My friend and fellow adoptive mom, Barbara Curtis, sent me the link to a wonderful article in The Washington Post about families who choose to adopt children with Down syndrome. Barbara and her husband, Tripp, are the parents of 12 children (four of them have Down syndrome and three of those four were adopted).

Whether you are considering adopting a child with Down syndrome–or placing a child with DS for adoption, you should read this important and inspiring article.

If you'd like to learn more about Barbara and Tripp (who have an exceptionally interesting life story), check out these articles I wrote about them:

• Portrait of a Marriage: "Rebels with a Cause" – Marriage Partnership magazine
• Credible Christianity – Today's Christian magazine

It's so encouraging to know that droves of people are interested in adopting children with Down syndrome. Over the four years this blog has existed, I've received more inquiries about how to adopt (or place for adoption) a child with Down syndrome than any other request.

You'll find a helpful, informative article on Down syndrome adoption in the November 2008 issue of Rainbow Kids e-zine.  You'll read about Shelly and Robert Bedford, who adopted their 4-year-old son from Ukraine, and then another son, from Serbia.

Martha Osborne writes:

The article will introduce you to several agencies that specialize in the adoption of children with Down syndrome. If adopting a child with Down syndrome is on your heart, be sure to read this article!

This week, we’re taking a look back at the hottest adoption-related topics of 2007. So far, we’ve reviewed adoption statistics, adoption financing, and celebrity adoptions.

Adopting children who have Down syndrome is rapidly gaining popularity; I receive regular inquiries about the topic and my posts on Down syndrome adoption get hundreds of hits every week. Here are some great resources for exploring Down syndrome adoption:

Adopting a Child with Down Syndrome: Visit Reece’s Rainbow

Down Syndrome Adoption Q & A

Resources
About Down Syndrome

For
more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and
check out my Exploring
Adoption bookstore.

If you’re thinking of adopting a child who has Down syndrome, read "Rebels With a Cause," a profile I wrote about Barbara and Tripp Curtis for Marriage Partnership magazine (Fall 2007).

Barbara (pictured) and Tripp are parents of 12 children, including four sons who have Down syndrome (three of them, adopted). The profile focuses on their unconventional, colorful courtship and marriage and on their commitment to raising a stable family together.

Barbara and Tripp are two of the most interesting people I’ve ever interviewed; I think you’ll enjoy learning more about them.

For more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and
check out my Exploring
Adoption bookstore.

I was doing some research for a profile I’m writing about Barbara and Tripp Curtis for Marriage Partnership magazine when I ran across a beautiful story Barbara wrote about her son, who has Down syndrome.

The story, called, "A Little Extra," is a timeless slice-of-life vignette that I think you’ll enjoy.

In addition to giving birth to a son with Down syndrome, Barbara and Tripp have adopted three sons, all of whom have Down syndrome. Their (adopted) sons are now 7, 11, and 12. Jonny, who Barbara writes about in "A Little Extra," is now 15 and heading into 9th grade this fall.

Laura’s book, The Adoption Network, has just been
released. Click
here to learn more about a limited-time offer:  Buy 1, Get 1 FREE! Only $12.95 for TWO books (including
USPS first-class shipping anywhere in the U.S.). Buy one
for yourself and give the other one to a friend, colleague, clergyperson, or
adoption professional.

For more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and
check out my Exploring
Adoption bookstore.

One of my readers, who has a great deal of experience working with children with disabilities, is considering adopting a child who has Down syndrome.

As a high-level professional, she needs to travel for work from time to time. Her question:

What do single, professional moms do for long-term child care?

Readers, let’s hear your suggestions!

Today we continue our visit with Andrea Roberts, executive director of Reece’s Rainbow Down Syndrome Adoption Ministry (to acquaint yourself with Reece’s Rainbow, please read my previous post, “Adopting a Child With Down Syndrome”).

Laura Christianson:
Reece’s Rainbow helps families adopt children who have Down syndrome. Your focus is on international adoption. Do you help with domestic, U.S. placements, as well?

Andrea Roberts:
There are almost 200 families who are “paper ready” and on a waiting list to adopt domestic children with Down syndrome. Robin Steele, who works with the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Cincinnati, is the point person for all domestic adoptions. She is also in touch with a lot of attorneys who can facilitate private, domestic adoptions of children with Down syndrome.

LC: Why does Reece’s Rainbow focus exclusively on international adoptions?

