If you know Adoptions From The Heart(AFTH), then you know that education is among our top priorities regarding the clients and families we serve. In doing so, we’ve created platforms where we create content with and for our clients, discussing every part of adoption planning and its process. In the last few years, our AFTHtv episodes and Heart-to-Heart with Adoptions From the Heart Podcast have been one of the essential avenues we’ve used to spread adoption awareness, not only to share client stories but to collaborate with other professionals and organizations whose goals align with ours- that being to educate and share all the options one has when it comes to Adoption.
Whether AFTH receives questions in person, through email, or through social media platforms, we come across prospective clients. That said, today, we will share five of our favorite podcast episodes that we’ve used to expand our clients’ knowledge about expectations during the adoption journey.
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First
is Episode 8, titled In-Depth Support & Wrap-Around Services for Expecting and Birth Parents. In that episode, AFTH was joined by Jenna Stocks (Director of Social Services), Kristin Kachmar, and Amanda Aliberti (Post Placement Services Manager). Witnessing the growing and ever-changing needs of expecting parents, Adoptions From The Heart opened up about changes in the agency to further specialize and expand upon the services they were already providing to expecting and birth parents. They dive into an in-depth discussion about these new roles, the services provided, and why this added support is vital to the process during and after pregnancy. Listeners will discover much more about the role AFTH plays in clients’ lives beyond adoption services.
Another great episode is episode 11, titled Moving Through the Steps of an Infertility Diagnosis to Considering Adoption. In this episode, AFTH is joined by two special guests who both have experience, both personal and professional, in the realm of infertility. Michaelina Bendig has been a social worker at Adoptions From The Heart for the past 21 years. Tracy Whitney is a Content Manager at Creating a Family, the national non-profit whose mission is to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them. The two come together to discuss grief and loss surrounding infertility, moving through a diagnosis and treatment options and possibly transitioning into considering adoption.
Episode 20, titled Let’s Talk Post-Adoption Contact Agreements (PACA), is another one you usually don’t hear people talking about. Adoptions From The heart felt the need to speak out about PACAs because there are many things that need to be clarified about what it is and how it is used in the adoption process. In this episode, AFTH is joined by Deborah Spivak, a private attorney whose practice is limited to adoptions, and Ashley Kodet, a county administrator for infants court, to discuss post-adoption contact agreements (PACA) in private infant adoption and foster care.
Adoptions From The Heart also discussed Unique Family Care, Language, and the Importance of Training in the Hospital Setting in episode 24. Rebecca Vahle joins us, the founder of Family-to-Family Support Network® (FFSN), the nation’s first hospital-based adoption support program. She shares the importance of proper Unique Family Care, Language, and the Importance of training in the hospital setting. Stephanie Capriotti, Program Coordinator, and Adoption Counselor, also joins AFTH to share her experiences with hospital placements and working alongside birth and adoptive families.
And lastly, one of the biggest questions we are asked as a private adoption agency is, “How can I afford an adoption?” Like always, we have you covered! In episode 35, titled FAQ: How to Finance an Adoption Ft. Your Adoption Finance Coach, AFTH sat down with Kelly Ellison, Founder and CEO of Your Adoption Finance Coach, to answer all your adoption financial questions. In this question-and-answer episode, we discussed adoption tax credits, fundraising for adoption, grants and loans offered to prospective adoptive parents, and much more. This episode is a great listen for those seeking insight into all the different ways prospective adoptive parents can finance and budget their adoptions.
The list could go on and on, being that Adoptions From The Heart has so many episodes that each represents a topic vital to a great open adoption experience. The goal is not to stop here but to continue striving to spread adoption awareness until no hearts are left to touch. Until then, be sure to stream these episodes and others on our list.
We will see you all next month for a special episode in honor of National Social Work month. If you are interested in finding ways to donate, please visit our website and click the tab that says DONATE. Otherwise, follow us on social media @AdoptionsFromTheHeart to stay up-to-date with all we have coming up!
