importance of family and talks a bit about what family means to him. Waqif says his dream is to be adopted. The most ideal family will be able to provide Waqif with the love, structure, and stability that every growing teen deserves. All families will be considered.

Watch Wafiq’s Wednesday’s Child feature.

The Fantastic Four

Freddie Mac Foundation's Wednesday's Child Philadelphia, is a weekly television feature on NBC10 that helps children living in foster care find permanent, loving, adoptive families. Last week, Kenneth, 12, Shakenya, 10 and twins Dominick & Deatrick, 9 were featured on the program and spent their day with Vai Sikahema, at Painting With A Twist as they were guided through a creative painting course. The siblings and Vai were provided with a canvas, paint and all other necessary art supplies. The painting course was an extremely entertaining and fun learning experience for them all.

Kenneth is in the 6th grade, Shakenya in the 5th grade and both Dominick & Deatrick are 3rd graders. All four siblings enjoy school and sports. The boys enjoy playing football while Shakenya enjoys cheerleading. Kenneth is the most social and can usually be found making someone laugh. Shakenya is very responsible and likes to speak on behalf of her brothers. Dominick & Deatrick tend to stick together most of the time when engaging in activities.

Kenneth, Shakenya, Dominick & Deatrick dream big of being adopted by a family that is willing to let them continue to grow and mature together. The children share the hope of living in a stable home with a loving forever family. The siblings desire parents that will be willing to spend quality time with them and allow them to participate in extracurricular activities. All families will be considered.

To see the children’s feature on Wednesday’s Child, click: View Video

To inquire about Kenneth, Shakenya, Dominick & Deatrick, please contact Sheina at smartinez@adopt.org

Jayden has a home. Thank you.

Our 2012 Adoption Campaign has raised over $30,000 which means children like Jayden are finally home. For good.

Siblings Angela (adopted), Jayden (adopted) and Madison. 

Karen and Adam Owens saw Jayden, 3, for the first time when he was featured on the Freddie Mac Foundation’s Wednesday’s Child on NBC 10 in 2011.

Karen and Adam knew Jayden would be their son as soon as they saw him on TV. The Owen’s son Gavin, born with a rare chronic illness, passed away at the age of three. Through their loss, the couple kept love in their hearts and knew the time they spent learning the ins and outs of caring for a child with intense medical needs, was not in vain.

The medical skills they acquired and the incredible love they had for their son made them certain that they wanted to adopt medically fragile children. Which they have done….twice. First with Angela and now Jayden!

Thanks to the generosity from our supporters, we are able to continue providing resources to foster children who are looking for homes to call their own. Thank you.

Wishing Everyone a Wonderful New Year,
The National Adoption Center

When Strangers Become Family

We share this with you as a wish for peace and love this holiday season.

When Strangers Become Family 

by: Michelle Johnson 

Development Intern

[Written in the voice of a child awaiting adoption and a 

husband longing for a child until their worlds collide] 

Who do I belong to? 

They gave me life and a name 

but no one to hold on to 

A life of inconsistency 

Nothing’s ever the same 

Could this be home? 

or only for today? 

I’ll dream forever 

if I wake to new scenery 

of a family 

embracing me with love 

and never leaving me 

Everything I’ve ever wanted 

as far as material things 

but still so incomplete 

I wanna feel the happiness 

that only a child brings 

Fill the hole in my heart 

Fulfillment to my life 

A reason to smile 

for me and my wife 

And then I met you 

Every thing I’ve ever needed 

My life anew 

My love will help you cope 

I know your past 

With you there is hope 

No more calamity 

Closer to world peace 

When strangers become family

#AdoptHope Wrap-Up

Wharton students, left to right: Natalie, Ainsley, Armin, Nilesh, Kashfia 

Our #AdoptHope event held at Shops at Liberty Place last week was a huge success in spreading awareness about the many children in foster care who await the love and support of a forever family. Many passers-by were given the opportunity to ask questions they had about adoption and foster care, pick up pamphlets provided by several different adoption agencies, and gather information on the many children that we work with here at the National Adoption Center.

The goal of this event was to educate others about adoption through the use of informative resource tables and provide interactive activities that reveal surprising myths and facts adoption. NAC staff, our Philly Fellow got to working side-by-side with students from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania to create this event. We are extremely pleased that we had the opportunity to celebrate National Adoption Month with others in the community and continue to push forward with public awareness initiatives.
        

Quote from Brittani, Wharton student and event performer, “I know I personally learned a lot about adoption and so did the rest of the team, which is awesome because now we will be able to educate others”

Myra, Adoptive mother of special needs children, and Beth, NAC's Marketing Director

                                   

We had a scrapbook where people could record their thoughts about adoption and family, here are a few of the messages left:

“Special children need special homes”

“I definitely want to adopt someday”

“It’s a wonderful thing”

What would be your message?

