|
Westmoreland County to Celebrate National Adoption Day With
November 22 Ceremony
Posted 11-18-2002
The Westmoreland County Board of Commissioners today announced that the county will
mark National Adoption Month Friday, November 22, with a ceremony to finalize 25 adoptions
that will create 20 new families.
"The 25 children and new parents that
will be brought together November 22 are receiving one of the greatest gifts of all -- the
gift of family -- just in time for the holidays," said Commissioner Tom Balya.
"This ceremony should remind us all to be thankful for our families this
Thanksgiving."
"The finalization of these adoptions
represent a new life for these children, so that they may share in the joys of family life
that other children experience daily," added Commissioner Tom Ceraso.
The ceremony is being coordinated by the
County Children's Bureau and the Orphans' Court of Westmoreland County.
"Every day Children's Bureau
caseworkers respond to the challenge of making things right for children," said
Commissioner P. Scott Conner. "National Adoption Day recognizes the happy ending of
those efforts in these new families."
The opening ceremony will begin at 8:30
a.m. with remarks from the Board of Commissioners, Children's Bureau Director Jerry Sopko,
President Judge Daniel Ackerman, and Senior Judge Gilfert Mihalich. Judges Rita Hathaway
and Anthony Marsili will officiate private adoption proceedings beginning at 9:00 a.m.
Adoptions will continue throughout the day until 3:30 p.m. Refreshments and activities
will be available for all new families, and families will receive gifts made possible
through donations by local businesses and charitable organizations.
Since November 1990, November has been
proclaimed National Adoption Month to focus attention on the number of children in the
child welfare system waiting to be adopted. According to the National Adoption Information
Clearinghouse, of the approximately 588,000 children currently in foster care, more than
134,000 children are waiting for permanent families. So far this year, Westmoreland County
has finalized 45 adoptions.
Westmoreland County currently has 256
children in foster care. Historically, 40 percent of children in foster care return to
their parent or legal guardian, 30 percent are adopted, 25 percent are placed in other
planned permanent living arrangements, and five percent are placed with relatives. The
Westmoreland County Children's Bureau utilizes the Pennsylvania Statewide Adoption Network
to help locate adoptive homes for local children.
Editor's Note:
The opening ceremonies from 8:30-9:00 a.m. are open to the public and the media. However,
to respect the families' privacy, the actual adoptions hearings will be closed. Some
adoptive parents are available for advance interviews. To contact those parents, call
Carol Petrusky, Orphans' Court Administrator, at 724-830-3941 or e-mail cpetrusk@co.westmoreland.pa.us. |
