The last option for LDS families we’ll discuss is adoption through a state foster-to-adopt program, which is administered by the state Department of Health and Human Services. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll use Utah’s guidelines as an example, but be aware that requirements vary a bit from state to state. If you’d like to learn more about your state’s specific requirements, you can do an Internet search for your state and “foster parent.”

In most cases, once you’ve expressed an interest in being a foster-adopt parent, you’ll fill out some preliminary screening paperwork and sometimes have an in-person interview with a representative of the foster care department. After this screening,... more

About the children

In the majority of countries, children are considered “infants” from 0-24 months. In most of the more popular countries, babies are in the 8-14 month range at the time of referral, but it is possible to adopt younger babies (as young as 3 months) from some African countries, South Korea, and historically, Viet Nam. In all countries but China, there are more boys than girls available, but it is possible to adopt a boy from China. Some countries do not have infant programs, but those that do generally... more

Homecoming

Some countries require two trips to complete an adoption, but most require a single trip. Trips vary in length from 3-5 days (Haiti, Taiwan, and Ethiopia, among others) to 30 days or more (some parts of Kazakhstan and Russia, for example.) Still others have lengthy residency requirements and may not be options for most Americans. Still, these programs can be popular among U.S. expatriates, those who have relatives in other countries, Christian missionaries, etc. Other countries (Ethiopia, South Korea and... more

In this part of our series, we’ll be exploring international adoption for LDS families. The popularity of international adoption has exploded over the last several years, and in 2002, over 21,000 international adoptions took place in the U.S. alone! According to U.S. immigration statistics, China (6062), Russia (4904), Guatemala (2361), South Korea (1713) and Ukraine (1093) rounded out the top five countries where Americans found their children.

Choosing international adoption can be a daunting process, particularly if a couple is unsure... more

Yet another consideration is that some agencies have a set of values or beliefs to which clients must profess adherence. Many Christian agencies require the signing of “faith statements,” and/or a submission of a written personal testimony. These have the potential to cause problems for LDS couples when they’re asked to affirm their acceptance of concepts such as sola scriptura and the Trinity. Similarly, many LDS couples looking for financial assistance through adoption loan and grant organizations find they aren’t considered for such... more

In this installment of our series, we’ll be looking at other domestic adoption options available to LDS families.

The first, and that most like the type of adoption facilitated by LDS Family Services, is Agency Adoption, or private adoption. In an agency adoption, a couple contracts with an adoption agency of their choosing to provide a package of services necessary for the adoption of a child. These services can include completion of a homestudy (although this can also be accomplished through the use of a homestudy agency or cooperating... more

Most of the steps involved with adopting a child through LDS Family Services are the same as or similar to adopting a child through other avenues. A homestudy is completed, prospective parents are subjected to criminal and child abuse background checks, and they must provide a variety of documentation about marriage, financial and employment status, and health. Couples also typically write a “dear birthparent” letter and create an adoptive parent profile that can be reviewed by expectant parents who are considering an adoption plan. Profiles include information about the couple such as age, education, employment, appearance, length of marriage, hobbies, and other children already in the... more

In this series, we’ll be looking at the primary adoption options for LDS families, and we’ll be starting with domestic adoption through LDS Family Services.

The social services arm of the Church has existed in one form or another since the Restoration. In the beginning, charitable work was primarily the undertaking of the Relief Society, but over the decades it became clear that the social needs of the Saints warranted creation of a separate program. Although organizations within the Church formally assisted with the placement of adoptive... more

After just shy of a year of waiting, our three new Haitian kids were escorted home to us on October 5, 2006. We'd visited them once in October of 2005, and again in April/May of 2006, and this really helped us not to go stir-crazy during the long wait. Haiti can be a trying program because of frequent changes in the process, but being able to visit is a wonderful perk that isn't an option in many international adoption programs. I don't think we could have survived the year without being able to spend time with our children! On the flip side, having to leave your children behind and go home after a wonderful week together is no walk in the park. But the memories, pictures and video we... more

Shortly after we returned home with Sofie, we began thinking about adopting “just one more time” and began to consider various options. With our family size, we were somewhat limited, but we looked into domestic adoption (we’d already had two failed domestic adoptions – more about that later), Taiwan, Mongolia and Viet Nam (which was then rumored to be reopening eventually). We decided that since we weren’t in a big hurry, we might as well wait for things in Viet Nam to get going again. We mailed off our agency application and sat back to settle in with Sofie.

In August, we heard about a sibling group of three from Haiti who needed an LDS home. We’d been told that Haiti wasn’t... more