Top Adoption Agency Picks
I need your top recommendations for adoption agencies. As you know, we are building My Crazy Adoption to be a one stop shop for anyone needing information on adoption. I receive emails daily asking who I recommend for adoption agencies. Families need reassurance and trustworthy advice they can rely on. Here’s how you can help: Leave a comment and share your adoption agency’s name, website URL and briefly describe positives… anything important to help a family choose an agency. There are no perfect agencies… but, we only want to recommend the cream of the crop. An agency that builds forever families with integrity, professionalism and passion for the fatherless. My Life Is Crazy Too is a series of reader submissions. This is your opportunity to share stories about life, love, and mommyhood to provide understanding, hope, and compassion in the unique situations each of us face every day. If you would like to submit a story to this series, email me at karigib@gmail.com.
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Leave your recommendations to help build forever families!! We will post adoption agencies under top bar: One-Stop shop.
http://www.abondoflove.net/
A Bond of Love
this is the agency I used! They were soooooooo very good to me!!! I always recommend them to any of my friends who may be thinking over their choices. I know that my daughter's parents loved them too, but I cant say on that end, just because I just don't know. I would think that a choice for an agency has to take care of the mothers as well ( I know of an agency that just doesn't really care about the mothers and all they care about is the money from the adoptive parents). They are also a non profit agency. and they are Christians.
I'm not sure about other agencies and where there perspective adoptive parents are from but at ABL, which is in Florida, they have parents from all over. I picked out a family that lives in MA.
hope this helps!
We really love our agency, International Adoption Net (IAN). In fact, we are using IAN for our second adoption. IAN is small, ethical, very personal and really responsive. It is not a "Christian" agency, per se, but there are lots of Christian families doing Christian adoptions with IAN! For Ethiopia adoptions, all of the in-country staff are fully-devoted to the Lord. IAN works with a small orphanage in Ethiopia. The orphanage director is married to IAN's in-country facilitator. They love the Lord and they love the kids.
We LOVE Gladney. They are amazing at communication and do so much humanitarian work in Ethiopia. The transistion homes are very clean and the nannies love the children so well. The in-country staff are also incredible- all around a wonderful agency to work with for an adoption.
We used America World with our first adoption and now are using Celebrate Children International. I truly believe that the agency you choose is a decision guided by the Lord because that is where He has the children He has chosen for your family. It's all about getting the children where they belong. http://celebratechildren.org/index.php
Hi Tracy,
My family is currently searching for an agency and we were currently looking at America World as an option. I am wondering why you switched agencies after you used them for your first adoption. Where you not happy with them? What country did you adopted from through them? Anything you can tell me about them and Celebrate Children International would be much appreciated. We are looking at adopting from Haiti, fyi.
Thanks!
Dug
Hi Dug, thank you so much for your thoughtful message! We loved working with America World and even though there were many bumps in the road (there is no perfect agency) they helped us ultimately bring home our daughter from Ethiopia. With that said, they are considered one of the larger agencies and have LONG waiting lists for families. Now, I love recommending smaller, well-established agencies that have minimal or no waiting lists for international adoption, as well as encouraging families wanting to adopt domestically a program that can be a short as 6 months start to finish. I hope that makes sense. I have a personal connection with IFS and encourage families to connect and seek wisdom. I love being an adoption-coach and want to be an encouragement at any time during the process. Please feel free to email me anytime- karigib@gmail.com Blessings ps. let me check on CCI- my best friend is an adoption coordinator and is very well-informed!
—-and thank you so much sweet Kari for advocating for children from every corner of the world! Your heart and voice are such a bright and shining vessel for the Lord!
Great question.
in the course of our adoption we used no less than 4 agencies.
1st-Acres of Hope in Liberia. I think they are now shut down.
2ndOur state's Foster care- A nightmare, but a learning experience.
3rdAddy's Hope in Liberia-We were referred two children but our daughter died of before we got to bring her home and our son was returned to his village and not heard from. Hollyann the director was a wonderful christian woman. I have nothing but admiration for her.
Then God took us to
4thEthiopia where we used a new agency the process from delivering dossier to our twins coming home was 3 months. Super fast. And I know in my heart these were the children for us and they were where they needed to be. However, I would not use them again and I would not recommend them. I do not want to publicly bash them or name them. feel free to email me privately.
I'm interested in knowing what agency you used as we too are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia with a new, small agency.
which agency was this? I am looking into et. funk50@charter.net
We used Bethany Christian Services for both our China adoptions and was pleased … It really all does depend on your social work … I have 4 or 5 friends using Gladney right now and they are very pleased. I have also heard great things about All God's Children from two friends …. There isn't an agency for Uganda, so we are flying solo w/ the Lord !!!
Make sure you have a sense of peace with whoever you work with internationally and I suggest not using any adoption agency domestically that requires big payments upfront …
Prayers to all who are searching for that first step towards their child !!!
