Local News Partners Share Heartwarming Adoption Stories

All of Central Ohio had an opportunity to join in celebrating National Adoption Day on November 8, thanks to help from several of Franklin County Children Services' local news friends.

During National Adoption Day, FCCS and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption joined Franklin County Probate Judge Jeffrey Mackey and his staff of magistrates - along with several volunteer adoption attorneys - to celebrate the court’s final placement of children to forever homes. 

This year, seven children were placed with six permanent families.

And news reporters from Spectrum News One, NBC4, and ABC6/FOX28 were in the courtroom to share the heartwarming stories with viewers in the Columbus area and throughout Ohio.

Take a moment to watch these great stories.

Spectrum News Ohio (statewide story)
https://spectrumnews1.com/oh/columbus/news/2023/11/08/cambridge-family-celebrates--national-adoption-day--by-finalizing-teen-s-adoption-#

NBC4 Columbus
https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/franklin-county/national-adoption-month-six-central-ohio-families-grow-through-adoption/


ABC6/FOX28
https://abc6onyourside.com/news/local/not-a-typical-adoption-day-seven-franklin-county-foster-kids-get-a-forever-home-all-in-one-day

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First Forever Family Funfest Celebrates Power of Permanency

Image
Celebrating the nearly 300 children who found “forever homes” over the past year through adoption or finalization of a kinship placement, Franklin County Children Services hosted its first Forever Family Funfest. “When children can no longer safely remain in their parents’ custody, they deserve to have the permanent sense of belonging that comes with finding a family,” said Raquel Breckenridge, Family Service Director for Permanency. “And we want to celebrate those lasting connections.” Over the past year, more than 100 children and teenagers who were in the agency’s care found their forever homes through adoption. In addition, almost 200 children were permanently placed with family relatives - grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, or adult siblings - or close family friends such as teachers and coaches, church members, or neighbors. Dozens of those children and teens who found their forever homes through adoption or permanent kinship placement, along with their families and caregiv...
Read more

FCCS Volunteers Comfort, Care for Children during Crisis

Image
As a volunteer in Franklin County Children Services’ Crisis Center, Michalle DiGiovine fondly recalls dining on “pretend food” and playing “restaurant” with a promising culinary staff of five young children as they tried out recipes prepared on a plastic range.  “It felt good that they could come to me - a stranger - to pretend and laugh a little,” she said, remembering how she connected with the youngsters, all the under the age of 10, who had just endured an extremely traumatic experience at home. As January is National Mentoring Month, it’s a great time to recognize the Crisis Center volunteers who help protect children by allowing them to escape from tumultuous situations for a time and feel safe and cared for.  Mentors and volunteers play an important role at FCCS in surrounding children who come into the agency’s care with kindness and support, letting children know they are not alone. It’s part of the agency’s strategy to protect the “whole” child - mind, body, and hear...
Read more

Creating Forever Families, FCCS Caseworker Celebrates 500th Adoption

Image
Finding lifelong, lasting family connections for children is all in a day’s work for adoptions assessor Liska Hall, a 26-year veteran at Franklin County Children Services. And in March, this exceptional child welfare professional reached a remarkable milestone, facilitating her 500th adoption.  “I have loved being able to provide permanence for 500 kids,” she said.  “I love that I will be the last social worker that they will have and that they will go on and have typical lives without caseworkers involved. I love it when the family is so happy and excited about the adoption and that this child is now theirs, forever!”   Going into the child welfare field made perfect sense to Ms. Hall, who was the first person in her family to attend college. She notes that she’s always been the kind of person who has looked out for others.  “I was a ‘social worker’ in high school,” she recalled. “I was the mom of the group, making sure everyone got home safely. None of my frie...
Read more