Prospective adoptive parents

Around the time of his third birthday, my son John started urging me to adopt a baby. He launched a relentless, unequivocal campaign. He has always been a determined individual, and he had made up his mind. He was going to have a sibling.

Rena and husband Jim Jones already had four biological children when they made the brave move to adopt a sibling group of four from the Ministry For Children and Family Development (MCFD) in 1996.

by Harriet Fancott

As the millenium comes to a close, we thought a recap of the most important changes in adoption over that period would be fitting. For simplicity, however, we decided to stick to the last decade.

The Adoption Act: The biggest catalyst for change within the BC adoption community over the last decade came with the new Adoption Act, which was introduced in 1994 and came into force Nov 4, 1996. The 1994 Act replaced the 1957 Act and was hailed as one of the most progressive in North America.

In this discussion paper, I hope to open a door for reflection and discussion within the adoption community, meaning adoption agencies, support services, and adoptive and prospective adoptive parents. It is time to examine our underlying values and biases in adoption, and address how the adoptive system advantages some, while disadvantaging others.

We were waiting for the call to pick up our child. One day the phone rang. “There’s been a terrible plane accident at Ton Son Nhut airport outside of Saigon. The back doors of a Lockheed C5A transport plane carrying children bound for the US and Canada were not properly secured. About 15 minutes after take-off, the Galaxy reached cruising level and the rear cargo door blew out. The plane smashed down in a rice paddy a short distance from the airport. Several children and their escorts, who were on the lower deck of the plane, have perished.

"My husband and I have recently been diagnosed as infertile. Whereas I have come to see adoption as the best option for raising a family, my husband sees our infertility as an indication that we should remain childless. I’m at a loss, I love my husband, but I really want a family."

By Julie Smith (not her real name)

Adoption reversal and revocation strikes fear in the hearts of adopting parents. Under section 19 of the Adoption Act, "a birth mother may revoke her consent within 30 days of the child's birth, even though the child has been placed for adoption during that period." In a reversal, consents have not been signed; in revocation, consents have been signed. In most cases the child was living in the adoptive home. Under the old Act, there was no revocation period.

We have been chosen by a birth mother to adopt the child she will soon give birth to. As you can imagine, this is a very emotional and stressful time for us. Is there any advice you would give to people in our situation as we anxiously wait and deal with the uncertainty?

Many families enjoy a good relationship with their adoption agency and are thrilled with their adoption experience. You are more likely to have a similar experience if you do your homework first. Here are some basic pointers on what to ask a prospective agency.

AFABC receives many enquires about how to select an adoption agency. This article is a general guide on what questions you should consider before you make your choice.