| Jeff and Christell Burkart, who just two weeks ago were anticipating adopting a newborn baby girl due in January, had quite a pleasant surprise a week later when they heard the news that they would instead be bringing home a baby boy in a matter of days.
Family to Family Adoptions Inc. in Richmond had first paired the Burkarts with one birth mother, but Christell said they felt no connection with her, and the match fell through. The same occurred with the next two birth mothers.
But on Monday, Nov. 14, the Burkarts were quickly matched with a fourth birth mother and, two days later, welcomed Aaron Nathaniel into their family shortly after 9 a.m. on Nov. 16.
And what better time for Aaron to become a part of the Burkart family than during National Adoption Month.
After 14 1/2 years of marriage, nine of which they spent going to an infertility clinic to try and have their own child, the Burkarts of Clear Lake began looking into adoption agencies in July.
When other agencies told them it could take up to 18 months before bringing home a child, social workers at Family to Family informed them that it was unusual to wait more than nine. That's when the Burkarts began their adoption process in Richmond.
Christell said the process has been quite the emotional roller coaster, especially given the three birth mother matches that didn't work out in the end. But even with the quick turn of events, she said, she and Jeff are very thankful for having Aaron.
"We're very happy with the way things turned out," Christell said. "Our family is so ecstatic; it's been no different than if he were our own child."
Maxine Seiler, executive director for Family to Family Adoptions Inc., said this month's spotlight on adoption helps bring attention to the subject, which is needed because of the increasing number of birth mothers who are looking for adoptive parents.
"Having this kind of awareness where we honor the families and children improves the attitudes of the American public and helps people gain an understanding of adoption," Seiler said.
Although the idea of adoption was once a sensitive issue, Seiler said the concept is now much different from how it was perceived years ago.
"Adoption is no longer a closed issue like it used to be 30 or 40 years ago," Seiler said. "It's out in the open now, it's more accepted and there's no longer the stigma that used to be attached to it.
"Mothers who choose to give up their children do so because they love them. They do it because they don't have the resources or the wherewithal to give that child what it deserves in life."
Seiler said the process begins when the prospective parents complete an adoptive family profile, which includes a letter of introduction to the mother and a bound booklet of photos depicting their life and family. The birth mother then chooses the parents from those packets.
And when a match is made, meaning both the mother and adoptive parents agree to go forward with the placement, Seiler said each is then responsible for forming a positive relationship before the baby is born.
"Once the mother and adoptive parents are matched, it's up to them to make the memories, spending time together and taking photos so that the child can one day see what it was like before he or she was born."
The process for adopting a child through Family to Family Inc. starts at $22,500, which includes termination of the birth mother's parental rights and all other legal, medical and social service costs.
An additional amount is also required for treatment and care of the birth mother, such as living expenses, clothes, groceries and personal items until the birth of the baby.
Since its inception in February 2001, Family to Family Adoptions placed 33 children in 2002, 20 of which were domestic adoptions. In 2003, 63 children found adoptive parents, 57 of which were domestic children. The international program was discontinued in August 2003. The agency placed 37 children in 2004 and 38 as of Thanksgiving 2005.
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