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1. Announcements | | |
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Adoption Photo Contest 2005
Adoption.com is sponsoring a photo contest for all types of photos related to adoption. Submit photos of your children, adoptive families, birth family reunion, or anything else adoption-related. The winner will receive a $200 gift certificate for AdoptionShop.com and 3 runners up will receive $50 gift certificates for AdoptionShop.com. Entries can be submitted three ways: 1.) by e-mailing editor@adoptionweek.com, 2.) directly online to the photo gallery, or 3.) by snail mail:
Photo Contest 2005
Adoption.com
459 N. Gilbert Rd., Suite C-100
Gilbert, AZ 85234
Deadline: April 30, 2005. Entries may be published on Adoption.com websites. No photos will be returned, so please send copies or electronic versions. All entries must be received before April 30, 2005 to be eligible. See http://adoption.com/legal.html for more terms and conditions.
Adoption Jobsite 2005
Student employees can research cutting-edge issues of child welfare law, help prepare memoranda on law and court briefs, assist with trial preparation, create newsletters, websites, and lay-person guides on child welfare legal topics, participate in client counseling sessions, and more! For more information on what a student employee can do for you, log on!
Get a $5 Gift Certificate
Have you read any of the books in AdoptionShop.com? Bought a product? If you have, and you write a review, you will get a $5 gift certificate toward the purchase of any item(s) listed in the AdoptionShop.com online catalog with a value of $10.00 or more. Visit AdoptionShop.com, find the page for the product you want to review, and click on the "review" link at the bottom of the page. Visit AdoptionShop.com now!
What's New with ParentProfiles.com?
Come see what everyone's talking about: New homepage design! New search! New profile builder! New themes! New audio options! and much, much, more. Adoption Profiles LLC has joined with Adoption Web Services LLC to bring you some great new features and a new improved site. Login now to your profile and experience for yourself all the new features. Visit us!
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2. The Adoption Blog - by Nancy Ashe | | | | |
Presidential Connections - Which U.S. presidents were adopted? Fostered? Adopted a child? President's Day brings to mind the adoption, foster care, and kinship care connections in the lives of many U.S. presidents... more.
Stateless Adoptee Files $5.7M Lawsuit - The top story on many news sites in Canada (and around the world) these days is about a 22-year old woman named Alexandra Austin. Adopted as a 9-year old from Romania by a couple in Canada, she is now a stateless person and her baby is also stateless. What happened?... more.
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3. Highlighted Articles | | | | |
The views expressed by the authors are solely their own, and for which the authors are responsible. These views do not necessarily represent the views of Adoption Week e-Magazine.
Bribery vs. Reinforcement - new article by Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSW
Parents are right. Bribery does not work. However, reinforcement does. Here's the difference...more
Being Prepared: Knowing How to Find Help for Your Child - contributed by American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP)
Parents are often concerned about their child's emotional health or behavior but they don't know where to start to get help. The mental health system can sometimes be complicated and difficult for parents to understand. A child's emotional distress often causes disruption to both the parent's and the child's world. Parents may have difficulty being objective...more
Alcoholism - from Russia to You & Here in the USA - new article by Doris A. Landry, M S., L.L.P.
Every child in America, regardless of heritage, is at risk for alcoholism. Research indicates that 26% of 8th graders reported drinking alcohol in any given month, 40% of 10th graders and 51% of 12th graders! All kids are at very high risk...more
Read these articles at e-magazine.adoption.com, and submit your adoption-related articles for publication in Adoption Week e-Magazine and Adoption.com.
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4. Adoption News | | | | |
Woman Sentenced in Child Death Case
A judge sentenced Latricia Bars to ten years in prison for the death of her adopted son, Anthony, Friday morning...more
Chinese Parents Fight Adoption of Girl, 6
Jerry and Louise Baker, residents of a Memphis suburb, have raised Anna Mae He since she was just under a month old. They are trying to adopt the child over her parents' objections. The Hes are appealing a ruling by Circuit Judge Robert Childers of Memphis that took away all of their legal rights to Anna Mae...more
Overlake Surgeon Sued over Adoption
A heart surgeon at Overlake Hospital Medical Center in Bellevue is the target of a lawsuit accusing him of sending a 9-year-old girl he adopted in 1991 back to her impoverished home in Romania after just five months...more
Big Family on the Move Faced Few Questions
The itinerant lifestyle of a couple accused of child abuse prevented neighbors from knowing them well. Five of the children were kept out of sight...more
Adoptee Wants to Visit Children
Shanda Rae Shelton, the oldest adopted daughter of John and Linda Dollar wants a chance to see her seven brothers and sisters and possibly help raise them, her lawyers said...more
Congress Considers Adoption Tax Relief
The costs of adoption are being addressed in a plan to extend tax credits on a permanent basis...more
Read more headlines at news.adoption.com.
