Over 100,000 Foster Kids are Waiting to be Adopted Right Now

On any given day in the United States, there are approximately 400,000 children in the U.S. foster care system.  Of those 400,000 children, approximately 124,000 are waiting to be adopted.  There is always an urgent need for loving families to adopt U.S. kids.

Older Children, Sibling Groups, and Special Needs Children Waiting to be Adopted

Each year, approximately 20,000 youth age out of the foster care system when they turn 18 or 21.  When kids that need to be adopted turn thirteen, the likelihood of adoption is 3%, and the percentages decrease from there. These children have to face adulthood alone without the support of a loving family.  Older children are not as readily adopted as younger children. Read more about the need to adopt teenagers before they age out of the foster care system HERE.  Additionally, the best case scenario is to keep brothers and sisters together, as the children have already experienced traumatic family loss.  Special needs children also are less likely to be adopted as they often need extra care due to medical conditions or emotional disabilities.  If you want to adopt U.S. kids and are able, please consider adopting children who are less likely to be adopted.

Adopt U.S. Kids From Any State

Building Arizona Families helps Arizona families adopt U.S. kids from around the country.  As an Arizona licensed adoption agency, we serve Arizona families in the foster child adoption process.  You can download helpful information about adopting foster children on our website HERE.   Building Arizona Families’ program for foster child adoption is called the Forever Families program.  Since 2004, we have helped hundreds of families change the lives and futures of children in foster care who desperately want to be loved and belong to a forever family.

State governments that oversee the children’s welfare recognize that children thrive in loving families, and so state agencies do their best to place children eligible for adoption with families that best match their needs.  Adopting children from foster care does not require adoptive families to be foster care certified.  Adoption approval is granted through the home study process, and Building Arizona Families can walk with your family every step of the way through the home study and adoption approval process.

Why Choose Building Arizona Families

If you would like more information about how to adopt U.S. foster kids, please reach out to Ixcel Baca at 623-696-9537 or by e-mail at [email protected]. We also offer informative online seminars. You can find out about the most current schedule and RSVP on our Facebook page. Why choose Building Arizona Families? Building Arizona Families is an Arizona–licensed, IRS–registered non–profit, licensed, and accredited adoption agency. We have provided adoption services since 2004 with an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. Please find out more about us here.

It’s National Foster Care Month for Kids Awaiting Adoption

With approximately 117,000 kids awaiting adoption in the U.S. foster care system, it is always a good time to bring awareness to the need for loving forever families to open their hearts and homes and change the lives of these vulnerable children and teens.  This month is National Foster Care Month, and the theme is Strengthening Minds.  Uplifting Families.”  This years theme aims to educate the public about taking a holistic approach to the mental and behavioral health of U.S. foster children.

After being traumatized by experiencing abuse and neglect, kids awaiting adoption face additional, unintended consequences while in the foster care system.  Foster children and teens move an average of three times a year, preventing the opportunity to build consistent, loving relationships with caregivers.  Moving often means changing schools, so they lose the support of caring teachers, the joy of friendships, and an estimated six months of academic progress for every school disruption.  With so much loss, it is understandable that up to 80% of children in foster care have significant mental health issues compared to approx. 18-22% of their peers (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2019).

Undoubtedly, children and youth in foster care urgently need their mental health needs prioritized, including access to the necessary healthcare and addressing the need for stable, loving relationships.  For kids awaiting adoption in foster care, relational permanency is crucial to healing.  At Building Arizona Families, we believe one of the most important components for healing from complex trauma is a loving, stable family and safe home providing the sense of family, belonging, and identity that foster children and youth urgently need. 

Building Arizona Families offers convenient, informative online seminars if you live in Arizona and are interested in discovering more about U.S. kids awaiting adoption.  You can find the most current schedule and RSVP on our Facebook page HERE or reach out directly to Ixcel Baca, Forever Families program manager, for information. Call Ixcel at (623) 696-9537 or e-mail her at [email protected].  You can also find additional foster child adoption information HERE.

