Richard DiPilla’s Post

Consider Adoption With over 7 million Americans having been adopted and one out of every 25 families having an adopted child…. why not consider becoming an adoptive parent? November is National Adoption Month, which started as Adoption Week in Massachusetts in 1976 and became National Adoption Month in 1995. It raises awareness about the urgent need for adoptive families and celebrates the families formed through adoption. In addition to finding homes for these adoptive children and teens, this month honors all those who shape their community: birth parents, social workers, adoptive parents, and everyone who makes an effort to positively impact their lives by helping them build supportive, enduring relationships. In addition to babies and toddlers, there is a significant need for adoptive families for older youth who face significant challenges in finding a permanent family. Research indicates that youth who age out of foster care without a secure and supportive family are at greater risk for adverse outcomes, including homelessness and PTSD, rivaling that of returning combat veterans. Securing lifelong connections for these older children, legally and emotionally, is critical in determining their future achievement, health, and well-being. I believe that every community has at least one family or individual ready to open their heart and home to a child in need. As a parent to an adopted daughter, I know I am the one who has felt the most happiness from the adoption experience. Children’s experiences are often more nuanced, with many adopted children struggling to feel joy while also feeling the loss of their first family and first identity. My daughter is my pride and joy. She is a fantastic individual now in her young adult years, and she rests in the knowledge that she will always have my unwavering love and support. Please consider adoption. I cannot promise you that the journey will be easy, but I can promise you that it will be worth it. And remember, “Adopting one child won’t change the world, but for that child, the world will change.” 

November is Adoption Awareness Month, and we’re honored to play a role in supporting families through every step of the adoption journey. This month, we want to share Noah’s story, a reminder of how our work can make a lasting difference in the lives of children and their families. When Noah came to us through a DCFS referral in 2021, he had already been in the care of his grandfather, Mr. Walker, since infancy due to his mother’s ongoing struggles with mental health. Over the past two years, our team at Family Focus has provided therapeutic services to Noah and Mr. Walker, helping to build a foundation of love, stability, and resilience. Through consistent support and counseling, we’ve witnessed transformative changes in their relationship. Mr. Walker’s dedication and Family Focus’ therapeutic services have created a positive environment where Noah can truly thrive. Now, they are on the verge of finalizing Noah’s adoption—marking the beginning of a secure and happy future together. In Illinois, there are currently 17,920 children in foster care, with 3,347 waiting to find their forever families. Many of these children may wait two or more years, and some may age out of the system without ever experiencing the joy of adoption. Family Focus is here to change that. Our adoption support services are designed to provide families like Noah and Mr. Walker with the guidance, resources, and encouragement they need to overcome challenges and build strong, lasting bonds. How can you make a difference? 1. Share this post to spread awareness about the 3,347 children in Illinois waiting for adoptive families. 2. Consider supporting Family Focus to help us continue providing crucial therapeutic services for families in need. 3. Learn more about adoption and how you can be part of a child’s journey to a brighter future. Help us ensure every child finds the love, support, and stability they deserve.  #AdoptionAwarenessMonth #FamilyFocus #ForeverFamilies #SupportAdoption #TransformingLives

💙 National Adoption Month: Every Child Deserves a Forever Home 💙 In our latest feature, Tara Pulaski shares a powerful perspective on the transformative impact of permanency planning. For so many children in care, adoption represents hope—a chance to belong, to feel loved, and to know they matter. Adoption isn’t just a process—it’s a promise of love, stability, and belonging. Join us in honoring the families, social workers, and advocates who make this possible, one connection at a time. 📖 Read Tara’s story below. -- #Nationaladoptionmonth #foreverfamily #adoption

There’s no such thing as a ‘normal’ family…   To mark this year’s National Adoption Week, Freuds+ is supporting You Can Adopt with ‘The Journey’ campaign to highlight that the road to a family doesn’t have to be a traditional one and that families come in all shapes and sizes. It comes as a new survey reveals that nearly half of Brits (48%) have a ‘chosen family’ and 42% come from a ‘non-traditional’ family structure.   “You have an idea in your head of what family looks like, and for us it’s been different, but even more wonderful in different ways,” says Rachel who adopted her daughter Winnie, aged two.   To demonstrate just how rewarding adoption can be, families from across the country are sharing their inspiring journeys in a new film, set onboard a train, showing how just like all families, adoptive families go through ups, downs and detours during their lifelong journey.   What makes every journey unique is the people who play a role along the way. From social workers and foster carers to birth families and grandparents, adopters are never alone due to the ‘village’ of support around them.   This National Adoption Week comes at a more critical time than ever, with the latest adoption data showing a 22% increase in the number of children who have not yet been matched with a forever family, alongside a fall in the number of people coming forward.   If you’d like to find out more about adoption or starting your own adoption journey, visit youcanadopt.co.uk/naw   #NationalAdoptionWeek #NAW2024 #YouCanAdopt