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5. Adoption Law & Policy News | | | | |
February 16, 2005
WEEKLY NEWS SUMMARY
Foster Care/State Systems
Illinois: "Fewer Children Being Placed in Foster Care; State Program to Keep Troubled Families Together a Success" - by Amanda Codispoti
Peoria Journal Star, February 4, 2005
Click here.
Adoption/Wrongful/Fraudulent Adoption
Florida: "Woman Charged with Adoption Fraud" - by Staff Reporter
Tampa Bay Online, February 4, 2005
Click here.
WEEKLY CASE SUMMARY
Termination of Parental Rights/Appeals of Orders of Termination
Georgia: In re A.T.
The Court of Appeals of Georgia reversed a trial court's decision to terminate Appellant mother's parental rights...
Cite: No. A05A0131, 2005 Ga. Ct. App. LEXIS 79 (Ga. Ct. App. Feb. 1, 2005).
Click here.
Adoption/Adoption Procedure
Florida: State of Florida, Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) v. I.B. and D.B.
The Florida First District Appellate Court affirmed the Administrative Law Judge's invalidation of an administrative rule forbidding adoptive applicants from appealing a decision by the DCFS to select a particular adoptive home for a child...
Cite: No. 1D04-0355, 2005 Fl. App. LEXIS 803 (Fl. Ct. App. Jan. 31, 2005).
Click here.
Termination of Parental Rights/Appeals of Orders of Termination
Arkansas: Betty Adams v. Arkansas Dept. of Human Services
The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's decision to terminate parental rights under the factors listed in Ark. Code Ann. § 9-27-341(b)(3)(B)...
Cite: No. CA04-689, 2005 Ark. App. Lexis 102 (Ark. Ct. App. February 2, 2005).
Click here.
Credit: National Center for Adoption Law & Policy
Link: http://www.law.capital.edu/adoption
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| | 6. Featured Adoption Product | |
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Chasing Away The Shadows
This book began as a personal journal kept by singer/songwriter Zara Phillips as she struggled for identity through the waning years of the "closed adoption" era...more
Find 1,000+ other adoption products at adoptionshop.com.
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| | 7. Featured Waiting Child | | | | |
 Brandon is an intelligent child who enjoys math and playing the drums in the school band. Brandon enjoys playing and watching football. He enjoys being outside...more
Photolisting.adoption.com is a free community service of adoption.com featuring thousands of children awaiting loving, permanent homes. Add your agency's waiting children to photolisting.adoption.com, and help them find loving homes faster... more | |
| | 8. Meet New Hopeful Adoptive Parents | | | | |
Are you pregnant? Visit parentprofiles.com (a service of Adoption Profiles, LLC) to find the right adoptive parents for your baby. Are you a hopeful adoptive parent? Build your profile.
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9. Adoption Gem | | | | |
Look at everything as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time. Then your time on earth will be filled with glory.
- Betty Smith
Share your story, thought, or quote.
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10. Adoption Buzz | | | | |
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11. Just for the Fun of It | | | | |
The Birthday Gift
When my three-year-old son opened the birthday gift from his grandmother, he discovered a water pistol. He squealed with delight and headed for the nearest sink. I was not so pleased. I turned to Mom and said, "I'm surprised at you. Don't you remember how we used to drive you crazy with water guns?"
Mom smiled and then replied, "I remember."
Share your humorous story or joke.
