Elmira- There are more than 424,000 children in foster care in the United States, and more than 115,000 of them are waiting to be adopted.  Many of these children have been waiting years for a loving, caring, permanent family.  Chemung County Executive Tom Santulli and the Chemung County Division of Children and Family Services join thousands of individuals, government agencies and child advocacy organizations across the nation in recognizing November as Adoption Awareness Month in Chemung County.

On Saturday, November 19, 2011, the Children and Family Services Division of the Chemung County Department of Social Services will host an event to honor the families who have adopted children from Chemung County during the past year, and to honor the families who will finalize their adoptions by years end.  This event will also help to raise awareness about the need for permanent families for other children waiting.  Speakers will include Kellie Lowman, Director of Children and Families Division and other agency staff. This year the guest speaker will be an eighteen year old young lady who has been waiting for a forever home for quite some time and has finally found it. It is anticipated that her adoption will be finalized on this day as well. This young lady is an aspiring lawyer and is college bound.

Since 1990, the nation has proclaimed November as National Adoption Awareness Month to focus attention on the children in the child welfare system waiting for placement with families. Recruitment for foster and adoptive families is an ongoing process. The County is always seeking caring and compassionate families, and individuals, to foster infants, young children, adolescents, sibling groups or parenting teens, as well as children with special needs. Information and orientation activities are held every month.

The next information and orientation session will be held on November 17 at 5:00pm at the Department of Social Services offices located at 425 Pennsylvania Avenue in Elmira.  If you would like to learn more about how you can change the life of a child or for more information on foster parenting or adoption please call the DSS offices at 737-5557.