A Message from Tara Tauber
For those of us who have experienced the joy of adoption, such as my husband and me, each day is a celebration. For the rest of you, I want to make you aware of the critical need for good people to adopt. There are millions of children in need, both nationally and around the world.
The entire month of November has been designated as National Adoption Month. For over two decades, National Adoption Month has been celebrated across the country. Many national, state and local agencies; and foster, kinship care, and adoptive family groups will arrange programs, events, and activities during the month of November to raise awareness for children and youth in foster care who are waiting for permanent families.
Recently, President Obama reinforced the importance of National Adoption Month in a special proclamation. In part the President’s proclamation says:
“Across America, adoptive parents welcome children into stable, loving families, providing a safe and comforting place for children in need to call home. Families who choose the life-changing path of adoption make a meaningful and lasting difference in the lives of some of the most vulnerable young people in our society. Regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, race, or religion, devoted Americans who adopt help give more children the upbringing they deserve. Each November, we recognize the important role that adoption has played in the lives of children and families in our country and around the world, and we rededicate ourselves to ensuring every child can find their forever family. Last year, more than 100,000 children were waiting to be adopted from foster care, and every year, too many older youth age out of the foster care system before they are able to find permanence. Without this support during the critical years of early adulthood, these youth are more likely than their peers to experience homelessness, unemployment, or incarceration.”
Please Reach Out
Ultimately, consider adoption yourself as an alternative to having your own children naturally, or to supplement your present family. If adoption isn’t an option for you, please at least consider ways to help celebrate, advocate, and extend love and support to all who have been touched by adoption. There are many ways. Simply, acknowledge and thank those families who have chosen to adopt. Support the cause through donations in dozens of ways. Help by sponsoring a foster home or volunteer at an adoption agency or get involved in adoption programs at a Church.
Further, while you might want to consider adopting an infant, please also realize that there are older children who also are looking for loving parents. Many of them have been in foster care for many years.
I have provided much of this information below in a previous message. I am repeating it here as it deserves repetition. There are literally millions upon millions of children around the world who have lost one or more parents, are hungry and starved for love. They are orphans.
- It is estimated that 140 million children worldwide are orphans. By UNICEF’s definition, this is a child who has lost one or more parents.
- Worldwide, there are 168 million who are child laborers, accounting for almost 11 percent of children.
- There are 62.8 million children worldwide who suffer from acute malnutrition
- Nearly half of all deaths in children under 5 are attributable to under nutrition. This translates into the unnecessary loss of about 3 million young lives a year
- 66 million primary school-age children attend classes hungry across the developing world, with 23 million in Africa alone in 2015, there were about 16,000 deaths every day of children under the age of five.
- 2.7 million babies die every year in their first month of life and a similar number are stillborn.
- 5.9 million children under the age of 5 died in 2015, equivalent to 11 children every minute
- Children represent almost half of all people living in extreme poverty although they make up roughly a third of the world’s population
- There were 19.5 million refugees in 2015; half of them were children
In the United States
While the estimates vary, it is safe to say there are currently more than 400,000 children in foster care in the United States. They range in age from infants to 21 years old. The average age of a child in foster care is more than 8 years old, and there are slightly more boys than girls. 101,666 of these children are eligible for adoption, but nearly 32% of these children will wait over three years in foster care before being adopted. Children and youth enter foster care because they have been abused, neglected, or abandoned by their parents or guardians. All of these children have experienced loss and some form of trauma.
Many Lives End in Horrible Tragedy
Again, and as we’ve communicated to you before, many of these young children – both boys and girls – tragically end up as victims of human trafficking, as even corrupt governments support criminals who have been known to actually raid shelters preying on these innocent kids who end up leading the most terrifying lives you could imagine. Please consider international adoption as a way to help these children live free and happy lives.
Please Support National Adoption Month
I have years of experience helping dozens of families adopt children, both from U.S. and international sources. As said earlier, I have had the personal experience of adopting a child and, trust me, there is hardly anything more gratifying.
For more information on how you can help as an individual, family or a business, contact me at our web site
If you are interested in exploring the world of adoption, please contact me at Tauber Law Offices. I understand your needs and concerns and can properly guide you in your journey. It costs you nothing for a consultation.
By the way, if you know someone who is pregnant and considering placing her child for adoption, please get in touch with me. I can get her the help she needs to make an informed decision that is best for her and her unborn child.
