MAPLE VALLEY—
It's a big question for all you parents out there: do you have room in your family to adopt another child? If you watch the celebrity headlines, you'd think the best way to do that would be to go overseas. But now some parents are making a new push to recognize all the kids who need homes right here in our state.Statistics show over the past 30 years, fewer mothers in the U.S. are giving kids up for adoption, which is part of the reason more parents are looking to adopt overseas. But in a tough economy, the high cost and major hassle of international adoptions has turned the attention of many families back to the United States. They're now adopting kids who weren't even considered adoptable for decades: ''special needs" kids, whose biggest need is a home.
Lori Young named her new daughter Mia Noelle, a name that means "my gift." Lori and her husband Dalton adopted Mia about a week ago, just after she was born at Overlake Hospital in Bellevue.
Doctors told these parents of three they couldn't have another child. For nearly four years, they tried and failed to adopt from several countries outside the U.S. Then, Antioch Adoptions from Redmond stepped in, and connected the Youngs with Mia. She was born with Down's Syndrome, what the system calls a ''special needs" child. Lori says, amid tears, "She is very special, and I will be forever grateful for her mom."
The Youngs are bucking a big trend. International adoptions, like those of Angela Jolie or Madonna, are the high-profile, popular choice. In fact experts say adoptions from foreign countries tripled from 1990 through the year 2000. But 129,000 kids in the U.S. like Mia need homes. Tammie Snyder from Antioch says, "There are children here yearning for a parent."
Snyder says the economy is now pushing many couples who want to adopt to focus on kids closer to home. While money wasn't a problem for the Youngs, they did have to readjust their expectations to a child born in this country with special needs. Snyder says, however, "My own biological children have special needs, and we can't avoid that. But they're precious.. and they deserve a family, and people need to step up."
That's just what the Youngs did. And they hope other parents will follow their lead and open their hearts to adopting a special child. Dalton Young says, "Don't go in with limits on what you think you can do, because you will amaze yourself. The love you can give to the child is so worth it."
Antioch Adoptions is a private, Christian, no-fee adoption service in Redmond, but there are several agencies you can look to for help. If you're interested in finding out if adoption is right for you, follow this link.
