Myths of foster care adoption

November's National Adoption Month is right around the corner! It's a time to raise awareness about the 129,000 children in our country who are waiting to be adopted. Some of them wait as long as five years to find their forever family, which can feel like a lifetime to a child.

So, what can you do to help as we gear up for Adoption Month? One of the first things you can do is learn the facts, like some of the myths of foster care adoption. According to the 2007 National Foster Care Adoption Attitudes Survey commissioned by the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, many of us have misperceptions about adoption from foster care:

45% of Americans think children in foster care enter the system because of juvenile delinquency.
Reality: Children enter the system after experiencing neglect, abandonment or abuse.

46% of Americans think foster care adoption is expensive.
Reality: Foster care adoption is not expensive, and financial support is available.

67% of Americans considering adoption think the biological parents could take the child back.
Reality: Once a child is legally available for adoption, the birth parents no longer have parental rights to the child.

As much as National Adoption Month is a time to raise awareness, it's also a time to simply celebrate the joy that adoption brings. One day that is definitely all about the joy is Adoption Saturday, a national day when courts open their doors to finalize thousands of adoptions for children in foster care. Iowa will host five Adoption Saturday events this year in Ames, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Des Moines and Sioux City (for the first time!). Check out this great video from National Adoption Day showing what this "one day" is truly all about.





How do you plan to celebrate Adoption Month? Leave a comment and let us know!