I have been involved with adoption for over 20 years and there seems to be some myths that we just can't move past.  As a matter of fact, the children my husband and I adopted as infants are now 25 and 21.  We were asking the same questions.

As we are planning for a new series of adoption workshops for prospective adoptive families I thought I might share a few.

1.  Adoption at Catholic Social Service is only for Catholics.

This is not true.  We do want our adoptive families to be practicing in their faith because that is what most of our birth parents want for their children.  They think that families will provide a better life for their child when they are active in their church.  The church of choice does not have to be Catholic.

2.  There are not infants available for adoption.

This is not true.  There are infants available for adoption.  There are not as many infants placed for adoption as there were years ago, and matches are often happening outside of agencies.  Technology is changing how birth parents and adoptive parents find each other.  We want to help families be ready for a match when those unexpected connections are made.  We can help you increase your opportunity to adopt. Check out our Parent Finder Community to learn more about how we are using technology to help our families. 

3.  Adoption is too expensive.

This does not have to be true.  It is true that adoption can be very expensive.  We hear the stories of people paying tens of thousands of dollars to adopt a child, both internationally and domestically.  At Catholic Social Service we try very hard to keep our fees as low as possible while helping families find ways to reduce or cover those costs.  Currently adoption tax credits are as high as they have ever been and adoptive families can find more and more grant opportunities to help them with costs and fees.  It does cost for an agency to provide quality services that meet the regulations in the state but we maintain a strong commitment to keep infant adoption affordable.

4.  With open adoption my child may not think of me as their "real parent."

This is not true.  Catholic Social Service has been involved in open adoption for nearly 25 years and we have seen how children know clearly who their parents are.  It does not seem like this could be possible but as you see the relationship develop between adoptive parents, children and birth parents you see the miracle of adoption.  We will help you through that process and give you the information and support you need to be part of that miracle. It might be helpful to read Tim and Tracy's story.

If you have been thinking about adoption or know someone else who has been, think about participating in our Adoption Workshops.  Would you like to talk to someone about our adoption program?  Contact Susan Hendershot, our Family Service Coordinator, at 620-272-0010 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it