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Harvest of Hope director says birth parents should have the choice to opt out

(SOMERSET, NJ) – The director of Harvest of Hope Family Services Network, Inc., a state-licensed adoption agency, supports the adoption bill expected to be voted on today in the NJ Assembly, but says birth parents should have the choice to opt out.

The proposed bill eases the path for adoptees 18 years or older obtain their original birth certificates, which allows them to find out the names of their biological parents. Currently, the records are sealed and can only be released by court order.

“We support adoptive children having an awareness of their families of origin because it often provides a greater sense of identity and can also be a vehicle for addressing questions around mental, health or medical needs,” said Maureen E. Archibald, executive director of Harvest of Hope Family Services Network, Inc., which has placed more than 700 children in permanent and temporary homes over the last decade. “We, however, feel that this should be optional so as not to serve as a deterrence for birth parents wishing to surrender their children. This could in turn place children at greater risk when families are not comfortable with the terms of surrendering.”

“We have adoptive families in our network who have remained open to connecting children with their families of origin, however, we have put in place great measures in providing the appropriate emotional support, as well as safety, when adoptees want to find their birth parents,” she continued.

The bill, approved by the Senate March 22, includes protections for biological parents who want to remain anonymous.

Harvest of Hope was founded in 1997 by Rev. Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr., senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens and CEO of the Central Jersey Community Development Corporation, parent company for Harvest of Hope. Its mission is to mobilize and utilize resources and advocate for policies that address the immediate and long-term needs of foster children. Harvest of Hope has licensed 355 families who have responded to the needs of children in the custody of the State of New Jersey. As of December 2009, Harvest of Hope placed more than 700 children in temporary foster care and has facilitated the adoption of 220 children by 145 families.

For more information, visit www.harvestofhopefamily.com or call (732) 247-1270.

Tags: adoption bill, birth parents, Harvest of Hope

This entry was posted on Monday, June 14th, 2010 at 7:40 pm and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.