Adoption Story Update: Peter Dobbins

Peter Dobbins, featured in our 2021 Gratitude Report with his parents, is now a Junior at Pasadena High School.  Last fall, Peter participated in the school’s production of Dracula.

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Foster Parents Change Lives!

In the last 26 years, I have witnessed my share of policy changes and shifts in the dependency system, but one constant remains unchanged: the desperate need for foster homes. The sheer numbers are staggering and disheartening. In Los Angeles County alone, approximately 30,000 children are caught in the intricate web of the foster care…

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What is Interracial Adoption?

Interracial adoption, also known as transracial adoption, occurs when a family of one race or ethnicity adopts a child of a different race or ethnicity. While the idea of interracial adoption may seem straightforward, it raises complex issues about race, culture, identity, and family dynamics. The practice of interracial adoption has a long history. In…

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Finalizing Adoption

Have you ever wondered what happens during the Adoption finalization process? For those of us who aren’t familiar, the finalization of a child’s adoption marks the finish line of the adoptive parent and child’s journey. When a court issues a decree of adoption, your relationship as parent and child is permanently and legally bound. Finalization…

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Opening Your Heart and Home to a Child in Need

There are approximately 60,000 children in California who are in foster care. Los Angeles County has the majority at 33,000, but Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside are also seeing increases in their numbers now that children are back at school and interacting with mandated reporters on a day-to-day basis. Riverside County has seen their foster…

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Fost Adopt Story: The Godfrey Family

About our Fost-Adopt Program Our Fost-Adopt program was created to bridge the gap between a child’s initial need for temporary care and the long-term need for a permanent home. HFS works with public social services to assist in these placements.  In California, foster parents are now called Resource Parents.  Even if you are only interested…

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Changing the World One Child at a Time

If you’ve ever had a calling to make a difference in the world, there’s no greater way than making a difference in a child’s life.  Among the most vulnerable members of communities across the country are foster children. These are children who, based on life circumstances, face conditions at home that threaten their health and…

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You’re Finally Here… I’ve Been Waiting For You

Pictured from the Adoption Guild December 2019 Gathering (L to R): HFS staff Linda Shirley, parents Susan and Leroy, brother Devon, baby Dane, and HFS Board members Marianne Wright, Deno Kidde and Maura Lemon. Leroy and Susan have always known that they wanted to adopt a child. Many of their friends have gone through the adoption process…

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