Welcome to A Gift of Hope Adoptions!
We are so happy you chose to visit our web site. A Gift of Hope Adoptions is a licensed Missouri adoption agency based in Columbia, Missouri. We service the entire state of Missouri, and can also assist those not located in Missouri.
We understand what a confusing and difficult process adoption can be. Our adoption counselors are here to help you navigate the systems in the process of your adoption, and be there for you during both the happy and difficult times. If you are an adoptive family looking to start the adoption process we would be happy to introduce you to our agency and help you along the way.
If you are pregnant and unsure of what your options are please feel free to give us a call. We will explain them to you without pressuring you to choose, and help you when you do make your decision.
Please look around the site, and if you have any questions let us know. There is a contact form as well as contact information below if you prefer not to submit your requests over the web. Good luck with your journey.
This site, the contents of this site, and any links on this site are intended for informational purposes only, and should not be taken as professional advice or contract of services. One should not rely solely upon information given through this web site, or links on this web site. Communication with our office via the feedback page or via the contact information provided does not create a client relationship. The inclusion of information or links does not constitute an endorsement or sponsorship.
National Adoption Day
By Elizabeth Ehlen, 10/10/08
November is National Adoption Month, and the actual National Adoption Day this year is Saturday, November 15. Many area courts will have a special session on that day finalize adoptions, and you may see various events and media coverage about adoption in your area. While November is a month to celebrate adoption in all of its forms, typically it is also the month to highlight adoption from foster care. According to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, there are 129,000 children waiting to be adopted in our state foster care systems. Many of these children are legally free for adoption already, and their social workers are just trying to find the best home for them. A bonus to adopting children from foster care is the low cost to do so; often these children are available at little to no cost, and they may qualify for subsidy through your state as well as the adoption tax credit. To view photolistings of these children and sibling groups check your state's website, as well as check out the Adoption Exchange, which is a multi-state organization designed to place these children. A Gift of Hope Adoptions is a proud member of the Adoption Exchange, and fully supports any family wishing to adopt from foster care. For more about National Adoption Day or to find events in your area, go to the National Adoption Day website.
Topics: Beginning the Process | Adoptive Families | News
Homestudy Updates
By Elizabeth Ehlen, 9/26/08
Ok, so you've completed your homestudy and been approved by your agency or social worker. What else do you need to know about your homestudy? One is always to ask for an original of your homestudy from whoever completes it. While typically the agency or your attorney will have an original, we always recommend you take a copy with you (along with any accompanying documents, particularly criminal background checks) when you go to pick up your child. At A Gift of Hope Adoptions we typically make three originals, one for you, one for our file and one for your attorney - even if you haven't retained one yet. Also, an important thing to remember that your homestudy does expire, typically after one year. However homestudies can be updated to keep them current, and it is usually a much easier process than completely redoing your homestudy. So keep track of when you are approved - your approval date is the date on the homestudy - and if you notice you're coming up on the one year mark contact your agency to renew it. Even if there is a small fee associated with the renewal, it is much less than completely redoing the homestudy, which you may have to do if it expires. Also, be aware that if you live in a state where homestudies are good for more than one year, your agency may require yearly updates as if your baby is born outside your state they may still require a homestudy current within the last year, including criminal checks. At A Gift of Hope Adoptions we require your homestudy to be updated within the last year to send out your profile. We will not send out your profile if your homestudy is not updated, although if you send us the update we will start to send it out again. This is partly because we are required to do that as an agency, but also because if you are chosen by a birth family who is due very soon and you do not have the proper documenation it could jeopardize the adoption. So if you want to ensure you are not left out of a situation, be sure to keep your updates timely.
Topics: Homestudy | Beginning the Process | Adoptive Families | Adoption Procedures
Homestudy Anxiety
By Elizabeth Ehlen, 9/19/08
The homestudy is usually a source of anxiety for the adoptive parents. It feels very much like someone will be looking for reasons to disqualify them from the adoption process. This is really not the case. The social worker is not going to march into your house unannounced with a white glove and nose through your things. We do have to verify that your home is safe and appropriate for a child, but it's really a basic walk-through of your home. We do have to check to make sure that you are who you say you are, and that you meet basic requirements to adopt, usually requirements set by the state. Often this is a source of frustration for the adoptive parents, as if they were to have a child biologically there would be no homestudy. However, adoption is also a legal procedure, and you have to remember that both the state and the agency want to make sure that the child is in a safe, loving home, and that the state will not end up taking custody of the child in the future. Your agency is actually looking to qualify you to do the adoption, rather than disqualify you. Your social worker is there to help you, not out to get you. So remember when you feel like you're being put upon that actually the agency is looking out for the child's best interest, and wants that child to find a safe, loving, healthy home with your family.
Topics: Beginning the Process | Adoptive Families | Adoption Procedures
When To Complete a Homestudy
By Elizabeth Ehlen, 9/12/08
The homestudy is one of the first pieces of the adoption puzzle. While some may tell you not to start your homestudy until you are matched with a potential situation, this is typically bad advice. There are a couple of reasons why you should complete your homestudy before even looking for potential situations. The first reason is because if your homestudy is not completed, you cannot take advantage of situations that may arise quickly, either where the birth mother is due in less than one month (remember, a homestudy averages two months to complete) or what we affectionately refer to as "stork drops" - where a birth mother calls from the hospital either in labor or having just delivered a baby and wants an adoptive family there ASAP. If you try to take one of these situations without a homestudy, it is likely that a judge will say that he/she will not terminate the parental rights of the birth parents until you have completed the required homestudy, which would force you to decide to either put the baby in foster care until the homestudy is completed or keep the baby under a legal risk, which is the understanding that the birth parents rights are not legally terminated and they could change their mind and take the baby back. You also risk the judge just refusing to hear the adoption altogether, as they may decide that since you haven't bothered to complete the requirements to adopt you are not fit to parent at this time, and order the agency/attorney to place the baby with someone else. This is rare, but it's not impossible. The second reason is because most agencies, attorneys or facilitators, or other adoption referral or matching services require a homestudy before they will show you to prospective birth parents. Therefore, unless you want to find your birth parents entirely on your own, you will have to complete the homestudy just to get your profile shown. As you can see, a homestudy is really the starting point for any adoption and adoptive parents should make sure they are getting a homestudy promptly and from a reputable (and state licensed) source.
