They hoped someone would adopt them, and keep them together. Someone did.

November 7, 2019

Fort Pierce -

One is gentle and small, always ready to grab the closest hand. Another is more wary, watchful over her younger brothers and sisters.

They read. They laugh. They play games. And they hope someone will adopt them and keep them together.

November is National Adoption Month, a time when organizations like ours celebrate adoption successes and focus on raising awareness for children in foster care still awaiting a “forever family”.

Thanks to hardy recruitment efforts, steadfast commitment of local adoptions staff and partnerships with the local media, we are finding loving homes for children like the ones featured above.

In fact, those children – all six of them – are among the 167 Okeechobee and Treasure Coast children who will spend Thanksgiving this year with new adoptive families. This is the fourth year in a row that our community has exceeded its adoption goal.

The first major effort to promote adoption awareness came in 1976, when Massachusetts governor Mike Dukakis initiated Adoption Week. President Gerald Ford later made the first National Adoption Week proclamation, and in 1990, the week was expanded to a month due to the number of events celebrating and promoting adoption.

We encourage you find one of these events near you. Help us celebrate local adoptive families, and learn more about adoption efforts in your community.

You also can hear the stories of individual children awaiting adoption by watching our Forever Family segments during the 5 p.m. Tuesday news segments on News Channel 12 with Liz Quirantes. To watch a news story about how one local adoptive mother opened her home even wider for six siblings, click here.

Finally, you can learn more about adoption by clicking here.