Thank you for considering opening your heart and home to a foster child who urgently needs the love and healing that your safe and loving home provides.  We look forward to serving you on your adoption journey!

Adopt Foster Kids in Arizona Facing Aging Out During the Pandemic 

Aging out of the foster care system without ever being adopted is just heartbreaking. As the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted families willing to open their hearts and homes, the numbers are rising. When a teenager ages out of the foster care system, their chances of homelessness, drug use, pregnancy, and incarceration rise significantly. In the current pandemic, when these teenagers face the world alone, they face a massive drop in available jobs, an unsure education system, and assistance programs that are becoming inundated.  To protect them from facing the harsh realities of being alone in the world, we encourage Arizona families to adopt foster kids in Arizona and around the United States.

Teenagers in Foster Care are Facing Frightening Times Now More Than Ever

A teenager that is reaching the age of 18 begins to think of their life after foster care. Where will they live? Where will they get their next meal? How will they maintain a job? There is an endless list of questions that run through a teen’s mind when facing the end of foster care. But due to recent societal concerns, aging out of the foster care system has become an even more frightening experience.

Foster children in Arizona and around the United States face heart-breaking living conditions once they turn 18 and legally become an adult. Building Arizona Families, our local Arizona adoption agency, advocates for Arizona families to adopt foster kids in Arizona or anywhere around the United States to give a teenager the loving home and consistent relationships that they have hoped for. This is a chance Bianca Bennett would have been forever thankful for if she were given an opportunity to grow up with a forever family instead of aging out.

Bianca Bennett entered the foster care system in New York when she was only two years old. Bianca reentered foster care at the age of 13 and eventually aged out of the foster care system. Like many adults who age out of the system, Bianca spent months sleeping on different people’s couches. Because of the pandemic, Bianca now faced even more unusual times. She was able to move to Florida to attend college, but the coronavirus shut down caused her to no longer have a dorm to reside in. Bianca eventually had to move back to New York and does not know what her future looks like.

So many foster youths are facing these same unfortunate experiences as Bianca. One national poll found that 25% of foster youth at the critical aging out phase are experiencing food insecurity, 40% are being forced to move, and 33% only have enough money to cover living costs for a week or less. We can help these youths in foster care! Through our Forever Families U.S. Foster Adoption Program, we can assist Arizona families who want to adopt foster kids in Arizona or around the U.S. Building Arizona Families encourages any family who is wanting to grow to consider blessing a kid’s life forever and adopt foster teens. Learn more about the Forever Families U.S. Foster Adoption Program, HERE.

You Can Adopt Foster Kids in Arizona and Change Lives Forever

Building Arizona Families is a local, non-profit, Arizona adoption agency that is accredited and licensed. Arizona families can adopt foster children in Arizona and around the United States. Foster children are in desperate need of loving homes, now more than ever. Shortages of foster homes and a rise in the number of foster licenses not being renewed are causing foster children to live in emergency shelters, a place no child should ever have to live. Today about 14,000 foster kids in Arizona are waiting for a family to welcome them home and give them a fresh start. But less than 4,000 foster homes are waiting for them.

Building Arizona Families invites you to consider adopting a foster child in Arizona or anywhere else in the U.S. Remember, contrary to what many people believe, and you do not have to be licensed foster care providers before adopting Arizona foster children. Download our foster child adoption info kit HERE.

We also invite you to attend one of our informative adoption seminars. You can reach out to Ixcel Baca, Program Coordinator, directly and ask any questions you might have. Ixcel would love to hear from you! You can reach Ixcel at (623) 696-9537 or by e-mailing her at [email protected]. Learn more about the Forever Families program Building Arizona Families offers to adopt foster children HERE. You can change the life of a foster child forever!

