<iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-K36PZ8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden">
holding-hands-918990_960_720-2

Family Connections, Inc. Blog

Let us help you.

close

Categories

Subscribe to Email Updates

Popular Stories

Writing Adoption Reference Letters
What Names Do You Put In The Aka Or Alias Section Of Forms?
Adoption Reference Letters - How To
Pakistan Adoption FAQs
What to Expect During An Adoption Home Visit
Written by Renee Hettich
on June 10, 2015
im_pregnant2  Making a decision to find an adoptive family for your unborn child is probably one of the most important and difficult decisions you will ever make.  For most families an unplanned pregnancy creates a crisis or conflict in your life.  You may not be ready to parent a child because you are young and have not yet finished your education or you may be a parent to other children and feel that you do not have the capacity to parent one more child.  Perhaps you want to give your child a more stable childhood than you had or provide your child with a different kind of life. Whatever your personal reasons, making this decision is always difficult.

 

Letting an experienced adoption agency such as Family Connections, Inc. help and support you as you educate yourself and think through your decision can help relieve some of the anxiety that comes with making such a hard decision.  If you choose to make an adoption plan for your unborn child, an agency will have adoptive families who are waiting to adopt.  This means that they have been investigated to make sure they are good people.  Most are unable to become parents without someone like you making a decision to find adoptive parents for their unborn child.   Family Connections knows their waiting adoptive families very well.  The agency has personally investigated each family, counseled them, and educated them regarding adoption.  As a birth parent you can ask all the questions you want to ask about the agency philosophy on adoption and about the prospective adoptive families that are waiting to match with a birth family.  Meeting with prospective adoptive parents can help you chose the best family for your child.

 

Asking about the agency philosophy can tell you a lot about the prospective adoptive parents.   For example if you are interested in an open adoption and the agency is very supportive of open adoption then most likely the prospective adoptive parents will have signed up with this agency because they too are interested in an open adoption.  If you are not sure about an open adoption you can still work with and agency that offers openness because openness means the choices are yours.  An adoptive parent may want an open adoption but they will still be interested in a confidential or closed adoption if you choose this option.  Choosing an agency that only offers confidential adoptions limits your choices.

 

If you are interested in choosing the family for your child, is this option available from the agency you are interviewing?  Talking to several agencies to see if you like the staff  and the policies and philosophy of the agency can help you learn about all your options.  Agencies can offer different options and still be compliant with New York State Laws and regulations.  Adoption laws in other states are different than New York State laws but if you wish to place your child in another state, Family Connections can help you to do that too. 

 

Ask about an agency’s core philosophy. For example, Family Connections believes that every person has the right to self determine.  This means that we educate you regarding adoption, the state regulations, your options and choices and we believe that you, the birth parent, is the person who chooses your adoption plan.  Before you make any decisions, you should also have the opportunity to meet with an attorney who will educate you and explain the important legal matters in all adoptions.  All of the cost of the legal services will be paid for by the agency even if you change your mind about adoption.  This is New York State law.

 

Working with an agency means that you don’t have to tell a prospective adoptive parent that you have chosen another family or have decided to parent your child.  The agency can tell the family in a supportive manner and will have prepared the family for this possibility.  If you feel uncomfortable asking the family questions, the agency can ask the family for you.  They will probably already know the answer.  The agency can help you work out the post adoption contact agreement with the prospective adoptive parents by providing you with options, suggestions, and examples of other agreements.   Whatever agreement you and the prospective adoptive parents work out will be personal to you and them and reflect your wishes and values.  Any agreement you make with the adoptive parents is placed into the adoption paperwork and becomes enforceable by the New York State court system.  Since the agreements became a part of the legal process in a New York State adoption, there is no record of a birth parent having to ask the court to enforce the agreement. Families are happy to keep their agreement because they discussed it with you and by this time you are their hero.

 

 

Working with an agency means that you will not have to ask for services, the agency will ask how they can help you.  Financial assistance can sometimes be difficult to ask for however New York State has laws and regulations that allow for financial assistance.  The agency can also help you to connect to public services you may need after you have made an adoption plan for your child so that you can care for yourself financially and pursue your goals. 

 

Family Connections, Inc. is an authorized New York State adoption agency that has been supporting birth families and adoptive families for over twenty years. The agency would be honored to support your adoption plan.  Please contact Anita at 607-756-6574 to explore adoption as an option.  All services are fee.  All services are confidential.

 

Click me  

 

Let Us Know What You Thought about this Post.

Put your Comment Below.

You may also like:

Becoming an Adoptive Parent: A Step-by-Step Guide

Learn about starting on the journey of becoming an adoptive parent with this comprehensive step-by-step guide.

Make Your Gotcha Day Celebration Special: Personalized Activities

Make your Gotcha Day celebration truly unique with personalized activities that will create lasting memories for you and...

Helping Your Child Embrace Their Adoption Story

Discover effective ways to help adopted children embrace and feel empowered by their unique adoption story.