Full Circle Adoptions Newsletter

Congratulations to Lydia and Steve on the arrival of Noah Eugene; to Beth and Jay on the arrival of Juliana Elisabeth; to Scott and Sheila on the arrival of Timothy Louis; to Katie and Michael on the arrival of Colleen Rose; to Keith and Susan on the arrival of Benjamin David; to Kate and Joe on the arrival of William ("Will");   to Cherie and Tim on the arrival of Hannah Elizabeth; to Susan and Bruce (and big brother Ben) on the arrival of Marjorie ("Jorie"); to Kathrin and Lorenz on the arrival of Kelly Anne; and to Christine & Elan and big brother Alexander on the arrival of Julian; to Peter, Joyce and big brother Jason on the arrival of Christine Suzanne; to Rick, Lisa and big sister Siena on the arrival of Kiana Marie; to Carolyn, Cris and big sister Ellie on the arrival of Will Robert; to Laurie, David and big sister Elizabeth on the arrival of Arianna; to Brenda, Patrick and big brother Colin on the arrival of Carley Mae; to Pam and Eric on the arrival of Lindsay Taylor; to Tricia and Brian on the arrival of Caroline; and to Lisa and Michael on the arrival of Will Michael.

We rejoice with all our families on the good health of your children and the love that you will share in the years to come.   The birthparents with whom we have had the honor of working so far this year have been extraordinary men and women. They have made their adoption plans in many states including: Kansas, California (5), Nevada, Colorado, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Idaho (2), Florida (2), Tennessee (1), and Washington State.

We continue to be impressed by the devotion and support many birthfathers have given to birthmothers during a time that is both physically and spiritually challenging. Many of our birthparents have shown a lot of trust and openness to the adoptive parents and have created warm relationships with them.

Full Circle Adoptions completed 15 placements in 1997, 16 in 1998 and 10 as of March 1st in 1999. We are delighted to be helping more birth and adoptive families. Birthparents have found that they can reach us by phone and pager at any time of day or night and this has proved particularly helpful when they make an adoption plan close to the time of birth. Our adoptive families come from Massachusetts and increasingly from other states and countries as well. Families from Alabama, California, South Carolina, Maine, Washington State and even Switzerland have begun building their families with Full Circle's help.

As we have reviewed the past several years of work, we have noticed that in 75% of our adoption cases so far, the birthfathers have remained particularly dedicated to supporting the birthmothers, including signing the surrender as part of the adoption process. We have also noticed that many times their relationships become stronger after pulling through the experience of making an adoption plan together. In several instances, the birthparents have married or moved in together and increased their commitment to each other within the year after the placement.

Most of the birthparents working with Full Circle are already parents.  They are loving and capable parents who feel that their limits are reached and so they courageously make an adoption plan for an unexpected pregnancy. In response to the efforts of birthparents to find loving homes for their newborns, Full Circle has noticed that most adoptive families who do not have any children are matched to birthparents within approximately six months. This same time period can be about nine months for families with one or more children. We estimate the time period between a profile being shown and a match being achieved is between 6 and 18 months to account for the possibility of variations on this pattern. No adoption agency can promise particular timing or outcomes, because birthparents must select adoptive families and make the ultimate decisions for themselves.

Due to the increased number of placements and matches, this is a particularly good time for prospective adoptive families to consider working with Full Circle. Please contact us for a free and private orientation. Birthparents should know, as well, that we've added social work staff to be increasingly available to you when you need us. As always, we welcome ideas for added programs that meet birth-family and adoptive family needs.

Come meet other families & kids!
Enjoy good food & play outside!

Saturday June 19, 1999 --  Noon til dusk

Look Park, Northampton

CONTACT FULL CIRCLE FOR A FLYER

The Birthparent Support Group is scheduled to meet on the last Wednesday of each month at noon. Please call to confirm.

Please Note: Folks who've attended the Support Group have included individuals who placed their children recently as well as those who’ve placed many years ago; folks who've placed through Full Circle and through other agencies. We welcome everyone including folks who decided to parent! Thanks for your courage in considering this group! Hope you'll keep coming!

Full Circle clinicians have many years of experience in adoption. Our clinicians provide counseling and assistance to birthparents during their decision-making process and assist prospective adoptive parents with consultations, homestudies and support during the adoptive process.  This column will serve to introduce you to the clinicians who help Full Circle families.

Susan Phillips, MA works full time at Full Circle Adoptions counseling birthparents and helping prospective adoptive parents with their homestudies. Susan received her MA from Western Michigan University in 1975. She has spent the last 27 years working in the child welfare field in both the private and public sector. She brings to Full Circle her experience in both grant writing and social service administration.  Susan received the Child Advocate of the Year award from the state of Michigan to honor her years of dedicated service in child protective services and foster care. She has come "full circle" in returning to Massachusetts, her home state. We are glad to have her with us.

Suzanne Pontbriant has joined Full Circle's staff and we are grateful for her wisdom, terrific editing talents and her vision to bring us into the next millenium with an expanded vision of computer skills. Suzanne and Director Marla Allisan both share a commitment to Suzuki violin study. While we seldom get to crack our violin cases to practice the Twinkles at work, Suzanne has clearly added to the harmony at the office. Welcome Suzanne.

Wendy Simpson of Simpson Designs has been an important part of the Full Circle "team". Thank you Wendy for helping the agency with the design of its newsletters and other publications and for helping adoptive families express, graphically, what they hope to share with birthfamilies. Your creativity, patience and great work are very much appreciated.

Joan Connors Esq. is an adoptive parent and attorney. Joan is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College and Northeastern University Law School of Law.  She serves as the Ombudsman for the State of Alaska and is a recognized expert on the Indian Child Welfare Act, a legal code that is often relevant to adoption cases. Joan returns home to Massachusetts to visit with her family, confer with her alma mater and meet with Full Circle Adoptions' Board of Directors. We are grateful for your dedicated service to Full Circle.

If you are a family (or know of a family) who might like to offer a "welcoming home" please let us know. It can be a rewarding experience to participate in an adoption through offering a young woman a short term place to live. The welcoming home family receives a modest sum ($400-500) per month to defray costs associated with the housing. The Agency provides financial assistance for food, maternity clothing, as well as rent/utilities. The agency social worker assigned to the birthmother will provide emotional support and help her with applying for Medicaid and accessing other resources as needed.

Agency clinicians interview the birthmother prior to relocating her and educate her as to guidelines and house rules. We would also meet with the Welcoming Home family and the birthmother to insure that it is a good match. The birthmother frequently stays for 1-2 months during her pregnancy and usually wishes to return to her home state within 1-2 weeks after delivery. Thank you for considering this request! We are particularly eager to find homes in a 10-20 mile radius of the Agency in Northampton. Please call Director Marla Allisan with questions and/or interest in this program.

Thank you to families and individuals who have contributed to this fund.  We are hoping to create a fund which will have sufficient resources to provide revolving loans and outright grants for adoption expenses for families of modest means.  Thank you for considering this.  Please remember that any contributions are deductible as charitable contributions!

Our 100% cotton t-shirts are available in 4 vibrant colors:  bright blue, yellow, bright pink and lavender.   Net proceeds will be directed to the adoption assistance fund.  Please be sure to state size with order.

Child sizes:   S, M, L  -  $10
Adult sizes:  S, M, L, XL, XXL  -  $15

Please include $3 for postage and handling and indicate size and color..

Send to:  Full Circle Adoptions, 38 Main Street, Northampton, MA   01060

90 East to Exit 4 91 North towards Holyoke/Northampton Exit 18 off I-91 At end of ramp turn left (About a mile ahead is Northampton’s main intersection.)