31 Children from the CPS System Will Find Their Forever Homes with 24 Local Families

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 19^th Annual Austin Adoption Day will be held virtually on Thurs., Nov. 5, 2020.  Instead of the typical “Wizard of Oz” themed celebration held traditionally at the Gardner Betts Juvenile Justice Center, the “forever families” will be created this year via Zoom.  24 families, from the safety of their own homes, will be connected to Travis County judges who will perform their adoptions remotely.  31 children who have been in foster care due to abuse or neglect will become permanent members of a new family in this virtual day of celebration.

In keeping with tradition, the virtual event will retain its “No Place Like Home” feel with Wizard of Oz characters joining the judges on their benches, and balloons and gifts donated by generous sponsors being delivered to each family’s home.

According to Holly Benningfield, Region 7 Adoption Program Director and Post-Adoption Liaison for the Department of Family and Protective Services, “These families will realize their goal of adoption, while enjoying a day filled with love, hope, some tears, and many smiles. It is a day to celebrate these children and families while also creating an awareness of hundreds of children still waiting to find their forever homes in the Region 7 (Central Texas) area.”

November is National Adoption Month, and Austin Adoption Day is part of the nationwide effort to celebrate families that are welcoming new members from foster care and to draw attention to the continuing need for foster and adoptive homes. There are more than 2,900 children in Texas and 55 in Travis County currently waiting to be adopted.

Adoptions will be held beginning at 8:30 a.m. and will be finalized in several virtual courtrooms simultaneously throughout the morning.  Austin Adoption Day will culminate with a virtual press conference at 12 p.m.   If you would like to attend, please RSVP to Nancy Gray by Wed. Nov. 4 at 5 p.m. to receive the Zoom links and instructions.
                    
Austin Adoption Day is sponsored by the Austin Bar Foundation along with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Gardner-Betts Juvenile Justice Center, CASA of Travis County, Partnerships for Children, the Travis County Children’s Protective Services Board, and the Travis County Office of Child Representation.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO AUSTIN ADOPTION DAY

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS:

Cook-Walden Funeral Home/Dignity Memorial
Austin Bar’s Family Law Section, Ballet Austin, Joe Gagen, Kendra Scott, Whitestone Jewelry

Andrae Law PLLC, The Heart Gallery of Central Texas, Holland & Knight, Linda Stanley & Mary Jo Burns

Amy’s Ice Cream, Foster Angels, Texas Health and Human Services Commission