🎙️ Polly Talks to Naomi & Vickie from Scottish Adoption & Fostering: The Bluebird Project 🌟 In this powerful episode of Polly Talks..., Polly sits down with Naomi and Vickie from Scottish Adoption and Fostering to dive deep into the Bluebird Project—a vital support network for birth parents whose children are in foster, adoptive, or kinship care. 💙 The Bluebird Project was created to provide a safe, non-judgmental space for birth parents to connect, heal, and find support. Whether you're in Edinburgh, the Lothians, or elsewhere in Scotland, Bluebird is here to help. From virtual and telephone counselling to peer support groups, this project offers vital resources for those who often feel isolated, judged, and alone after the heartbreaking decision of having a child removed from their care. Naomi and Vickie share incredible insights into the work they do, as well as the profound impact of the Bluebird Flock—a support group tailored specifically for birth parents, including those who still have one child at home. 💬 As one birth mother shared: "There was absolutely nothing or no one that I could turn to when the decision was made for my child to be adopted. I was on my own… The only help was from my GP and that was only pills. Talking to people who had been through the same as me would have helped as I felt like I was the only one." The emotional journey of a birth parent is never linear, and as Naomi and Vickie explain, whether it happened years ago or recently, the feelings of loss and isolation are often still felt deeply. That's why the Bluebird Project places such a strong emphasis on nurture and connection. Tune in to hear more about the incredible work of the Bluebird Project, the importance of support, and how the Flock is creating a space for birth parents to find understanding and community. 🎧 Listen now and learn more about the Bluebird Project and how it’s changing lives, one conversation at a time. https://lnkd.in/e8xFwU_W #PollyTalks #BluebirdProject #ScottishAdoption #BirthParentSupport #Fostering #Adoption #BluebirdFlock #MentalHealth #CommunitySupport #AdoptionPodcast

November is declared National Adoption Awareness Month. As systems flood us with fairytale stories about adoption, let’s remember that forced family separation isn’t a benevolent use of state power. Every day, parents are fighting to bring their babies home from the foster system. Yet, the dominant narrative is that their children are "unwanted" or "better off." Instead of providing meaningful support to parents, the system uses its resources to destroy families in the name of creating new ones. And adoptees are frequently told that they should be grateful, leaving little to no room to grieve what has been taken from them. This National Adoption Awareness Month and beyond, listen to the nuanced stories of adoptees. Many are reclaiming their names, their culture, and their history–and facilitating spaces of deep care to address ongoing harms. If you survived the family policing system as a child, check out this peer-led abolitionist support space hosted in partnership with Peer Support Space: bit.ly/survivorspss And if you want to learn more about adoption abolition, tune into an upcoming IG Live at @the_empress_han on December 10 at 8:30PM ET. 

This week marks National Adoption Week—something that holds a special place in my heart. 💙 Adoption has been a part of my life’s story for as long as I can remember. My mother and her sibling were both adopted as babies, and thanks to the openness of their adoptive parents, it was never a secret, but rather something embraced and celebrated. This openness shaped my mother’s confidence in discussing adoption with us as children, and it became part of our family identity. Adoption is often an emotional journey, filled with challenges for all involved. It’s a path that requires immense courage, love, and understanding. But it’s also a process that offers a second chance—both for children seeking a loving home and for individuals or couples looking to build their families. As a woman who has decided not to have children, adoption provides me with an opportunity to reconsider motherhood should I choose to in the future. For me, it represents more than just starting a family—it’s about giving children a second chance at experiencing love, growth, and success. To everyone touched by adoption—whether you’re an adoptee, an adoptive parent, or someone supporting the process—you have my deepest respect and support. 💛 #nationaladoptionweek #adoptionawareness #secondchances #familythroughadoption

Feeling lost in your adoption identity? Find clarity and support with our detailed guide on navigating identity within the adoption constellation. Learn more in Nebraska Children’s Home Society's blog:

Grieving and celebrating adoption All children handle the adoption process very differently. While adoption is an amazing thing and means one less child in the foster care system and one more child belonging to a family. For a child, it also can mean severing the last thread to connecting the child to their birth family. We must remember that even in the best circumstances, adoption cannot exist without loss and/or trauma first, both on the birth parents side and children’s side. A lot of children, especially older, will have complex and sometimes even negative feelings towards adoption. Older children have more memories of their birth family, both good and bad, and the adoption process can trigger feelings of abandonment, confusion, or even guilt for moving forward with a new family. When Zay told me he wasn’t ready to be adopted I completely respected his decision, even encouraging him to stay connected to his birth family. Some might’ve taken it personally like, ‘oh he must not like our family enough’. But that couldn’t be further from the truth, and I think that is obvious with how close he’s remained in our lives throughout the years. As adoptive parents, it’s essential that we create space for these emotions and reassure children that their feelings are valid. Whether it says so on paper or not, I consider Zay my son. Adoption is a journey, and for older children like Zay, that journey is often more complicated. It’s not just about finding a new family; it’s about coming to terms with the past, honoring where they came from, and deciding how they want to move forward.

November is National Adoption Awareness Month! Over the next few weeks, I’ll celebrate by posting about some of the lesser-known or misunderstood aspects of adoption. Let’s start by recognizing the child’s role in adoption. At CONCERN - Professional Services for Children, Youth and Families, children are active participants in the adoption process. Their work begins in the Child Preparation phase, where our staff prepares them to make the transition from foster care to their forever home. The kids work through complex emotions including grief and loss, abandonment, identity, control, loyalty, attachment, and shame. We give them a voice in the process, honor their past, create connections, answer questions, and prepare for their future. We also employ a process called Child Specific Recruitment (CSR), which involves creating a plan for each child and working with prospective families to ensure appropriate matches. Children are asked for their input and help to create flyers and videos that highlight their strengths. In each of these steps, youth play an active role in finding their forever home. Adoption shouldn't be something that "happens" to a child. It should be an experience they help to facilitate. Visit CONCERN’s website to learn more about our adoption services: https://lnkd.in/efDD2sww. #Concern4Kids #Adoption #NationalAdoptionAwarenessMonth