National Adoption Month
Did you know, according to the website AmericanAdoption.com, there are over 400,000 children in foster care? However, more than 60% of children spend two to five years in the foster care system before leaving. 20% of children spend more than five years, and other children never have the chance to make it out of the system before they turn eighteen. Although, on average, about 135,000 children are adopted into the United States every year. 59% of these children are from the system, 26% in which are from other countries, and 15% are relinquished American infants.
According to the website, AmericanAdoption.com, there has been an estimated 1-2 million couples wanting to adopt a child. More than 2% of americans have actually went through with adoption, and more than ⅓ have considered it. Statistics state that 7 million children are adopted by American families. Most children go into foster system from birth; some are fortunate enough to be adopted shortly after. Even though some children get placed so quickly, there are some who aren't so fortunate and spend many years in foster care. Those who spend many years in child services don't get the education they need.
As a result, a program named (YV Life Set) was created. The program was created for those children when they turn eighteen. The program allows them to get the education they deeply need, and they learn skills on how to live in the world on their own.
As the percentage of unwanted pregnancies rise, children are more often abandoned. The high rate of abandonment also increases the costs of the foster systems. There has been an estimation of $4.3 million Foster Care Administrative costs.
My personal experience
I was fortunate enough to begin living with my family when I was very young. I was born in Athens, Alabama but was raised in New Castle, Pennsylvania. When I was young, my mother legally signed over her rights to the state. This meant that she was no longer legally my guardian or my mother. Although she had signed away her rights, I continued with her last name until the spring of 2014. I then went to a courthouse and got my last name legally changed.
Growing up, getting bullied was a common occurrence for me. Bullying occurred because I had an accent and because my foster parents were not my biological parents.
Adoption isn’t always that bad, and knowing I’m not the only adopted child in LCCTC is comforting. I’ve began to realize that being adopted isn’t as bad as what people have made it out to be.
Adoption isn’t always that bad, and knowing I’m not the only adopted child in LCCTC is comforting. I’ve began to realize that being adopted isn’t as bad as what people have made it out to be.
...but out of all the children in the world, my parents chose me, and for that, I am blessed.
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“She was wild, she was free. Only a fool wouldn’t love her”
~ The Better Man Project
Summer Pitts, a junior Vet Assistant at LCCTC, plays softball and races. She loves drawing and mudding. She lives in Scott Township and she will graduate in 2019 where she will head to college to further her career in the Vet field.
