Since November is National Adoption Month I decided to do a series sharing “30 Things I Know About Adoption.” Come back each day for a new post. (Read all the 30 Things posts.)
“I’ve thought about adopting, but I could NEVER afford it.”
Ever said those words? Or thought them even?
Yes, some kinds of adoption are expensive – anywhere from $20,000-60,000.
But adoption can also be FREE when you adopt a waiting child from the U.S. foster care system.
There are over 104,000 children in foster care waiting to be adopted, ranging in age from less than one-year-old to 21 years of age. It may seem strange to think of a 21-year-old looking for a family, but that just illustrates the importance of the love and security only a family can offer.
Unfortunately, stereotypes persist (partly thanks to the entertainment industry), and many people assume that children in the foster care system are juvenile delinquents.
The truth is that these children have been removed from their home through no fault of their own.
They may have been placed in the system for a myriad of reasons – neglect, abuse, parental imprisonment, or death of a parent(s). Will these circumstances have caused trauma for the child? Of course. Even if they didn’t suffer abuse or neglect, the solitary act of being removed from a parent’s care is traumatic. But that trauma will reside in every child who is ever adopted, no matter what the circumstance and no matter their age. Infant adoption doesn’t bypass this, international adoption doesn’t bypass this. There is NO WAY around this.
Adopting from foster care is generally (with very few exceptions) completely free. Many states offer extra financial support such as free healthcare for the child or free in-state college tuition.
For more information on adopting from foster care, visit AdoptUSKids.org or the Dave Thomas Foundation.
Research
[1] “Meet the Children.” AdoptUSKids.org. Adopt US Kids, 2012. Web. 23 June 2013. <http://www.adoptuskids.org/meet-the-children>
[2] “Facts and Statistics.” CCAInstitute.org. Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, n.d. Web. 23 June 2013. <http://www.ccainstitute.org/why-we-do-it-/facts-and-statistics.html>