Chinese adoptee Keri Friedman shares her adoption story and journey in navigating race and cultural identity growing up in America. On March 10, 2000, my parents adopted me from Guangdong province, in Guangzhou city. I was placed at the doorsteps at the orphanage and spent about 11 months here until my family came to China [...]
Rebekah McGee is an Adoption Social Work Consultant in New York City. She works with several other contract social workers in the Manhattan Area as part of Adoptions From The Heart's (AFTH) efforts to service the city. Being a social worker is just one of many titles Rebekah wears. In addition to her work, she [...]
Time for another “A Heart-to-Heart with Adoptions From The Heart” podcast recap! This week’s episode was led by Jenna Smith, AFTH’s Domestic Program Coordinator. This week’s guests were Dr. Chelsea Toth, Director of Field Education & Assistant Professor of Social Work at Cedar Crest College, and social work interns Nikki, Chevonne, and Jacki, from Adoptions [...]
Adoptions From The Heart stands with the world in the fight for equality and fair treatment for men, women, and children of color. The rise in hate crimes and intolerance against Asian-Americans and spray-painted slogans regarding COVID -19 as the “Wuhan Plague” or the “Kung Flu” are being painted across predominately Asian communities. It is now [...]
Beginning of Samantha's Journey Samantha’s adoption journey began three years ago. She had been going through a highly stressful time in her life. She learned she was expecting halfway through her pregnancy and had recently left a mentally abusive relationship with the child’s father. Conflicting emotions soon followed the news. Samantha was truly excited because [...]
Birth Parent Stories On Wednesday, February 24th, Adoptions From The Heart hosted a virtual event: Heart-To-Heart with Birth Parents. This event brought birth parent voices to light, giving them the time and space to speak on topics unique to their adoption journeys. Dually, this event was a fundraiser with a goal of raising $1,000, which [...]
Episode two of Adoptions From The Heart’s, Heart-To-Heart, podcast covers the topics of pregnancy, addiction, and adoption. Leading the conversation is Jenna Smith, Domestic Program Coordinator from AFTH. The panel of women speaking towards these topics are Amanda Aliberti, Adoption Counselor and Birth Parent Placement Services Coordinator, Alicia, an outreach worker with a recovery house, [...]
Spread the Knowledge about Racial Bias and Inequality It is not enough to simply say you are against racial discrimination; those who are truly against such injustices must take action. Take some time to review what you know about inequality and possibly your own privilege. Scholar and activist, Peggy McIntosh, published an essay titled “White [...]
Transracial Adoption History Transracial adoption has a long, complex history in the United States. The U.S. saw a major increase in adoption in general during the 1940s. But the first known transracial adoption of a black child by white parents occurred in 1948. A subsequent increase in the number of transracial adoptions occurred throughout the [...]
The season two premiere of Adoptions From the Heart’s (AFTH) podcast, Heart to Heart, is up on Spotify. This week’s episode is led by Jenna Smith (Domestic Program Manager), Kristin Kachmar (Expecting Parent Services Manager), and Amanda Aliberti (Post Placement Services Manager). Kristin and Amanda explain their new roles and how their wrap-around services benefit [...]
