At its Tuesday meeting, the Harris County Commissioners Court adopted a resolution declaring November Adoption Awareness Month in Harris County.
Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan and Pat Johnson, program director for adoption preparation with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, addressed the court on the importance of raising public awareness about adoption.
National Adoption Day is a national day of celebration of adoptive families and an opportunity for courts to open their doors and finalize the adoptions of children from foster care. Since 2000, more than 30,000 children in the United States have had their adoptions finalized on National Adoption Day.
Ryan said there are currently 1,471 children in the foster care system in Harris County awaiting adoption. The three juvenile courts in Harris County intend to hear about 30 adoptions on Nov. 19. The nine family courts in Harris County have scheduled about 35 adoptions for Dec. 21.
Ryan noted the Harris County Attorney’s Office is the largest public law firm in Texas representing abused and neglected children.
“Nothing our office does is as important or as serious as taking legal action on behalf of abused or neglected children,” Ryan said. “By raising public awareness we hope to reduce the number of children who are in temporary foster care and place them in permanent homes with loving, caring parents.”
Additional information on adopting children can be found at www.adoptchildren.org or by calling 1-800-233-3405.
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