FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Contact: ACF Press Office
(202) 401-9215
New Guide on Adoption Services for Military Families Released
Offers advice to military families and social work practitioners
WASHINGTON, D.C. --- The Department of Health and Human Services today announced the publication of Wherever My Family Is: That�s Home! Adoption Services for Military Families. The guide highlights adoption practices that can help to minimize the obstacles military families face when attempting to become foster or adoptive parents.
�Military families have many strengths, including flexibility and a strong sense of community, that make them good foster and adoptive parents,� said HHS Assistant Secretary for Children and Families Wade F. Horn, Ph.D. �I am confident that this new guide will help state agencies work effectively with military personnel to assure that all families who want to give a child a loving home can do so.�
The guide, which is simple to read and user-friendly, is designed not only for social work practitioners, but also for military families contemplating adoption or foster parenting. It is sprinkled with stories of real military families who have adopted children.
�The Department of Defense greatly appreciates the efforts HHS has put into developing an adoption guide for military parents,� said Barbara Thompson, director, Office of Family Policy, Department of Defense. �This guide supports the professionals dedicated to supporting military families as they navigate the requirements to fulfill their dreams of adopting children. The strengths of military families are recognized -- and helping others understand those strengths will overcome many of the hurdles faced by families who relocate and live across the world.�
Prepared by a team including representatives of the HHS Children�s Bureau, The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids, The Adoption Exchange, Inc., McKenzie Consulting, Inc., the National Military Family Association and the American Public Human Services Association, the guide was unveiled at a ceremony commemorating National Adoption Month and honoring the winners of the HHS Adoption Excellence Awards.
Copies of the guide may be obtained by calling 1-888-200-4005. It is also available on line at
http://www.adoptuskids.org/images/resourceCenter/militaryGuide.pdf
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