Adoption Program

In Los Angeles County, there are over 3,000 foster children waiting to be adopted. Every month, over 150 more children are freed for adoption. These children have no hope of being reunited with their parents; many of them have already been in multiple foster placements. But even when foster parents decide to adopt the children in their care, they face a system that is complex and overloaded. Social worker turnover, incomplete paperwork and placement disruption are just a few of the barriers delaying the completion of hundreds of adoptions each year.

Nine years ago, The Alliance conceived of Adoption Saturday, a day on which judges, attorneys and court personnel donated their time to open court so that hundreds of families, many of which had waited for years, could finally adopt. This special effort, now known as National Adoption Day, has become a nationwide model for promoting foster care adoption and increasing awareness of the many children in foster care who need permanent, loving homes. Through events held in 45 states and more than 200 cities across the United States, more than 13,500 kids now have someone to call mom or dad.

The Alliance also recognizes that children in foster care are among the most fragile -- many have endured physical and emotional abuse from birth. If a family is pushed through the adoption process without fully addressing the psychological, physical, and educational needs of the child, it can result in a delay of adoption finalization and traumatic post-adoption problems. In order to address this critical issue, The Alliance has begun reaching out to families at the earliest possible stage in the process. This enables us to resolve service issues at the same time that the paperwork and other steps are being completed, thereby avoiding delays and, more importantly, protecting the adoption, the child and the entire family.

The continued growth of National Adoption Day, a collaboration between the business and non-profit communities, is made possible by a coalition of partners including The Alliance, Casey Family Services, Children’s Action Network, Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Jockey Inc., and the Freddie Mac Foundation.

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