On Friday, October 16th, friends and supporters of Adoptions From The Heart came together to celebrate the agency’s 30th anniversary for the Building Beautiful Futures event at The Racquet Club of Philadelphia. Guests walked the red carpet, pausing in front of the step-and-repeat sponsored by College Funding PA to have their photo taken alongside the night’s master of ceremonies, Cory Wade.
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Cory Wade is a model, musician, television personality, and LGBT spokesperson who is internationally famous as the second runner up and fan favorite on the first ever co-ed cycle of America’s Next Top Model. Cory kept the energy level high from beginning to end and shared with guests the story of his personal connection to adoption. Cory’s mother, who was adopted, was in the audience and received a well deserved round of applause. She wasn’t the only woman who was honored at the Building Beautiful Futures event. Maxine Chalker, the Executive Director and Founder of Adoptions From The Heart, was celebrated for reaching the amazing thirty year milestone. Maxine founded The Adoption Agency in 1985 based on the premise of open adoption, she wanted clients to know more about each other and have a stronger bond. The Agency started in the basement of Maxine’s home and grew from there into what it is today – an agency by the name of Adoptions From The Heart, with four offices in Pennsylvania, and one each in Delaware, New Jersey, Virginia, Connecticut, and New York. Roberta Evantash, a social worker who has been by Maxine’s side since the very beginning, presented her with flowers and beautiful award for her achievement.
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Not only was the night a celebration of Maxine’s accomplishments, but we continued to raise awareness for the Birth Parent Scholarship Fund. This fund was recently established by AFTH to help birth parents who have dreams of continuing their education after placement. The scholarships are awarded to birthparents even if they placed with an agency other than AFTH. The newest recipients of the scholarship shared what it meant to them to be awarded the financial aid to further their education. One birthmother, Chelsea explained, “I needed the scholarship to finish my last three semesters. As an environmental soil major, I want to work internationally to help farmers create more sustainable practices for agriculture, to help small villages and those who are struggling. I am now one step closer to achieving that dream and it would have been so much harder for me without the scholarship from Adoptions From The Heart.” Another birthmother, Courtney echoed the same sentiment explained, “I am sociology major with a minor in Spanish and I hope to further my education to become a minister. Being awarded this scholarship obviously helps financially, but it is more than that. Completing my Bachelor’s degree is a symbolism for success and I happy to finally reach this accomplishment.”
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All night long guests were entertained by one of AFTH’s favorite bands, Egailtarian and Cory performed towards the end of the night as well! The casino section of the event, sponsored by Adoptimist was hustling and bustling all night long and so was the photo booth sponsored by Horizon Services! The event had both raffles and silent auction so lots of the party guests went home great things like flat screen television, signed Philadelphia sports memorabilia, week long vacations, and much more!
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Before the night was through, an Adoptions From The Heart birthmother, Heather spoke to the crowd filled dining room. She shared her personal adoption story, the struggles and the successes. She left guests with a call to action, saying that “we, as birthmothers, also want to prove to you that we can make it, that we’re good and kind and smart. Remind us of that; help us heal by helping ourselves. Please give whatever it is you can to the Birth Parent Scholarship Fund, it will provide us with the very thing we try to instill in our children. Show us that you support us in everything we do and set out to accomplish. We want you to be proud of us too.”
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The support of the Building Beautiful Futures attendees made it possible to raise money for the AFTH Birthparent Scholarship Fund. Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts, for helping the agency to take one step closer to our goal of continued birth parent support.
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Thank you to all of the Building Beautiful Futures event sponsors: College Funding PA, Ag Conexus, Pfit, Admark 360, Entrust Financial, Horizon Services, Adoptimist, Hayden Printing, The Law Offices of Deborah E. Spivack, Don Cofsky, and Innovation
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