Adoptive Families Association of BC (AFABC) has been dedicated to finding families for children since 1977. This organization is focused on providing a continuum of ground-breaking programs that support the adoption and permanency community. AFABC prides itself in offering resources that include consultation with support workers, information sessions, online videos, support groups and more. A unique fact about this agency is many of their staff have direct connections to adoption - “Wherever you are in adoption, we’ve been there too.”
Among their many initiatives, one notable program available through AFABC is Wendy’s Wonderful Kids®. A signature program of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption Canada, two very dedicated social workers engage in intensive and exhaustive child- focused efforts to find families for a smaller caseload of children. Staff consider the many unique characteristics of a child when looking for a suitable match.
Searches are first done within the child’s biological family, their culture, the child’s foster family and connections at school, in
their community, places of worship and then outer layers which include families that have already been approved and are waiting to adopt. “In a recent case, I was touched that several Jewish families, supported by JFS and their community, considered changing their lives dramatically to make room for a few children looking for a new family,” says Kirsty Stormer, Wendy’s Wonderful Kids ® Recruiter.
Approximately 750 children and youth in government care in BC are waiting to be adopted. AFABC works closely with the Ministry of Children and Family Development and the local adoption agencies in this province to support children and families.
Find out more at www,bcadoption.com including a video called “Meet the Krakauer’s”, featuring Shulamit, a Jewish woman who adopted her daughter Aaliyah.