20th Circuit Court, Ottawa County, hosted Adoption Day Celebration on November 23
The holiday season is a time filled with joy and gratitude for family. Many Michigan children, however, spend the holidays without a family to call their own. On November 23, the 20th Circuit Court celebrated Adoption Day, giving several families more to be grateful for as they head into the Thanksgiving holiday.
The ceremony began at 9:00am followed by confirmation hearings with Chief Probate Court Judge, Mark A. Feyen. The in-person event was limited in capacity due to social distancing; however, the public was invited to celebrate alongside the families and county staff via live streamed Adoption Day events on YouTube.
- In fiscal year 2021, more than over 1,600 Michigan children were adopted through the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services or private agencies.
- At any given time, there are approximately 11,000 children in Michigan’s foster care system and of those, nearly 200 lack an identified adoptive family.
- People can adopt whether they are single or married. They do not have to be wealthy or own their own home but must have adequate financial resources to provide for a family.
- Children in the foster care system become eligible for adoption following termination of parental rights due to abuse or neglect. The goal for most children in the foster care system is reunification with their families.
- There is support for families who want to adopt. In fact, approximately 95 percent of children who are available for adoption qualify for assistance to help families with some of the costs of bringing children into their homes. More information is available at the Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange website: https://www.mare.org/.
Typically, adoptions are finalized in private, but on Adoption Day, more than 30 courts statewide were expected to host virtual or in-person events, inviting communities to join in celebrating the families who choose to open their hearts to these children and provide them with their forever home. Our hope is that some others might be inspired to consider foster care and adoption.