National Adoption Month

Creating Awareness and a Reason to Celebrate.

According to Adoption and Beyond, in 1984 President Reagan proclaimed the first National Adoption Week, but as states and cities began to celebrate and recognize the adoption, a week just wasn’t enough, which led to President Clinton establishing November as National Adoption Month.

National Adoption Month is an opportunity to raise awareness about adoption.  Below is a list of ideas compiled from various sources on how we can not only raise awareness but also celebrate National Adoption Month.

1. Share Your Story- If adoption has had an impact on your life in any way or you are a part of the adoption triad, sharing your story is vital and gives voice to the beautiful complexity of adoption.
2. Read an Adoption Book- some of the Hope’s Promise staff favorites are:
   • Adoption is Both – Elena Hall
   • The Open Hearted Way to Open Adoption – Lori Holden
   • The Connected Child and The Connected Parent – Dr. Karyn Purvis
3. Raise Awareness on How to Adopt- If you know anyone interested in adoption, you can send them to the Hope’s Promise website to learn more. 
4. Support Foster Families- Some adoption stories begin with Foster Care.  You can reach out to a foster family you know and provide a meal for them or offer your babysitting services.
5. Hold a Drive- hold a gift card drive during the holiday season to give to Hope’s Promise Foster Families or donate new or slightly used items to the Foster Care Lending Closet at Hope’s Promise.
6. Donate to an Adoption Charity:  You can make a donation to Hope’s Promise to support our adoption program.  At Hope’s Promise we do more than just provide adoption services to hopeful adoptive parents.  We support birth parents through counseling services and provide monthly birth mom support groups as well as annual events to promote community.  We also provide education and resources for adoptive parents.  You can make a year-end gift to support Hope’s Promise by visiting HERE.
7. Attend an Event: Every year Hope’s Promise holds exciting events to support its three life-changing programs: foster care, adoption, and orphan care.  Learn more about our events HERE.
8. Have a Get-together with Other Adoptive Parents:  If you are an adoptive parent, one of the best things you can do is to surround yourself with other families that have shared experiences.  We should never walk through life, or the experiences in it, alone.
9. Share on social media- Sharing your heart for adoption makes a huge difference.  If you don’t want to share your own adoptive story, or you don’t have one, follow Hope’s Promise on Facebook and Instagram and share our stories and posts.
10. Share your adoption story at your church.  Hope’s Promise has countless church partnerships, and they all begin with YOU sharing your heart for adoption and foster care with your pastor.

There are so many ways to celebrate the beauty of adoption. Together we can raise awareness!