Behind the Scenes with Amanda

Greetings! My name is Amanda and I am a Program Intern here at the National Adoption Center. This internship fulfills the last requirement needed to obtain my degree in Human Development and Family Studies from Penn State University, but more importantly allows me to gain “real world” experience outside of the classroom. In the short six weeks that I have been with NAC I have learned so much about the field of adoption and what goes in to finding the perfect family for a child in foster care.

One family recruitment tool that is coordinated by NAC is “Wednesday’s Child.” I had the exciting opportunity to attend a Wednesday’s Child taping and meet Jose, the featured Wednesday’s Child for that week. I’m not sure why but I had expected something to set Jose apart from a typical teenager growing up in their birth family. I thought maybe he would look different or act different, or do something that would make it obvious that he lives in a foster home. Looking back, I feel embarrassed that I thought any of that. Jose was your average teenager; nose buried in his cell phone, listening to music on his head phones, and updating his Facebook status to let his friends know that he was at lunch with the Vai Sikahema. He was polite and very well-mannered. Nothing about Jose’s appearance or behavior indicated that he was going through one of the toughest things a child could face.

Unfortunately, I’m sure that many people have some of the same thoughts that I originally had about children in foster care. It just seems to make sense that a child who has been through such heartbreak and uncertainty in their short life might act bitter and mean. Lucky for me, I had the chance to be proved wrong by a sweet young man in foster care, and I am so thankful that I was blessed with that opportunity. Now I will make it my mission to let the rest of the world know just how amazing these children are.

Our Extraordinary Partner: Wendy's!

L to R: Sam Scott, Regional Director for Briad Group, Roberta Drakes, General Manager for Wendy's, Mushtaq Abdullahi, District Manager for Wendy's and Ken Mullner, Executive Director for NAC.

In addition to being Lead Sponsor for our 40th Anniversary Gala and Golf Tournament, Wendy's also designated us as beneficiary of the proceeds from its Frosty Key Tag Campaign. Wendy's restaurants in the tri-state area sold key tags for one dollar during January and February, allowing buyers to get a free Frosty each time they made a purchase throughout the year. Wendy's important partnership supports the work we do expanding adoption opportunities for children living in foster care.

2012 Golf Classic: Tee Off for Kids

The National Adoption Center’s 2012 Golf Classic: Tee Off for Kids is coming up on October 3rd, and we’re looking forward to one of our best tournaments yet! We’ll be honoring our 40th anniversary and celebrating the occasion at a new venue – the top PGA-rated course at Radnor Valley Country Club in Villanova, PA.

The day will include a barbeque luncheon, the chance to win a Mercedes with a hole-in-one, and an awards banquet featuring an open bar, gourmet dinner and live auction.

But the golf classic is about more than 18 holes and a fun day out of the office. It’s an opportunity to make an impact for the nearly 110,000 U.S. children living in foster care who hope for a family to call their own.

In fact, one of Radnor Valley’s golf professionals is an adoptive father we know well. Nelson Ranco and his wife Ellen adopted Ezra from foster care four years ago. Ezra had spent much of his childhood in foster care before moving in with the Rancos when he was 13. Ezra quickly melded into the family.

“We adopted Ezra to give him a family and for him to know he would have a family for the rest of his life,” Nelson said.

Today, Ezra is 17 years old and a senior in high school. He loves art as well as sports, and dreams of playing football in college.

It is for youth like Ezra that the National Adoption Center exists. So encourage your friends, coworkers and neighbors to come out and support this worthy cause. You won’t regret it!

For tickets, foursomes and sponsorship info visit www.adopt.org or call Katie at 267-443-1874.

Virginia Adoption

Virginia’s General Assembly recently passed a state law which allows any adoption agency, including state-funded agencies, to turn away qualified adoptive parents based on religious and moral beliefs, including sexual orientation. The legislation codifies last year’s State Board of Social Services regulation to allow faith-based organizations to reject prospective parents based on gender, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and family status. While the prevailing debate mainly focuses on faith-based convictions to join children with gay parents, the sweeping language leaves room for further discrimination by private agencies on the basis of religious and moral criteria of their choosing. Governor Robert McDonnell signed this anti-gay adoption bill when it reached his desk. Virginia now joins North Dakota as the only two states having what is termed a “conscience clause” in law. This is in contrast to nine states which explicitly prohibit this kind of discrimination in adoption. Virginia state law already prohibits unmarried couples to adopt, but does allow single people to adopt, regardless of sexual orientation.

There are approximately 1,300 children in Virginia waiting to be adopted and this law further limits the number of safe, loving and permanent caregivers that are available to them. The National Adoption Center STRONGLY rejects the premise that any prospective parent(s) should be rejected based on race, gender, religion and sexual orientation. What do you think?

