Open Adoption
Offers Flexibility and Benefits Children
November is National Adoption Month
Trends in adoption have
changed dramatically in the last decade. Years ago, adoptions were closed,
meaning that birth parents retained their anonymity and there was no
communication between the birth parent and adoptive parents. Over the past
decade, the culture of adoption has become one of openness, in which birth
parents and adoptive parents agree to some degree of communication on an
ongoing basis before and after the adoption.
"Almost all domestic
adoption of infants that we coordinate are open adoptions, and we
whole-heartedly support them," explained Valerie Romanoski, manager of
birth parent services for Lutheran Social Service. "In these adoptions,
adopted children grow up knowing about their birth parents and learn that
their adoption was created out of love for them, an idea that adoptive
parents often support. Birth parents no longer feel completely
disconnected from their children."
During National Adoption
Month in November, Lutheran Social Service is seeking to create greater
awareness about the value of open adoption as an option.
Open adoption occurs when
the expectant parents, or "birth parents," select, and then work with, the
adoptive parents to plan their child's adoption. The relationship
continues after the child is placed in the adoptive home. Contact may
include letters, pictures, phone calls and get-togethers.
Open adoptions are not all
the same and depend on the individual wishes of birth parents and adoptive
parents. Some birth families might request receiving only photos of their
children, while other families might participate in birthday celebrations
and holidays.
Adoptive parents may feel
apprehensive about open adoption, Romanoski says. But over time, the vast
majority of adoptive parents come to realize the value of ongoing contact
with the birth parent.
"Children grow up without
secrets, in touch with their roots and fully aware of the love that went
into their adoption plan," she explains. "Birth parents remain involved in
their child's life while moving on with their own lives. And adoptive
parents enter parenthood with a better understanding of who their child is
and where they can go for more information."
Lutheran Social Service,
celebrating its 140-year anniversary, has been working to provide loving
homes for children through adoption since its early history. With five
offices statewide, adoption services are available through locations in
Minneapolis, Duluth, Mankato, Moorhead and St. Cloud. For more
information, please contact Lutheran Social Service at 1.888.205.3769.
