What is a domestic “word-of-mouth” adoption? Folks in the adoption world use that phrase to describe an adoption plan that does not engage an adoption agency. While there are many benefits of working with an agency to develop an adoption plan, for many families, agency adoption just isn’t a good fit.
For a couple that is willing to brave the waters of adoption without an agency (and let me pause here to say that you should always have an adoption professional to consult with … even in word-of-mouth adoptions), word-of-mouth adoption holds out the hope of lower costs and more hands-on interaction with the birth parents.
So, how does one pursue a word-of-mouth adoption? The answer really depends on the prospective adoptive couple’s comfort level with … letting everything out there. On one end of the spectrum, a couple may only tell family and close friends of their desire to care for a child that needs a loving home. On the other end of the spectrum could be announcing on social media, printing out cards, calling OBGYN and crisis pregnancy centers, setting up a web page … and … buying a billboard … ?!
Buying a billboard? Yes, that’s right … one couple in Michigan even went so far as to buy a billboard for $1,500 a month. This was certainly a first for me, but it illustrates the point – God can bring a child to you at any time by any means, but normally, God uses good old fashioned “work.”
And, let’s be clear on this point: it takes work to get your name out into the community to such a degree that at-risk parents would contact you to parent their child.
When using an agency adoption, this is what you are paying them for … their ability to “attract” or “recruit” or “minister to” birth parents.
With all that said, one of the things we love to do at The Adoption Law Firm is consult with families about their own hopes, desires, and capacities as they pursue adoption. Please, don’t hesitate to give us a call!
