November is National Adoption Month
November is National Adoption Month, and CASA of Bastrop, Fayette & Lee Counties is celebrating and supporting the many families in our community who have welcomed a child into their home through adoption with a special spotlight on adoption by relatives.
“As advocates for the best interest of children in foster care, we at CASA have seen family take many forms. All loving families are beautiful,” said Kristi Bauer, executive director of CASA of Bastrop, Fayette & Lee Counties.
When we think about adoption from foster care, many of us think of it in terms of adoption by a non-relative. What we don’t all realize, however, is that adoption can take many forms. It’s also quite common for a child to be adopted by or live with a relative or family friend, Bauer explained.
“Often, when a child cannot safely go back home with their parents, then their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other family members step in to care for them. This is known in the system as ‘kinship care,’” Bauer said. “In some cases, children live with family friends, coaches, teachers or mentors — ‘fictive kin.’” Last year, 1,776 of the 4,181 children adopted from foster care statewide were adopted by family members. Keeping children with people they know is what CASA volunteers and professionals in the system strive for because it helps keep them connected with their community and loved ones.
Like the story of twin brothers DaShaun and Micah, and their Grandma Mabel.
DaShaun and Micah moved foster homes four times in the past year and they need stability. One day, DaShaun and Micah tell their CASA volunteer Daniel about memories of their Grandma Mabel. Daniel shares this with the others on the boys’case, and they are able to locate and contact her. She is relieved to know the boys are safe and says she would gladly care for them.
DaShaun and Micah move in with Grandma Mabel. They are happy to be back in a familiar home with family and to start the process of healing.
A few months later, the twins are officially adopted by their Grandma. After years of moving from placement to placement, Micah and DaShaun are in a safe, caring, and permanent home with someone they know and love and who unconditionally loves them.
This story, while fictional, is based on real-life situations for children in foster care, their families, and their CASA volunteers.
CASA volunteers are everyday citizens from the community who are screened, trained, and appointed by a judge to advocate for a child’s best interest in court. They work collaboratively with the professionals on the child’s case, including the caseworker, attorneys, and others. Their top priority is to advocate for the child to reunify with their parents whenever safe and possible. When this is not an option, they advocate for the child to live with and be adopted by other family members, friends, or with a caring adoptive family.
“This month, we’re taking the time to show our appreciation for the diverse families in our community who are nurturing and raising children they’ve adopted from foster care,” Bauer said. “Thank you for giving them a safe, permanent, and unconditionally loving home where they can heal and grow” For more information on the work of CASA volunteers and to get involved, visit casabfl. org. The next training session for volunteers is January 2025 with morning and evening sessions in our Bastrop office.