Sorry, my adoption counselor says we have to go through a placing agency (?) We are a little newer to the process so I don't know if that it what the agency is called. But, it is another International adoption agency on top of the one that will do our home study. But I asked her about making a personal contact through a person in the country and she said we could not do that and had to go through an agency. How is it that you can fly solo? 🙂 Just curious. I'd rather be careful, becuause i konw when I sign up for an agency, they will not let us speak with the orpanages directly.
We adopted our daughter in Ethiopia through Children's Home Society and Family Services. Our experience in Ethiopia with them was excellent. They provide all the needed structure, support, and security if this is your first trip to Ethiopia. They also arranged a emotional birth family meeting and provided us with a hard bound lifebook as well as two DVD videos, one of about our daughter's birth place and birth family and another about her experience at the care center. That information is invaluable and priceless. We are working with America World Adoption Agency for our second adoption in Rwanda. Since we have not traveled yet I cannot speak to their in country services yet. As far as homestudy agencies we have worked with three, due to the first closing it's doors in CO. The other two I would highly reccomend, they being International Adoption Net and Adoption Alliance in Colorado.
I'm biased, but we did AWAA and one of the biggest reasons I'd recommend them is their incountry staff. I feel like the people on the ground (then Robel and Rachel) were so adept at not being too conservative with what they did and really tried hard to immerse you in the culture for the very short time you're there. I've seen other agencies that do things far differently; e.g. putting you in lockdown as soon as you have your kid.
Adoption Advocates International: adoptionadvocates.org I would recommend AAI because of their small size and personal interaction with each family. I can call and speak to anyone in the office and they all are very aware of our personal case. We have not traveled yet, so I can not speak of their in-country staff, but have heard nothing but great things from families who have traveled before us.
http://www.dillonadopt.com/ Dillon International, Inc.
We have adopted 2 of our children through Dillon and highly recommend them to any and all adoptive families. They are large enough to be highly experienced and professional, but small enough to be personal and caring. They are compassionate and warm, never forgetting how emotionally taxing adoption can be. We know dozens of families who have been 100% satisfied with Dillon's services and would recommend them just as heartily. Even after we switched to another agency for a 3rd adoption (due to finding a specific child on that other agency's photo listing who we wanted to adopt), Dillon's staff was still helpful when called upon for advice or with questions. I can't say enough wonderful things about them!
We are going with All God's Children International (AGCI). It was a prayerful process, but my big question to the agencies was, "what are you doing to help prevent children from having to be adopted out due to poverty, when the families really do want to stay together?" AGCI had an answer. They actually sponsor families so they can stay together, and they train woman so that they can bring in income. I knew then, that this was our agency.
WE LOVE HOLT INTERNATIONAL!
Prospective families looking at Celebrate Children International, please do your research before chosing them. Not Hague Accredited for a reason. Pray & proceed with caution.
We are using AGCI (All God's Children) and really love the peronal experience it has been for us! They are very quick to get back to you and really put the kids first!
http://www.allgodschildren.org/
http://www.bethany.org
This is an incredible ministry to orphans around the world and they are committed to reaching them with the love of Christ and placing them in forever families!
BETHANY CHRISTIAN SERVICES 🙂
We are in the process now with WACAP- and I can VERY highly recommend them!! We chose them due to their ethics, GREAT communication, and their AMAZING in-country staff in Ethiopia. Ato Teklu is very highly respected in Ethiopia, and that was very important to us. Also, no matter how many times I call WACAP each week (or each day for that matter!), I never feel like I am annoying them, and they are ALWAYS available to speak with me, and answer any questions I might have-
We used Madison Adoption Associates, and we had a great experience with them. They really really have a heart for the kids. Their staff goes to put on camps and take pictures & video to help prospective parents make an informed choice with more than just a description on paper. The office staff is patient and knowledgeable, and they’re not so big that you’re lost in the shuffle. I would use them again if we adopt in the future.
We are using International Adoption Net .(IAN) They are out of Colorado and we are in Arizona, but that hasn’t been an issue. Aneata is very friendly and always gets back to us in a timely manner. She is very patient too with all our questions and she listens and encourages us when the “waiting” gets difficult. They are a Hague accredited company which is a MUST. We used Dillon Southwest for our homestudy and had a very pleasant experience with them as well. I would recommend both.
Hey! I am using IAN and am in AZ too. Would love to hear about your experience. flyoverfarm@hotmail.com
Hello, I know that the comments are a few years old, but have still been quite informative; However, as a lot of the agencies have closed within the last few years, can anyone recommend current international agencies that they have used within the year for Ethiopian adoptions? Many thanks!
Hello, does anyone have a good recommendation for an adoption agency in El Salvador (Central America)? It is a very difficult country to adopt from, so any help would be much appreciated.
After coming home from my trip to Jinja this summer and talking and praying with my husband we have decided to start the adoption process. I really felt God working on my heart while I was in Uganda. So I was going to ask you if anyone knows the first steps to getting started. Agencies or independent? Any info would be great! my husband and I are currently in search of an agency! Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks
Yvonne
ymk.stone@gmail.com