What To Expect When You're Expecting...A Teenager

Wednesday, March 1, 2017

WhatTo Expect When You're Expecting...A Teenager “ (NAPSA)—Here’s good news for parents and people whodlike to be parents: You don’t haveto be perfect. That’s the word from the experts at AdoptUSKids, which maintains a photolisting website to promote adoption from foster care and raises awareness of AdoptUSKidsPresents EXPECT WHEN YOU'RE EXPECTING the 112,000 children and teens waiting to be adopted. Withthe help of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Chil- A TEENAGER Jaa dren’s Bureau, the Ad Council (a private, nonprofit organization with a rich history of marshaling volunteer talent from the advertising and media industries to deliver critical messages to the American public) and the KBS global adver- y created new public service announce- Poerereroooooooos: | PAdopeuskids Coerereroresrooooooooos ments (PSAs) to encourage families to Facts And Figures To Consider Of the 428,000 youths under the age of 18 in the U.S. foster care system, 112,000 are currently waiting for adoptive families. Forty-three percentofall children actively photolisted on AdoptUSKids.org are ages 15 to 18, yet only 5 percentofall children adopted in 2015 were between the ages of 15 and 18 years old. Unfortunately, teens in foster care have lower adoption rates than youngerchildren,andthey often wait longer to be adopted. Adoption Facts Although manypeople believe adop- tion is always expensive, in fact, most adoptions from U.S. foster care are free. ‘The minimal costs that can be associated with them are often reimbursable. In addition, the vast majority of youths adopted from foster care are also eligible for monthly adoption assistance. What’s more, in most instances, you're eligible to adopt regardless of age, income, marital status or sexu- al orientation. You don't need to own your own home, be wealthy, be a stayat-homeparent or have a college degree to adopt. You just need to demonstrate that you can support yourself without any additional income, such as adoption assistance. “All of us—andthat includes teens in foster care who are waiting to be adopted—need and wantfamilies to support us and to give us the connections, re- lationships and sense of belonging that are so critical to our well-being,” said Jerry Milner, Associate Commissioner all-things-teen to bea perfect parent. Thousandsof teens are looking for someonejust likeyou. tising agency, the partner organizations adoptteenagers. ! ve don't haveto bean expert in fe mS There’s no guidebookfor raising a teen but, fortunately, you don’t have to be perfect to provide thestability and security that teensin foster care need and deserve. at the Children’s Bureau, and the Acting Commissioner for the Administration on Children, Youth and Families. “The parents and families that adopt older teens from foster care enrich their own lives while providing an incredible impacton thelives of the adopted children and teens at a time when it is needed most.” What's Being Done To help, KBS collaborated with the authors and illustrator of the iconic “What to Expect When You're Expecting” pregnancy books. ‘The resulting humorous videos feature well-intentioned moms and dads attempting to give new parents of teens step-by-step parenting tutorials on such things as how to wake up yourteen, how to teenproof your home, and whatto do about confusing text messages, binge-watching and promposals. Learn More To see the PSAs and to learn how you can adopt a teen or help those who do, visit www.AdoptUSKids.org, for both English and Spanish information; call (888) 200-4005 for En- glish-speaking staff or (877) 236-7831 for Spanish-speaking staff; or visit the AdoptUSKids social communities on Facebook and Twitter.

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