National Adoption Month: KVC Health Systems Celebrates 4,000 Children's Adoptions
OLATHE, Kan. (PRWEB) November 14, 2017 -- More than 110,000 U.S. children in foster care are awaiting for permanent, loving families. KVC Health Systems is marking National Adoption Month by celebrating the fact it has facilitated over 4,000 children’s adoptions in the nonprofit behavioral health and child welfare organization’s history. The agency passed the significant milestone this summer and continues to bring smiles to the faces of children and adults each month.
November 18 is National Adoption Day. Following tradition, many judges open their courthouse on that Saturday before Thanksgiving to complete adoptions and bring joy to families. In total this November, KVC community teams are helping to facilitate the adoptions of nearly 100 children in Kansas, Nebraska, Kentucky and West Virginia.
Profiles of children who need to be adopted can viewed at http://www.adoptuskids.org, or for those children served by KVC, at http://adoption.kvc.org. The profiles include photos, bios and, in some cases, videos.
One recent adoption is truly inspiring. 11-year-old Sierra was adopted by her foster parents after experiencing neglect by her mother and stepfather who used and sold drugs. After caring for herself and her siblings, Sierra went to live with foster parents Kelly and Rick Patterson. Over time, Sierra began to open up and feel comfortable in the Pattersons’ home and the couple was able to adopt her in October 2017. Read more about Sierra's story and watch a short video at http://www.kvc.org/sierra.
KVC Health Systems is a private, nonprofit organization that provides in-home family support, foster care, adoption, behavioral healthcare and psychiatric hospitals through direct care subsidiaries in multiple states. In the past fiscal year, KVC supported relative caregivers and foster families to care for 6,909 children in four states and matched 449 children with adoptive families.
Media representatives in Kansas are invited to observe adoption finalizations and interview adoptive families at the times and locations below. Media in other states can contact KVC at (913) 322-4994.
KANSAS CITY – 10:00 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 17
Wyandotte County Courthouse (710 N. 7th St. Trfy, Kansas City, KS)
Approximately 6 children’s adoptions will be finalized.
TOPEKA – 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18
Shawnee County Courthouse (200 SE 7th St., Topeka, KS)
This event will include a press conference for media including Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer (schedule-permitting) and balloon release for families.
Approximately 20 children’s adoptions will be finalized.
OLATHE – 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18
Johnson County Courthouse (100 N. Kansas Ave., Olathe, KS)
Approximately 12 children’s adoptions will be finalized.
IOLA – 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 17
Allen County Courthouse (1 N Washington Ave, Iola, KS 66749)
Approximately 9 children’s adoptions will be finalized.
According to AdoptUSKids, “Adopting a child from foster care is a great way to help a child while growing your family. Children enter foster care through no fault of their own, because they have been abused, neglected or abandoned. These children are in the temporary custody of the state while their birth parents are given the opportunity to complete services that will allow the children to be returned to them if it is in the children’s best interest.”
“Just more than half of children who go into foster care return to their birth families. For children who become available for adoption, many are adopted by a relative or their foster parents.”
Visit our adoption website (http://adoption.kvc.org) to meet the children in need of an adoptive family.
Jenny Kutz, KVC Health Systems, http://www.kvc.org, +1 (913) 322-4994, [email protected]
Share this article