[Archived] City of Alexandria Celebrates National Adoption Awareness Month With Public Information Session on Foster Care and Adoption

City Press Release


	For Immediate Release	For More Information, Contact
	November 4, 2005 PIO# PIO 322-05/rdo	Steven J. Mason, Public Information Officer, or Raynard Owens, Communications Officer, at 703.838.4300 Raynard Owens, Communications Officer, at 703.838.4300

City of Alexandria Celebrates National Adoption Awareness Month
With Public Information Session on Foster Care and Adoption
City Hosts Adoption Ceremony and Seeks Virginia Residents to Take In Foster Children

The City of Alexandria will celebrate National Adoption Awareness Month with a public information session on Foster Care and Adoption at 7 pm on Monday, Nov. 14, at the Beatley Library, 5005 Duke St. During the session, adoptive parents and current foster care parents will join City social workers in sharing information on how interested individuals can become foster care or adoptive parents.

“We are looking for foster families or individuals in Virginia who are willing to open their homes and hearts with love and care, providing guidance and a safe, stable environment in which these children can grow and learn,” said parent recruiter Karen Chaudhry of the City’s Child Welfare Services Resource Unit. “These are very real children who desperately need families of their own. Because the public is so often unaware of these kids and their needs, we would like to draw special attention to waiting children during National Adoption Awareness Month in the hope that we can unite many of these young people with permanent, adoptive parents.”

The City will recognize National Adoption Day on Saturday, Nov. 19, with a private reception and adoption ceremony from 10 a.m - noon at the Alexandria Courthouse, 520 King St. Including the adoption of seven children at the ceremony, 22 adoptions will have been finalized so far in the City for 2005. The reception and adoption ceremony are not open to the public, but members of the media may attend.

The City of Alexandria is also seeking Virginia residents —especially those who own or rent a residence within the City— who are willing to accept infants and toddlers, teens, pregnant teenage girls, or girls with infants into their homes. Currently, Alexandria has about 220 children in foster care who can no longer live securely in their own homes for a variety of reasons. A monthly stipend helps cover the child’s expenses and Medicaid provides health care. Foster care parents may be married or single and can be either homeowners or renters as long as the residence is in Virginia. Both English and Spanish-speaking foster parents are needed.

During National Adoption Month, Alexandria and other communities in Virginia as well as public and private organizations, businesses, families, and individuals join in the national celebration of adoption as a positive way to build families. Across the nation, activities and observances, such as recognition dinners, public awareness and recruitment campaigns, and special events, spotlight the needs of children who need permanent families. National Adoption Day, traditionally a Saturday, is observed in courthouses in all 50 States and the District of Columbia as thousands of adoptions are finalized simultaneously.

For more information on foster care and adoption or Alexandria’s National Adoption Month activities, call Karen Chaudhry of the City’s Department of Human Services at 703.838.0891.

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