Resources
When adopting children with special needs, it is important to learn from experts and families experienced with this type of adoption. The following websites offer information, support, books, and more that may help you on your adoption journey. This list is not exhaustive, but it will provide a start.
Financial Resources:
Brittany’s Hope
This organization raises funds for adoption agencies to lower the cost of adopting children with special needs. In 2009, Brittany’s Hope granted $245,000 for some of Bethany Christian Services’ waiting children.
General Resources:
ComeUnity.com
Directory of clinics/doctors available in the U.S. and Canada who specialize in intercountry adoption.
Rainbowkids.com
Internet directory of adoption information, including intercountry adoption, special needs adoption, Waiting Child photo listings, and medical resource listings (including HIV and AIDS information).
Books
Tapestry
An online community with a reference to adoption and foster care books. (Reading List)
Recommended Reading
Twenty Things Adopted Kids Wish Their Adoptive Parents Knew by Sherrie Eldridge
The Primal Wound: Understanding the Adopted Child by Nancy Newton Verrier
A Mother for Choco by Keiko Kasza
Parenting the Hurt Child: Helping Adoptive Families Heal and Grow by Gregory C. Keck and Regina
Kupecky
With Eyes Wide Open: A Workbook for Parents Adopting International Children by Margi Miller and Nancy Ward
Bee-bim Bop! by Linda Sue Park and Ho Baek Lee
The Connected Child by Karyn B. Purvis, Ph.D., David R. Cross, Ph.D., and Wendy Lyons Sunshine
Country/Region-Specific Support Groups
Families with Children from China (FCC): www.fwcc.org
Families for Russian and Ukrainian Adoption (FRUA): www.frua.org
Latin American Adoptive Families (LAAF) regional groups: www.laafwi.org, www.lapa.com, www.lapa-ncr.org