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| | 12. Featured Adoption Professional | | | | |
A New Arrival Adoptions - Twin Bridgest, MT
Phone: (406) 684-5312 E-mail: info@anewarrival.com
Services: • Adoption Agencies • Home Studies • International Adoption • State Adoption Specialists • General Support
Countries: • China • Haiti...more
Find adoption agencies, attorneys and other adoption professionals at adoptiondirectory.com. See your ad here.
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| | 13. Counsel from an Adoptee & a Birth Mother | | | | |
This section is not intended for search advice. It is meant to be an advice column for people with questions concerning their feelings, interested in the opinion of someone who can relate. The views expressed by this author is solely his own, and for which the author is responsible. The content within this column is not to be considered as professional medical, legal or behavioral health information to be used in diagnosis, treatment or actions that would require the consultation and/or services of a licensed, certified or accredited professional. These views do not necessarily represent the views of Adoption Week e-Magazine.
Question 1:
Hi Jan & Linda,
My name is Lynnae, and I have just found my birth parents. They got married 6 months after I was born and have been married for 35 years. My birth father had 5 children from a previous marriage and both birth mother and father have 2 children together. There are now 24 grandchildren in the family.
Anyway, my husband's uncle had found them and has been to their house. He has spoken to my birth mother on the phone, and she said her and my birth father had agreed to meet me. At the time she said they were both sick and needed a week to recover and she would call back to schedule a meeting with me.
It has now been 3 weeks and my husbands' uncle still calls and leaves messages. He has even gone to there house and no one was home.
I don't quite know what to make of this. With trying to keep a level head and not jumping to conclusions, I want to know what sort of rights does an adoptee have. Would it be ok for me to get the information from my husbands' uncle and pursue this myself? Is there a freedom of information act that I can pursue this and go directly to the house myself?
Reason I ask this is because my husband's uncle is a police man and had used resources to find her. I did get my original birth certificate and he did the rest.
Can you please give me some advise as to what to do next? Knowing I have siblings, I really want to meet them. I did not have a very good childhood, and I guess I am clinging onto something that might make me feel complete.
Thank you for your time.
Lynnae
Question 2:
I am 22 years old, and I have been searching for my birth mother for a very long time. The agency was no help, so I decided to hire a reunion agent. I paid them money to find her. They don't exactly guarantee that she is my mother but assure me that this is the best possible match. I have looked and posted on every registry possible, and I assume she is not searching for me. What approach do I use to contact her? A letter, a phone call? I have a feeling even if it is her, she will deny it. I want to know if it is her even if she refuses a reunion. What do I do to ensure her to tell me the truth even if she wants nothing to do with me?
Maria
Answers: To read Jan and Linda's replies, click here.
Read columnists' bios and ask your question.
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| | 14. Speak Out | | | | |
OMG...I too am a birth mother, but unlike JB, I have been reunited with my birth daughter. She will be 43 this year. Keep the faith, J.B. It will happen eventually. For years and years and years, even after I married (not her father) and had 2 other children, I never let a day pass without thinking of her. Although she tells me 'stop it' when I get upset...thinking of the past & laying guilt trips on myself...it still happens! I doubt I'll ever get over the fact that I was unable to keep her. Like you, I've wished I could go back to that awful day that I left the hospital without my daughter. She was adopted by loving parents who have since passed away. She misses them dearly but feels 'lucky' to have found another 'Mom'. God bless you! Keep searching & 'keep the faith'. The 2 of us have started looking for her birth father. There are questions she has that I am unable to answer because I've likely blocked that info from my mind. I can't even remember his birth date! Good luck!