What's a Match Party Like?

contributed by Abbigail Facey, Program Intern

As the teens enter the room one can feel the excitement building. It takes these thirty young people only a few minutes to gain their composure, survey their surroundings and strike up conversation with neighboring youth; the hum of chatter and laughter quickly begins to fill the room. Amidst this sea of budding friendships, prospective parents and adoptive families offer nervous smiles, and firm handshakes, as they attempt to begin conversation with these lively young people.

“For some prospective parents, this is the first time they have attended a Match Party,” explains Crystal, an adoption coordinator with NAC. “While they are excited to finally meet face-to-face with children, versus reading their bio or viewing their picture—there is a certain level of anxiety that each family faces.”

NAC – which expands adoption opportunities for children living in foster care – has led the way for 25 years in facilitating matching events, designed to introduce prospective parents to older youth who hope to be adopted. By focusing on teenagers, NAC’s goal is to eliminate the sense of competition often present between older youth and younger children at typical matching events.  

“When children of all ages attend match parties, families tend to  inquire more about the younger kids, those under 10,” says Sheina, an adoption coordinator at NAC. “That wasn’t fair to the older kids.” 

For Sheina, the best part about the Teen Match Parties “is seeing families who originally were interested only in children under 8 years old, having great conversation with a 12 year old and completely change their outlook.”

At these parties, the youth spend quality time with their peers who face similar challenges; they are able to express their feelings and show their personalities in a safe and supportive environment. Myenisha, a child who attended a Match Party, said “You get to meet families and other kids in the same situation.” This connection helps children understand that, while they may be experiencing significant transitions within their lives, they are not alone.  “The children tend to be relaxed at the event because they have been prepared by their Case Manager or Adoption Recruiter,” says Crystal.  “We let them know that they always have support and are not alone.”

NAC’s latest Match Party this past Fall was at The Funplex in East Hanover, New Jersey. After having created 14 similar parties with her team over the past three years, Allen said “We have it down to a science.  We were initially worried about there being too many distractions for the kids at the event, but it worked out really well.”

One way NAC's staff prepares teenagers for the Adoption Party event is through two pre-party events, led by a motivational group facilitator. These events assist teens in becoming more comfortable and confident about moving forward with the Match Party.

The process of finding qualified prospective adoptive parents poses a greater challenge for NAC—unfortunately, a smaller percentage of prospective families consider adopting older children. Even with the realities of a smaller pool of families interested in teens, NAC has a long and successful history of success.  These are teens who might still be lingering in the foster care system alone, who instead successfully found a forever family. 

 “The hard work put into the event is well the worth the effort,” Sheina said. “The entire office does a lot to prepare for the event—the paper work, the calls made for monetary donations is all worthwhile to see parents and kids engaged in conversation. The ultimate goal of our efforts is to create a match between prospective parents and children.”

That effort does not go unnoticed by the children attending the event. Thalia who attended described the party as, “awesome… because there’s a lot of people who care about you.”

As NAC approaches its 40^th year anniversary, Thalia can be sure that those who care about her and her story will continue to work toward finding the perfect home for her and others who need someone to make a difference in the way they grow up.  

Changing the Foster Care Adoption Process

The September issue of Children and Youth Services Review provides a qualitative study of nine families going through the foster care adoption process; three of them have already dropped out. Researchers noted the factors that support completion: a caring, competent social worker; supportive family and friends; involvement in counselling or parent-support activities. They also identified hindering factors including poor worker performance; the time-consuming and daunting nature of the process; and matching parameters that were too rigid. They also found that families needed to hear from workers often during the long waiting process.

The research recommends rethinking the manner in which agencies match children by having prospective parents check criteria they would accept or not accept and presenting only children who exactly match those criteria. Do you believe these suggestions will help expedite the process?

Importance of Recruitment

The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption released a new report outlining their 5-year rigorous, evidence-based evaluation and research, about their Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program (a child-focused recruitment model). DTFA's signature program, Wendy's Wonderful Kids (WWK), provides local adoption agencies (including us at the National Adoption Center) with grants to hire dedicated adoption recruiters who spend 100 percent of their job focused on finding waiting children forever homes. 

The report highlights that children in foster care who are served by the WWK recruitment program are 1.7 times more likely to be adopted than those not served by WWK. The research also highlights the impact of the WWK model is greatest among children who are older or those who have mental health disorders; a population of youth that have traditionally waited the longest for adoption or that are least likely to achieve adoption. The research, which was conducted by Child Trends, documents much-needed information about practices and policies that improve the likelihood of adoption for children in foster care.

Identity

contributed by intern, Abbigail Facey

Understanding one’s identity is a process that takes time to fully appreciate. For many it takes years to understand not only who they are but how their lives correlate to the functioning of the greater society. “How do I fit in the world?” is a question generations before us have pondered and one that will likely be contemplated for years to come. "What makes me unique, different from everyone else, and valuable to the world?" - question echoed throughout the ages.