Sources –

https://dcs.az.gov/news-reports/dcs-reports

https://www.thenation.com/article/society/what-happens-when-you-age-out-of-foster-care-during-a-global-pandemic/

Adopting Foster Children Before They Age Out of Foster Care System

Over 20,000 young adults age out of the foster care system each year in the United States. Aging out of the foster care system means a child turned 18 and was never given the opportunity to have a loving and full life with an adoptive family. In Arizona, there are currently over 900 teenagers about to age out of foster care who will face the scary realities in the world alone. Teenagers that age out of the foster care system face devastating life experiences. Many find themselves in a life full of drugs, abuse, and homelessness, ill-equipped for the dangers of the world. Adopting foster children can help children or teens change their lives, grow in a healthy and loving environment, and enjoy a prosperous adult life.

Foster Kids are Big Dreamers and Have Beautiful Aspirations Too

Did you know over 70% of foster youth around the age of seventeen aspire to go to college? Even though they have experienced many heartbreaking situations, 70% of foster kids are passionate about changing their life and making a difference. Though the odds are stacked against teens in foster care, every teenager deserves the opportunity to follow their dreams and feel supported. Over 13,000 foster children in Arizona right now are questioning what their future holds. You can provide the opportunity for one or more of these children to be surrounded with love, support, and safety in their homes.

The Scary Realities of Aging Out of Foster Care

Up to 36% of youths who age out of foster care become homeless during the transition to adulthood. Many of these teenagers have suffered post-traumatic stress by being removed from their biological family and constantly moving from one set of unfamiliar people and places to another, some for their entire childhood until they age out of foster care at 18 years old.

71% of teenagers who were never adopted by a forever family will make less than $25,000 a year. The struggle to have stable employment is drastically impacted by education level, lack of reliable transportation, lack of references, and experience due to circumstances teens face in foster care.

7 in 10 girls who age out of foster care will become pregnant before the age of 21. This incredibly high number of unplanned pregnancies is related to factors girls growing up in foster care have experienced including abuse, neglect, poverty, family disruption, and general instability.

Children who experience life in foster care, especially ones who sadly age out, have a very high likelihood of developing a substance use dependence. According to research, it is believed that 1 out of 2 young adults who age out of foster care will struggle with addiction. Foster youth who have aged out also have a much higher chance of becoming incarcerated.

How the Forever Families U.S. Program at Building Arizona Families can Change Lives

Thousands of youth all over the country are quickly approaching the day they turn 18 and age out of the foster care system.  They need a loving family now. Building Arizona Families, a licensed, non-profit adoption agency in Arizona, offers the Forever Families U.S. Program to facilitate the adoption of foster children by families living in Arizona. Starting this journey can begin to change the lives of foster kids and teens.

This program gives Arizona adoptive families the possibility to adopt foster children through direct adoption placement without becoming foster-certified. It is a less expensive and faster adoption process than private adoption. Find out more information about the foster adoption program requirements, fees, and time frame for the Forever Families U.S. Program at Building Arizona Families, HERE.

Adopting Foster Children can Change the Course of a Teenager’s Life Before They are Faced with Aging Out of Foster Care

Building Arizona Families invites Arizona families to consider adopting foster children in Arizona and around the United States. Remember, contrary to what many people believe, you do not have to be a foster parent before adopting foster children in Arizona. We will help walk you through the direct adoption of children in the foster care system. Download our foster child adoption info kit HERE.

We also invite you to attend one of our informative adoption seminars. You can reach out to Ixcel Baca, Program Coordinator, directly and ask any questions you might have. Ixcel would love to hear from you! You can reach Ixcel at (623) 696-9537 or by e-mailing her at [email protected]. Learn more about the Forever Families program Building Arizona Families offers to adopt foster children HERE. You can change the life of a foster child forever!

Source – 

https://www.fosterclub.com/national-foster-care-month

https://www.nfyi.org/51-useful-aging-out-of-foster-care-statistics-social-race-media/

https://dcs.az.gov/news-reports/dcs-reports