I wanted to respond to Heather Wolfe / Lindsay Morris. I had a daughter I gave up for adoption 22 years ago. February 9th in Iowa. I have been searching for her with no success. At times I feel I maybe doing the wrong thing. I am afraid that she may not want me in her life and yet I think I won't know that for sure unless I find her. In my heart I know I did the right thing by giving her up for adoption. I pray that she doesn't hate me for giving her up and that she realizes I did this strictly out of the love I have for her. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her. I wonder what she looks like, what her life is like, is she happy, healthy. I would search until you find your daughter. The unknown is scary and you need to be prepared incase she doesn't want to know you. But you wont know her feelings until you find her. Still searching - Dawn Becka
There seems to be a trend going here. As I surf through the boards, read the poems and listen to your comments I come to find that adoptions would benefit from an open structure. Yes, it does exist, but in most places that's not the default or the "preferred" type! Adoptees are searching and wondering...birth parents are hoping and powerless...even some adoptive parents out there are wishing they could give their adopted children that knowledge that can ONLY come from birth parents. Consider an open adoption. The children really do benefit the most from it. If you've adopted consider opening your adoption. If you're a birth parent write birthday cards, send pictures and letters (even if you're using a medium like the agency to do it) and always make yourself available and willing to that child or adult. Register on adoption websites to put the ball in their court. Adoptees, you are the important one, and I can't give you any advice beyond this: I'm willing to bet you that there is at least one birth parent out there waiting for you and loving you. You may even have a whole family wondering when they'll have the privilege of knowing you. Maybe you just have to make the first leap of faith. I placed my one and only little daughter into a fully open adoption 16 months ago, and it has been one of the ways I survive to see her smiling and growing and thriving. Her older adopted brother has benefited from having a "birth mom figure" to relate things to and her parents and I have enjoyed an open relationship with one another. It's more work sometimes, but it is worth it and I know she will be so much happier, well-rounded and more secure in the end. Do the research. Get the facts on open adoption from an agency that advocates a fully-open adoption. You can always taper off contact if needed, but you cannot always start it after a placement. - Faith in Texas
To LP: My decisions whether to adopt domestic, overseas, black, white, mixed, disabled, etc. is indeed my own business. I don't need anyone else's approval but just
wanted to chime in on why I made my choices mostly to give others something to consider when they are deciding whether to adopt domestically or internationally. I am personally grateful that there are people who want to grow their families through adoption, and I would never judge them on what type of child they are looking for or where their heart takes them to find their forever child(ren). - CC
Dear J.B.: Please, please stop beating yourself up and hating yourself for placing your baby girl up for adoption. You do not know what might have happened if you kept her. I have a son out there that is 32 years old, and I have to think that it was meant to be that I gave him a new mom and dad. I don't know what might have happened if I kept him, due to my age and circumstances. I believe things happen for a reason, and I want to think he is doing very well because of my decision. And yes, it hurts and I wonder where he is and if he is ok, am I a grandma, etc. But I can't let it run my life I have with my children I do have. I hope one day I meet him. I don't know if that will happen, but if not, I want to leave this earth feeling that I at least gave him life and not the alternative. You should feel the same way. You are NOT a bad person; it takes a very strong person to do what we felt we had to do at that time of our lives. Love the children you have and pray for the one you have somewhere else, and put everything in God's hands, that is all you can do. Remember...it takes a very strong and thoughtful woman to give birth and give that precious gift to someone who will take care of her/him for us. Keep your head held high, girlfriend. Believe me, you are not alone. - Susan from Utah.
I'm a birth mom of a bi-racial boy. I'm never going to give up on finding him. He's thirty-five now. I'm praying that he had a fulfilled life with parents that loved him. As for myself, I didn't succeed in my life as I hoped. I've been punishing myself for giving him up for adoption years ago. He was born on Nov. 3, 1969, in St. Louis, MO. My maiden name was Porter. I'm not sure, but I think he was adopted through the state (not for certain), possibly the Catholic Charity. If anyone knows anything, please get in touch with me. E-mail me. God bless you.
- Barbara
Speak Out - share your opinion, comment, or respond to a message.
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15. Adoption Poetry | | | | |
For Cyrilla
Your were born in my heart. This most precious part.
Your love is the blood in my veins and every heartbeat surges
that love throughout my body and soul.
Your pain is my pain . Your tears are my tears.
So let my heart pound away your years of pain and return years of love.
Together we can face this world as a family because you was born in my heart
and your heart needed mine.
Marvin Faw
Read more adoption poetry, or share your adoption poem.
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| | 16. Adoption Calendar | | | | |
Adoption Events:
Adoption Information Meeting
February 22 (6:30 pm) - Holt International Eugene Office, 1195 City View, Eugene, OR
Holt International - Contact Becky Noah at (541) 342-7557 or e-mail for details.
