Open Adoption Services knows that the decision to consider adoption is both very difficult and very painful. It usually involves many unanswered questions and a sense of being out of control. It also involves courage.
 
If you are searching for information about adoption, we can help. We also want to listen to you. You are the best judge of what you need.
 
If you are pregnant or parenting, our first goal is to put you back in control of your life, explore your rights and choices and the resources available to you. This kind of knowledge is empowering — and it deeply affects your life and that of your child.
 
Open Adoption Services is an open adoption agency. We are committed to the concept that birthparents and birth families do not have to lose contact with the children they place for adoption.

We also support any birthparent who wishes for a closed confidential adoption. It is important to know there are many choices for openness.
 
Regarding Birthfather Rights
If a birthfather is involved, we are very experienced in working with couples in adoption planning. If he is not involved and you have questions about his potential rights, know that competent help will be there to answer your concerns and address the legal issues for you.
 
It is important to know that if you have a Child in State Custody (CPS), or are at risk of this happening, it may be possible to place your child through an open adoption. We encourage anyone with questions about these issues to contact us to discuss the situation — as soon as possible — if they are considering an adoption option.

Open Adoption Is About Answers
Open adoption gives a child some of the most fundamental answers he needs in life — Who am I? Where did I come from?

Open adoption gives parents the tools they need to better understand their child. This comes from knowing the birthparent(s).
 
Open adoption provides answers for the two questions most often asked by birthparents — Is my child safe? How does my child feel about me?

Open Adoption Is About Choices
We feel that birthparents are the most qualified to choose the parents for their child. These choices should be made in an atmosphere of dignity and without pressure. Having choices also means selecting the kind of openness you wish to have with the couple you select. This also means the choice of a closed adoption is available to you as well.
 
Open adoption is about how the adoption is established as much as ongoing contact. In other words, birthparents are able to know the couple well in the beginning so they later can trust and go on with their lives. Some birthparents choose to have ongoing contact with the adoptive family after placement while many do not. Either choice is appropriate and respected.
 
Open Adoption Is Legal
Open adoption offers the same legal protections as traditional adoption with one addition — the agreements made between parties can be placed into court record and are then considered legally binding. 
 
Open Adoption Is About Commitment
The relationships established in open adoption involve trust and a deep sense of commitment. They also result in a profound respect for birthparents and the difficult and painful choices they have made to give their child a secure home. Adoption is a lifelong process for all involved. The commitment to a promise leads to a peace of mind. 

How Does It Work?
If you are considering adoption we will provide you with portfolios of couples that have completed a homestudy through our agency. The homestudies involve careful screening, education, and preparation for open adoption.
We will assist in meeting with the couple you select and support you in developing a personal relationship and/or plans for ongoing contact with them if that is your desire.

We will help address the legal situation, medical needs, housing, or any other unmet needs. We also can help with family counseling if needed.

Just as you're unique, each adoption plan is unique. We can assist you in clarifying your needs, hopes, and fears about this process. Counseling time is confidential, personal and free. We can come to you...And we will be there for support afterward as well.

Can I Change My Mind?

Yes.

You are not committed to an adoption until you sign final papers. This happens after the birth of the baby, when you tell us you are ready to take this final step.  Final paperwork is usually filed with the Court several days after the birth, and includes a written contract for ongoing contact.

The placement of the baby comes when a birthmother is ready for that step.  We find that this is usually at the time of leaving the hospital and birth and adoptive families spend some days together post-birth to ease the transition if all wish to do so. 

Again, if immediate closure and confidentiality is desired by birthmother, we are happy to meet that request and the placement will be made without identification of adoptive parents or meetings.

Whatever your final decision, you will have our support. This is your child and your life.

Open Adoption Services Is About Quality of Life
Perhaps you feel that both you and your child can have a better future if you do not parent at this time in your life. If you are considering adoption, you are looking at quality of life issues.

The adoption decision is complex and should involve the freedom to examine all of the choices without pressure or a sense of obligation. Quality of life is about now as well as the future. Our goal is to provide you with support, information, and empowerment for the present as you embark on one of the most important decisions of your life.

Your current needs and problems are part of your quality of life. We are here to listen to and assist you.

Want to Know More?

From the desk of Nancy:

This work is a labor of love as well as a profession.  I always was interested in adoption so, when I dealt with infertility nearly thirty-five years ago, adoption was a comfortable and easy choice.  Little did I know that adopting Scott would lead me to a career working with birthparents and founding an agency of open adoption.  His was a closed placement – the only kind of infant adoption available, and all I knew was that I loved him more than anything but always carried a vague wonder and worry about his birthmother . . . was she ok?  Did she worry about him? Was I good enough to be his mother?  As a social worker, I knew something was missing and after I gave birth to my second child a year later, I knew we could not ask anyone to struggle through pregnancy, birth, then walk away without reassurances, knowledge, and the option to connect in the future.

My youngest child, adopted at age five in a fully open adoption is now nineteen.  She is able to say exactly why open adoption matters to her – she is comfortable and confident about who she is and how she came to our family.  Her birthmother is part of her and part of us and she knows it is ok to love us both.

In these over thirty years, we have helped thousands of pregnant or parenting clients look at the choice of adoption.  Many, many have chosen to place and my hope is that they carry with them some peace with the decision and a memory of truly personal care during the time they needed us. 

Birthparents come from all walks of life.  Some are pregnant for the first time, many have other children, and some find they need to place a child or children because of Child Protective Service involvement.  Sometimes couples -- dating, engaged, or married have come to us needing to place.  Occasionally we are asked to find a home for a special needs child or infant.  Our job is to give non-judgmental and competent information without pressure or obligation to place.  If a client chooses to parent after talking with us, I am happy to give her my encouragement and congratulate her for taking the time to make careful and informed decisions.

I remind my clients that, “no one truly wants to place a child for adoption – there are times when adoption simply needs to happen.”  This takes courage and personal strength to do.  I see myself as counselor, coach, resource manager, sometimes just an extra loving presence to help empower women when the going gets rough.  We are also here for clients long after the adoption decision – for counseling about adoption or any other life issues.

We often call ourselves “pragmatic problem solvers.”  We have learned to think creatively about the many life issues our clients face as well as delving into adoption and legal questions.  Many years of experience and thousands of birthparents have taught us much.  We hold dear a strong sense of mission and a good sense of humor – both are invaluable as we laugh and cry with our birthparents and the families they choose to raise their children.

I simply love this work.  And I have the deepest sense of responsibility when I see the trust placed with us by people who are dealing with such important decisions that impact both the present and far into the future.  Adoption work is known as “bitter-sweet.”  That certainly says it well.

In closing, I would like to add how I view honesty and professionalism in adoption work.  If we operate out of half-truths, or are busy telling everyone what they want to hear rather than the truth, we damage adoption as loving way to provide for children as well as adding to the burdens of those who love them the most.  As agency co-founder and director, my commitment has been and remains to promote relationships based on trust, honesty, and personal integrity. If you choose to work with us, we pledge adherence to these standards and our best efforts to listen, care, and meet your needs.