Sidebar: it costs very little for families to adopt out of the US foster care system! More to come about this in future posts...
The sad part is that there are many families called to adopt, but struggle to come up with the upfront costs associate with the process. So why does it cost so much? & Should families who "can't afford it" be able to adopt? These are common questions we have been asked during our adoption journey.
To make a comparison many US families can relate to, the cost of a private US or international adoption would be akin to paying upfront, in a short amount of time, for all prenatal care, labwork, ultrasounds, hospital stay, etc. out of pocket, before you're allowed to become pregnant--I get this is a weird concept to think about, but work with me here. What we, international adoptive families, must pay for is well outlined in this article from Show Hope organization. The bottom line is that unfortunately, people do terrible things to children such as selling them in trafficking circles around the world...& I can assure you, no adoptive family wants to be a part of that! So we pay for the legal process, which I can assure you is much more in depth than anything you have to do to become biologically pregnant ;)
"So if a family can't afford it, they shouldn't adopt to begin with." I would suggest that many families can afford the daily cost of living to support another child, but the steep, upfront cost is something they struggle to provide. To continue with our illustration, we do not require financial records, background checks, employment letters or copies of 401ks & bank statements before we allow a couple to have sex with the desire to become pregnant. However, just to be approved to adopt, information like this must be provided to an agency in order to confirm that a couple is financially able--among other things--to care for a child(ren) they wish to adopt. Just something to think about...
So what are families to do?
The awesome part about this particular aspect of adoption is that there are numerous organizations offering creative means for families to raise support for adoption costs. Not everyone is called to adopt, but we are all called to do something, & these organizations are "doing something" about the financial issue!
There are many organizations attempting to alleviate the financial burden for families called to adopt & here are a few that we know of: Both Hands Foundation, Show Hope, Reece's Rainbow, Dave Thomas Foundation, & Jockey Being Family
If you know of other organizations helping families & would like to share their information, please do so! We would love for this blog to be a wealth of information & resources for those who stumble across it!
For our journey, Jonathan & I are blessed to be partnering with the Abba Fund to finance a portion of our most recent adoption adventure. In short, the Abba Fund provides interest-free loans to Christian families pursuing adoption. Each dollar given to the family is paid back in an effort to "pay it forward" so that more & more children can be placed in loving, Christian homes.
We are also honored to be partnering with Chosen Charlotte! The Chosen Marathon was created as a way for Christian families to raise funds for their adoption while raising awareness regarding the orphan crisis. We are soooo excited that Chosen is coming to Charlotte this fall, October 18th, & that we have been selected as a team to raise money to bring our boys home!
We would love for you to partner with us in prayer, by walking, running, or volunteering as part of EqualsZero--Team Patterson! There's even a "sleepwalker" option for out of town friends & family or those unable to walk/run/volunteer.
Click here to register as a member of EqualsZero--Team Patterson
Click here to learn more about our story & donate to our adoption fund
Jonathan & I want you to know we will gladly answer specific questions you might have regarding the costs associated with our China adoption journey & our financial plan, so feel free to call or email with questions~
So there you go: Abba Fund + Chosen Charlotte + EqualsZero--Team Patterson=2 less orphaned boys!
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