Adoption Information Meeting
February 24 (7:00 pm - 8:30 pm) - St. John LaLande Church, 801 NW R.D. Mize Road, Blue Springs, MO
Holt International - Contact Judy Young at (816) 822-2169 or e-mail for details.
You Can Afford Adoption: Getting Started
February 26 (9:00 am - 1:00 pm) - Christ Episcopal Church, Plano, TX
A Mother's Charm - Free seminar with expert speakers and exhibits. Contact Ruth Ellen Heaton at (888) 924-2767, e-mail, or click here for details. Register on-line or by phone.
Pre-Adoption Workshop: One-Day Seminar
February 26 (9:30 am - 3:30 pm) - Fellowship Bible Church, 12601 Hinson Road, Little Rock, AR
Dillon International, Inc. - Meet adoptive families, their children, and staff members of Dillon International, Inc. Cost:
$75.00 - married couple, $65.00 - single adult applicant; the fee covers lunch and seminar materials. Facilities do not provide for childcare. To register, call (918) 749-4600, e-mail, or click here for details.
Informational Adoption Seminar
March 1 (6:30 pm - 8:30 pm) - Community United Methodist Church, 14700 W Watertown Plank Road, Elm Grove, WI
Sunshine Adoption - Seminar participants will learn more about the adoption process, the requirements, fees and timetable. Meet a local family and hear about their adoption experience. Join us to learn more about adoption opportunities from Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, China, Columbia and Guatemala. RSVP at (262) 796-9898.
All in the Family
March 2 (7:00 pm – 9:00 pm) - 141 Willis Ave., Mineola, NY
New Beginnings Family & Children’s Services - Contact Faye Caperna at (516) 747-2204, e-mail, or click here for details.
Informational Adoption Seminar
March 3 (6:30 pm - 8:30 pm) - Christ Church, 10606 N Port Washington Road, Mequon, WI
Sunshine Adoption - Seminar participants will learn more about the adoption process, the requirements, fees and timetable. Meet a local family and hear about their adoption experience. Join us to learn more about adoption opportunities from Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, China, Columbia and Guatemala. RSVP at (262) 796-9898.
Orientation
March 3 (7:00 pm – 9:00 pm) - 141 Willis Ave., Mineola, NY
New Beginnings Family & Children’s Services - Call (516) 747-2204, e-mail, or click here for details.
Adopting from China
March 5 (11:00 am – 1:00 pm) - L.E.R. Schimelpfenig Library, 5024 Custer Rd., Plano, TX
Great Wall China Adoption - Free informational meeting. Meet families who have returned from China and hear from them, first hand, about their experiences. For more information, or to register, contact Kelley Prahl at (214) 387-4329, e-mail, or click here for details.
Adopting from China
March 5 (2:00 pm – 4:00 pm) - Rockford City Hall, 7 South Monroe Street, Rockford, MI
Great Wall China Adoption - Free informational meeting. Meet families who have returned from China and hear from them, first hand, about their experiences. For more information, or to register, contact Christine Bedford at (616) 866-9668, e-mail, or click here for details.
Adoption Information Meeting
March 6 (1:00 pm - 2:30 pm) - St. John LaLande Church, 801 NW R.D. Mize Road, Blue Springs, MO
Holt International - Meeting for all Holt families 2:30 pm - 4:30 pm. Must RSVP for details. Contact Lynn Sims at (501) 568-2827.
Kid Talk (I)
March 6 (1:30 pm – 3:00 pm) - 141 Willis Ave., Mineola, NY
New Beginnings Family & Children’s Services - Contact Debbie Ratner at (516) 747-2204, e-mail, or click here for details.
Adoption Information Meeting
March 7 (6:30 pm) - Douglas County Library, 1409 NE Diamond Lake Blvd., Roseburg, OR
Holt International - Contact Becky Noah at (541) 342-7557 or e-mail.
Adoption Information Meeting
March 8 (6:30 pm - 8:30 pm) - Holt International Portland Office, 9320 SW Barbur Blvd., Capitol Plaza Bldg., Ste 100, Portland, Oregon
Holt International - Contact Oregon Branch Office at (503) 244-2440 or e-mail.
To view local listings, regional seminars, many other adoption events, and to list your organization's events, visit adoptioncalendar.com.
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Adoption Week e-Magazine | | | |
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