Foster Children to Get Permanent Homes

About a dozen children will formally receive “forever families” this week in Salina. On Friday an adoption celebration will be hosted by Saint Francis Community Services in honor of National Adoption Day. Saint Francis staff, along with judges, attorneys, and clerks from the 28th Judicial District, will gather with adoptive parents and children at the Saline County Courthouse from 1-4 p.m., to finalize adoptions and celebrate adoptive families.

According to Saint Francis Adoption Supervisor Sarah Santos, each child and adoptive family will be presented with gifts as their adoptions are finalized.

Of the nearly 400,000 children in foster care nationwide, more than 110,000 are awaiting adoption. Traditionally scheduled on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, National Adoption Day helps raise awareness about the need for adoptive parents and honors those who welcome a child without a family of their own. Saint Francis serves about 215 children who have no identified adoptive family. They are still waiting for their own “forever families.”

“National Adoption Day represents a fresh start for many Saint Francis youth who have had a traumatic start to life,” said West Region Adoption Director Emily Kohl. “Adoptive families give children the stability, love, and nurturing they need to heal and prosper. That’s why we celebrate and honor our adoptive families in November and throughout the year.”