AR: In Central and Eastern European countries alone (including Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Romania, etc., but not Russia), there are more than 1.5 million children who have been abandoned by their families for one reason or another and are living in “public care” (that’s the nice way to put it). If statistically, 1 out of every 733 live births results in a child with Down syndrome, that means at any given time there are 2,046 children with Down syndrome who need families. And that’s just in Europe! Some do not survive because of serious medical complications, lack of medical attention, lack of food, and/or lack of love.

In many of these countries, there is no place in society for children born with Down syndrome. They get dumped in orphanages out of shame and fear. The children with special needs go to the same baby houses until they turn 4; they are then sent to special orphanages for children with physical or cognitive challenges – whoever isn’t perfect gets dumped.

In Russia, these orphanages are closed; once the child is transferred, he or she is no longer eligible to be adopted. In Ukraine, however, children living in those orphanages are eligible to be adopted until they are 16.  It’s important that we get these children out of the orphanages before it’s too late. When people become aware of the future they can prevent by adopting one of these children, it motivates them.

LC: What are some other reasons people adopt children who have Down syndrome?

AR: There are two different kinds of people who adopt:

• People who have fertility issues and want healthy newborns.
• Parents who have a biological child with Down syndrome. They have lived and learned the blessing that these children are.

These children bring more joy than I can describe. Like any child, each child with Down syndrome has his or her own personality and challenges. Families who have had experience with children who have Down syndrome often say, “Give me more of what we’ve got.” We have a family who is in the process of adopting their fourth child with Down syndrome from Colombia.

We are working with three other families who do not have a child with Down syndrome. They simply have a heart and a calling, so they are taking a leap of faith.

Some families are special education teachers. They spend a lot of time with these kids and say, “I want one of my own.”

So there are lots of different scenarios, but the families who adopt have the same heart—they understand what these children bring to the world.

LC: What are some of the challenges of parenting a child with Down syndrome?

AR: Down syndrome is a condition also known as Trisomy 21. It’s caused by an extra copy of all or part of chromosome 21. That causes different issues, in varying degrees, with different children. Yes, you need to get therapy for your child and find special ed classes. You live a different lifestyle, but you adjust.

LC: How are you working with social service agencies in other countries to make it easier for families to adopt children with Down syndrome?

AR: More people would adopt if they could afford it and if they didn’t have to spend six weeks in-country. Most people who adopt children with special needs already have multiple children at home, with or without special needs. The travel requirements prohibit many from making the choice to adopt internationally. We’re reaching out to social services in these countries to encourage them to modify the adoption process or the required time parent has to spend in-country.

LC: Explain your Child of the Month project.

AR: On the first day of every month, one child who is in exceptional need of a family is featured as the Reece’s Rainbow Child of the Month. People can donate $10 a month to go into the adoption grant fund of each child of the month. $10 may not seem like it would make a difference, but collectively, it does.

LC: Tell us about your Yahoo! Group.

AR: The Reece’s Rainbow Yahoo! Group currently has 108 members and is used to keep people abreast of new waiting children and to make announcements about new programs. Many wonderful supporters have joined our Yahoo! group.

LC: How can people contact you for more information?

AR: Visit www.reecesrainbow.com, donate by check to Reece’s Rainbow, PO Box 2055, Dacula, GA  30019-9998, or e-mail Andrea Roberts at bamaroberts@comcast.net.

For more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and
check out my Exploring
Adoption bookstore.

This morning I chatted with Andrea Roberts, executive director of Reece’s Rainbow Down Syndrome Adoption Ministry. She had just returned from the vet, where she adopted a pair of 8-week-old kittens.

In addition to the kittens, Andrea and her husband are in the process of adopting sibling boys, ages 6 and 4, from Estonia. Andrea is also the mother of two birth children, Reece, age 5, who has Down syndrome, and a 2 ½-year-old. “Better busy than bored,” is Andrea’s motto.

Andrea, who founded the non-profit, all-volunteer Reece’s Rainbow, donates 60 hours a week of her “free time” to the ministry. Reece’s Rainbow is not an adoption agency. They do not complete adoption home studies. “We are a connecting point,” says Andrea.

Reece’s Rainbow connects:

• U.S. families who seek to adopt a child with Down syndrome internationally
• U.S. families who seek an adoptive family for their child with Down syndrome
• International families who seek an adoptive family for their child with Down syndrome
• Birth families of children with Down syndrome who seek counseling

Reece’s Rainbow works with about 15 adoption agencies and has programs in 27 countries. Those countries include:

• Armenia
• Bulgaria
• China
• Eastern Europe
• Estonia
• Ethiopia
• Republic of Georgia
• Guatemala
• Haiti
• Hong Kong
• Hungary
• India
• Korea
• Latin America
• Latvia
• Moldova
• Peru
• Poland
• Russia
• Taiwan
• Ukraine
• Uzbekistan
• Vietnam

They are in the process of adding Liberia and Philippines.

