Children’s Home + Aid works to make adoption easy and successful

Children’s Home + Aid, 910 Second Ave. in Rockford, held a meeting on Sunday at Kishwaukee Hospital about the easiest ways to go about adopting a child.

The agency has helped five children get adopted in the last 12 months and currently has about 10 families waiting for children, said Jennifer Mitchell, adoption case manager for Children’s Home + Aid. The most popular time for people to start the process is right after the holidays to the beginning of January, Mitchell said.

The first step is to have a consultation. Children’s Home + Aid provides all of the paperwork, Mitchell said.

This adoption agency has no religious requirements and will help prospective adopters get licensed with the state of Illinois. The agency works to ensure the child will be in a safe environment. They have an inspector come to the applicants home and check to see if there is room for the child, at least 40 square feet, if there are working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, what the safety plan is if there is a pool, and if hazardous items are out of reach, Mitchell said.

“If you have pets, they need an up to date rabies vaccination,” Mitchell said. “If there is a well, the water must be tested.”

The agency also has a class that they make the applicants attend.

“It teaches the foster parents some things like staying in contact with the birth parents, making sure the child knows they are adopted, and helping them to realize that the child will want to know who their birth parents are and that it is not saying the foster parents did anything wrong,” Mitchell said.

After the adoption, Children’s Home + Aid provides free in home counseling and support groups.

“There are things like post adoption depression and we want to help make the transition smooth,” Mitchell said.

According to their website, more than 100 children are adopted annually through Children’s Home + Aid.