Personally, I have found that the process of understanding my identity is directly correlated to the connection I have with my family. They have impressed upon me the importance of staying associated with others, honoring the aged, valuing hard work and dedication, and reaching out to those in need. While each family may have varied values and belief systems, I believe each of those value systems significantly impacts the development of one’s identity. To understand one’s identity is to develop a purpose driven life.

I believe that the National Adoption Center helps youth to do just that; develop a connection to the world and understand their identity in society. How? By championing adoption for all children in need, even the older youths, thus working to ensure that every child can have permanent connections to family. I would not be where I am today had it not been for the direction, guidance, care, and influence of my parents. I believe every child deserves the influence of parents who will offer the love and support a child needs especially in their formative years.

I am absolutely thrilled to be interning for an organization that cares so deeply about the development of youth. The Center works, not only for the betterment of young people, but society through its programs that work to prevent incarceration, homelessness, and high school dropout. (All of which occur at higher rates for those children who age out of the system.) It is my hope that through this internship I will learn the success stories of adopted children and their parents. I hope this in turn will help me to know more about the process of adoption, and may lead me to consider adoption for my family in the future.

Economic Impact on Children

While most Americans are breathing a sigh of relief that the debt-ceiling ‘crisis’ is over, the damage it could cause to U.S. children may be just beginning. Few mainstream economists believe the bill signed by the President will do anything to jumpstart a sluggish economy or create jobs. That means a continuing rapid rise in child poverty rates, and with that, more children and youth will be lost in “the system”. And with the deal’s commitment to cut trillions more in federal spending in the coming decade, it’s unimaginable that children will be spared even more cuts.

We Are Not a Statistic!

this post is a guest blog by one of our members of a program we run - the Teen Leadership Development Series... they had their final meeting of the season this past Wednesday and will resume in September

Hey my name is Zhade. I am 17 years old and I am a part of the Teen Leadership Development Series (TLDS). We learn important things necessary for life. For example, we learn things ranging from Independent Living skills, to learning how to deal with our family. We are all from The Division of Youth and Family Services otherwise known to others as DYFS. We are teens ranging from 15 to 19 who want to make a difference in people’s perception of DYFS kids no matter their age.

We want to get rid of the statistics that all DYFS kids are unable to be cared for and that we are incapable of handling ourselves and others. Guess what………WE'RE NOT A STATISTIC WE ARE HUMAN JUST LIKE YOU!!!!!!!! We are capable of many things that we are doubted for. Believe it or not, some of your favorite singers, actors, comedians, and even major people in our lives have been in foster care. For example Tommy Davidson, he was adopted and look at him…famous comedian. Do you still think we are incapable? This is why the TLDS is here to show and explain to the world that we are normal just like you or you. We are humanly capable of anything that anyone else is.

In the month of January we held a meeting and assigned people to certain positions such as president, vice president, treasurer, media, and so on. We did an exercise to simulate if someone was going to throw a party, what things we would bring to it, but instead we replaced the party with the group and had what leadership qualities would you bring to the group every time we meet and even outside of the group.

Also here at the group……you know what I don't like the term "group" instead how ‘bout we say family. Here at our family meetings we have a system to win money...YES real money. There is fake money we have that we call LEAD bucks, and every time we answer a question we are able to put one LEAD buck per answer to increase our chances of winning money. I personally like this because it allows us to interact with each other and our family leaders (TLDS Coordinators and Recruiters) and allows us to have fun. So this is a positive group that we all are a part of, even new members enjoy it. More from me Zhade, the media promoter, next month after our next meeting. Hope u enjoyed my first blog for our family TLDS.  Next time, and be safe.

Desire for a Family

Today's post is from Malini, our Marketing Intern

There was an interesting article on the Today Show website that introduced me to the concept of  “Adult Adoptions”. Adult adoptions are supposedly on the rise in the US, although not every state currently allows them. There are many different reasons as to why people go through with adult adoptions; the main reason being a continued desire of former foster youth for a permanent family and the support, guidance, and companionship than stems from that. Most children in foster care, available for adoption, understand this desire. A permanent, stable “family” is what most people want, no matter their age. It brought to mind the question, “What defines a family?” Is there a clear definition?

The article featured on the Today Show website tells the story of Jillian, adopted at the age of 29 by her co-worker and husband. Although Jillian was not in foster care, she did suffer an unfortunate childhood with abusive and troubled parents; a familiar situation for many foster youth. What are your thoughts are on Adult Adoptions after reading the article? Should other states, which currently do not recognize Adult Adoption, join Washington state in making them legal?

Picking your parents: Adult adoption creates new bond

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/43085435/ns/today-today_health/?gt1=43001