ListenAdoption should be viewed as a special calling
A child is a miraculous gift from God, no matter how one receives it.
Many are given the ability to bear them, but fewer possess a much more important role -- the ability to rear them.
Nearly 120,000 American children are waiting for reliable and loving parents. Many have been waiting over three years. In the life of a child, three years is almost forever.
Being an adoptive parent should be viewed as a special calling. It involves just as much duty and responsibility as any biological parent.
There are many wonderful stories of perseverance and courage from people who adopt children from another country. There are also many inspiring stories of people who adopt babies or very young children.
But the most pressing need is for more people to adopt kids in foster care.
Many of these are older children, youngsters with disabilities and kids trying to overcome scarred lives caused by abuse or neglect. Some reach the age of 18 without finding a "forever family."
Every one of these kids has a story.
Their stories are found in thick court case files that detail the child's early life and experiences in the birth family, and the reason why the child is in need of placement in another home.
Many foster parents report that adoption is becoming increasingly difficult by what they view as the state's unrealistic emphasis on returning children to biological parents who simply are not capable -- or not likely to become capable for many years -- of fulfilling their critical obligation.
Giving biological parents "the benefit of the doubt" when it comes to custody decisions is fine. But some social agencies and courts make decisions as if children are the exclusive property of their biological parents.
Children are a blessing, but they are not property. Parenting is a privilege, not a right. The "best interests of the child" should always be paramount.
Another positive step would be to permit a child to be adopted by a second qualified adult parent upon the consent of a single parent if that child has no other legal parent.
Allowing a grandparent to adopt in such a case might give a pregnant teenage girl the financial security to give birth to her baby rather than having an abortion. It could allow the child to be added to the adopting grandparent's health insurance and qualify the child for other benefits.
Second-parent adoption could also help young widows or widowers by allowing a relative to legally become a second parent.
There's no hidden agenda here. It's just about giving every child an opportunity for the love and care of two good parents.
The children of today represent the future of America. As citizens, we have a collective obligation to encourage and promote adoption, including lobbying the powers-that-be to make it easier and quicker for adoptions to happen.
More of us need to step up and become adoptive parents, mentors, role models or advocates. We also need to foster more public-private partnerships to help broadcast the stories of each unique child.
This should include churches, synagogues and mosques, who could do more to assist prospective parents. They should be leaders when it comes to the moral responsibility to encourage adoption.
Adoptions are different than other court proceedings where there are winners and losers. That's because everyone leaves the courthouse smiling.
"We must work tirelessly to make sure that every boy and girl in America who is up for adoption has a family waiting to reach him or her," said Bill Clinton. "Perhaps there is no greater miracle than finding a loving home for a child who needs one."
"Having been adopted, I really have a strong sense -- a necessity almost -- for stability," said Faith Hill. "A foundation where my family is concerned. Success would be meaningless without anyone to share it with."
I'm not a former president or a country music legend, but here's how I view this issue:
Every child deserves a home and love. Period.
Editorial
30 Octobr 2011
http://www.crescent-news.com/columnists/2011/10/30/adoption-should-be-viewed-as-a-special-calling