During the past 11 months, Reece’s Rainbow has helped find adoptive families for 37 children who have Down syndrome. Their Web site features more than 115 children with Down syndrome who are waiting for adoptive families.

Here’s how Reece’s Rainbow connects adoptive families with children who have Down syndrome:

• Adoption agencies who have waiting children with Down syndrome contact Andrea.
• Andrea posts profiles (and oftentimes, photos) of those children at the Reece’s Rainbow Website (agencies do not pay any fees to post the profiles).
• Families interested in adopting a child with Down syndrome visit “The International Adoption Process” page at Reece’s Rainbow.
• After acquainting themselves with the adoption process, families compare the requirements for each country’s adoption program.
• After choosing a country that seems like the best fit, families choose a child from the gallery for that country. Not all the country pages display photos of the children available for adoption, but Andrea notes that there are many children waiting (particularly in Ukraine) who are not listed on the Web site.
• Andrea creates a private gallery page for each family, customized by country, the child’s age, the family’s travel abilities, number of children at home, etc. These private pages include both the profiles and photos of children who are waiting to be adopted.
• Once the adopting family chooses a particular child, the family works directly with the agency who referred that child (noted on the child’s profile page) to complete the adoption.

Helping make international adoption more affordable for families who want to adopt a child with Down syndrome is a huge part of the Reece’s Rainbow ministry. Andrea notes that many of the agencies significantly reduce agency fees and/or make grants available for children with special needs.

Andrea sets up a donation account for each child who is featured on the site. “That becomes the child’s grant fund,” she explains. All tax-deductible contributions to a child’s grant fund are disbursed to the referring adoption agency after a family commits to adopt the child, submits their dossier, and has been given an appointment to travel.

Adopting families can also apply to join the Family Sponsorship Program.  Families who are members of this program post information about themselves and the child they are hoping to adopt. Friends, colleagues, church members, and total strangers can make a tax-deductible donation, via Paypal, towards the adoption. This grant money is also disbursed to the referring adoption agency.

“This money has been the key to giving potential adoptive families the strength and courage they need to step forward in faith,” says Andrea. “International adoptions are very expensive, even for children with special needs, so to see available grant money really makes a big difference.”

In the next post:
Q & A with Andrea Roberts, executive director of Reece’s Rainbow

For more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and
check out my Exploring
Adoption bookstore.

For those interested in adopting a child with Down syndrome, here are a couple of resources. They’re not specifically about adoption, but they provide helpful information about Down syndrome:

K12 Academics: Information page contains an overview, medical research, sociology, notable individuals with Down syndrome, DS in fiction, support services, special education schools, camps, articles, books, videos, magazines & DVDs. This site’s Home page also contains information about a huge variety of other disabilities/disorders.

National Geographic Kids: "I Have Down Syndrome–Know Me Before You Judge Me," by Melissa Riggio as told to Rachel Buchholtz. (A neat story from the perspective of a teenager who has Down syndrome).

For more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and
check out my Exploring
Adoption bookstore.

Christian Homes And Special Kids (CHASK)  is a non-profit organization that serves as a contact point for those pregnant with a child with medical challenges, for (birth) mothers with special needs, or for families whose baby is born with a challenge that prevents the birth family from parenting the child.

A friend of a friend alerted me that the CHASK process works as follows:

• Someone contacts CHASK and asks for help.
• CHASK broadcasts the need in the geographical area first in hopes of finding a Christian family willing to adopt. 
• If a family is interested, they apply with CHASK.
• CHASK then provides the birth family with three profiles from those who have offered to adopt. 
• The individuals involved then contact the interested family directly after examining their profile.

Here are the particulars of a current situation:

The baby’s grandma, who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, contacted CHASK.  Her 18-year-old, mildly disabled daughter was raped by a man quite a bit older. The man is currently being charged with this crime.

The baby is due to be born on Valentine’s Day. Ultrasounds indicate all is well with the child.  The ethnic background is Spanish/French for the dad and Caucasian for the mother.  The reason that they won’t be able to keep the baby is that the birth mother is mentally more like an 11-year-old than an 18-year-old, and the grandmother works full time. 

To contact CHASK:
Birth Parent’s Line 1-800-266-9837
Adoptive Parents 208-267-6246
E-mail: chaskinfo@aol.com

Related Posts:
CHASK: Adoption Agency for Special Needs Infants

Resources for People Adopting a Child with Down Syndrome

For more news and information about adoption, visit www.laurachristianson.com, and check out my Exploring Adoption bookstore.