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What Is National Adoption Month?

November 17, 2021
adoption month

November is known as National Adoption Month, and it is meant to raise awareness of the many children and teenagers still waiting to be adopted in this country. The initiative is supported through a federal partnership with the Child Welfare Information Gateway and AdoptUSKids.

The organization’s objectives are to promote the safety, permanency, and well-being of children, youth, and families though public awareness, along with recruiting and developing adoptive families. National Adoption Month is a celebration of those who help care for children and teenagers as they await adoption, along with raising much needed awareness on the issue.

Two Decades of National Adoption Month History

National Adoption Month has been celebrated and revered during Nov. in cities across the country for over 20 years. It is meant to educate society through various events and platforms about children and teenagers who are currently waiting in foster care to be adopted into permanent homes. The education is facilitated by various municipalities at the national, state, and local levels, along with foster, kinship care, and adoptive family organizations.

National Adoption Month was initially cultivated in 1976 when Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis announced an Adoption Week to promote awareness of the need for adoptive families for children and teenagers in foster care. In 1984, President Reagan expanded awareness by proclaiming the first National Adoption Week. The Adoption Awareness Month, as we know it today, was expanded by President Clinton from one week to the entire month of Nov. in 1995.

In 1998, President Clinton called on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to facilitate a plan to utilize the Internet in order to help find homes for children and teenagers waiting to be adopted from foster care. A decade later, President Bush’s administration provided an explanation of National Adoption Month in Spanish.

Bush stated that the month was also a celebration of foster parents who showed the country how generous and caring a human heart can be through love and dedication that would inspire the next generation of Americans to achieve their dreams.

Over 400,000 Children in America’s Foster Care System

National Adoption Month is important for various reasons, but the end goal is to highlight the efforts of those working to take children out of the foster care system. There are roughly 400,000 children currently in the country’s foster care system. National Adoption Month and Day have become crucial to raising awareness on children and teenagers who need homes.

Media Family Law Lawyers at Eckell Sparks Can Help You Navigate the Adoption Process

If you are interested in adopting a child, our skilled Media family law lawyers at Eckell, Sparks, Levy, Auerbach, Monte, Sloane, Matthews & Auslander, P.C. can help you with the legal process. Located in Media and West Chester, Pennsylvania, we serve clients throughout Delaware County, Chester County, and Montgomery County. Call us at 610-565-3701 or complete our online form for an initial consultation.