Area Stories : How can I help: Adoption- By Marcia M. Kelly (to the Olean Times Herald)

Editor's note: President Lyndon Johnson declared the nation's War on Poverty forty years ago. Cattaraugus Community Action (CCA), established in 1965, is one of the hundreds of anti-poverty organizations in the U.S. still fighting the fight. This is part of a weekly series on the not-for-profit organization and the services it offers, the people and organizations it serves.


Judy Hill's unusual job title, "Home Finder," sounds like it could be a new-age name for a real estate agent. But Judy doesn't work in real estate. Instead, she labors to find safe and loving homes for children in our county who don't have one. "At the moment we have 123 kids in foster care in Cattaraugus County," she said, "and more than 200 are in other programs that help and protect them. Our aim at the Department of Social Services is to provide enough services so that families can be maintained safely at home. But, if that doesn't work, then the next step is foster care until the families can be reunited. Adoption is the last option."

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She reports that adoptions in Cattaraugus County are reaching record levels. "We used to have four or five a year, but since January of this year we've had 24."

The process is intricate, with a language of its own. It is designed to protect the children in the best possible way, while at the same time trying to find ways to keep the family together. Many agencies work to make this happen.

Referrals can come from Community Action, or from Child Protection, for example, and then Social Services takes over, attempting to work with the parents and children to get the appropriate counseling and training.

The "Adoption and Safe Families Act 0f 1997" was enacted so that children would no longer be bounced from home to home as they'd been in the past. It mandated that stability and a permanent solution be found for them and they couldn't be "in foster care" longer than 15 out of 22 months. By that time if a safe family environment couldn't be guaranteed, the children could be adopted.

Complex legal steps lead the children back to their homes, or on to new families who have been carefully screened and put through 30 hours of training to be adoptive parents. Foster parents receive the same training and screening. The next local training will be in the spring of 2005.

Tom and Sue Hagen, of Allegany, are an example of how the system works well. They met when he was attending West Point in 1977. A friend who needed a ride to see her boyfriend invited Sue to join her, and she and Tom met briefly. The next time the boyfriend visited, he brought Tom along, and the rest is history, as they say.

As Tom was transferred from place to place during his military career, they began a family. First, they had Mike and Nick, twin boys. And when the boys began school they adopted a daughter, Jackie who was two years older. The family got along happily and Sue and Tom enjoyed being parents. Tom was assigned to St. Bonaventure as a professor of military science in 1993.

"We wanted to live in the country and found a huge house with a big red barn," said Sue, a pretty woman with shiny dark hair, who works as a lab technician, "so we have lots of room."

As their kids grew up, they took in a series of foster children.
"It worked well for everyone," she continued, "with the twins as role models for the five teenage boys we took in. Four at once, all with different personalities, was very interesting."

The setting is idyllic, with alpacas in the fenced fields, the hills beyond; on the screened porch, all in a row, are five colorful backpacks, and in the background the sounds of happy children playing.

"The twins are grown and in graduate school, and Jackie is in the army in D.C.," said Tom, a composed and handsome man, with bright blue eyes, who coaches cross country now, and is a volunteer fireman.

"So when we were approached in June of 2002, by a friend, about giving respite care to four young children who were being cared for by their aunt, we were glad to help." One thing led to another and they came to be adoptive parents of not just the four children but their newborn baby sister, too!

The backpacks on the porch belong to Deonna, 8; Marisa, 7; Andrew, 5; Cristina, 4, and a tiny one for baby Anessa, 2. Their foster son, 18, rounds out the current family.

"They are easy to love and we really enjoy the involvement, "said
Tom. "People should know there are lots of local kids in need." Sue added, "We have a structure and rules for the household, and the care and love fall within that structure. Social services and Child Protection will help with any kind of support to make it work."

"It's very rewarding, "Tom said, "and our community is filled with caring people ... at school, at Bonaventure, at church, in town ... this is a great place for a family to live."

During each busy day, "Home Finder" Judy Hill hopes for the phone to ring, bringing more kind people to lend a helping hand.

How You Can Help

Anyone interested in learning more about adoption or becoming a foster parent is encouraged to call "Home Finder" Judy Hill at Cattaraugus County Social Services (716) 373-8070.

The Center for Family Unity is seeking volunteers of all ages who love children, enjoy learning, and have a giving heart. Volunteer Parent Aides (VPA) will be asked to share a few hours a month to assist parents who need structure and guidance. For information about this program call (716) 483-5820 or (716) 945-6401.


Donations
If you would like to donate supplies or funds to anyone profiled here, or to Community Action for others in need, mark them "How Can I
Help" and send or take to Dougal Kear, executive assistant, Community Action, 25 Jefferson St., P.O. Box 308, Salamanca, NY 14779-0308.
For information or help, call him at (716) 945-1041 Ext.141;
DLKear@ccaction.org. In Olean: Carol Stitt, executive director,
Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation, 120 N. Union St., Olean, NY 14760; (716) 372-4433; Carol@oleanny.com. Mrs. Stitt can also give details to anyone wanting to start a fund or endowment for a particular interest or cause through the foundation.