[Xmamato3]

My dh and I know a teenager(who will be 18 this summer) who just found out she is pregnant. She is considering adoption and has hinted that she would love to have us care for her child(birthdad wants to terminate his rights). Dh and I have decided that we would love to adopt this child and make him/her a member of our family through an open adoption. Adoption is not a new idea for us--we had originally planned on adopting a toddler/preschool age child in the next few years through the state.

My question is how do we go about this in this particular instance? Do we need to go through an agency? Could we use the state? I guess I'm not sure at this point what the next step would be? I though it might be good to ask those who are experienced!

Does anyone have any experience with a situation like this?

Thanks

 

[Stevie]

Your situation is exactly how we got started on our adoption journey. We were introduced to the friend of a friend who was looking to make an adoption plan.
The first thing we did was contact the free legal services through DH's employer and she told us we needed to contact an agency since we would need a completed home study whether we went through the state or did this as a private adoption.

Now, I am absolutely NOT an expert in adoption law in all 50 states, so all I can tell you is that in WI you have to have a home study before you can legally adopt a child... the agency who ended up doing our paper

was also very helpful when we asked questions at the beginning, before they began charging us. I'm guessing that any agency will be helpful in this way; good PR.

Good luck in your journey; nothing in my life has been more rewarding than becoming a parent through open adoption

oh I forgot to say that the state could have done our home study as well, but they are so overextended here in WI that it might have taken years unless we commited to being foster parents.

 

[MamiD'2]

A lot of what your responsibilites will depend on the state you reside in. The best thing you can do is to educate yourself about adoption/adopting. There are wonderful books available. The internet also has some excellent resources.

Best wishes!

 

[EFmom]

You also might call a local adoption attorney and discuss the situation with them, or find a local adoption support group and ask there, because it is so location-specific.

 

[Diane B]

You might want to consider using an agency because of what they will offer
your young acquaintance. Places like Lutheran Social Services or Catholic Charities offer free support and counseling to birth mothers, which might be beneficial to her, and can also help her think through how she would like the situation to be.