National Adoption Day 2008 Places More Than 4,000 Foster Care Children in Permanent, Loving Homes

NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES, Nov. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Judges Joseph M. Lauria and Anthony Trendacosta presided over the adoptions of 368 children and their new families at the Queens Family Court in Jamaica, New York, and at the Edmund D. Edelman Children's Court in Los Angeles on November 15 for National Adoption Day, an annual nationwide celebration of foster care adoption.

While the foster care children of New York City and Los Angeles became part of a forever family, more than 4,000 children across all 50 states also had their wishes come true.

Saturday's courtrooms were filled with happy families and smiling children surrounded by their favorite Disney and "Sesame Street" characters, food and fun. The New York-based Ortiz-Torres-Fonseca family was the first adoption to be finalized on National Adoption Day. Johnathan Torres, the eldest of the Ortiz-Torres-Fonseca family to be adopted, put in perspective what children on National Adoption Day feel to be placed in a permanent home.

"Today, I'm very excited because today we're actually being adopted after 7 years in the system," said Torres. "There's hard times and there's easy times, but today is actually one of those days that will actually make you forget those times and bring all the happiness that the future will bring."

As National Adoption Day's 2008 host city, New York City kicked off the 2008 event with a press conference and celebration, which included Rita Soronen, executive director of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and founding sponsor of National Adoption Day; Judge Joseph M. Lauria, administrative judge; Victoria Rowell, actress ("The Young and the Restless" and "Home of the Brave") and New York Times bestseller; the New York City Family Court and the Ortiz-Torres-Fonseca family.

"New York City is committed to placing children with adults who can provide them with a loving, supportive home and family," said Mayor Michael Bloomberg. "We are especially focused on ensuring that older youth and those in residential settings are able to find and remain in permanent adoptive placements. Our city is full of wonderful, capable people who can provide strong, loving families and the New York City Administration for Children's Services will continue its steady work of finding new and innovative ways to encourage and facilitate adoptions."

Los Angeles' event received the support of major film and TV celebrities including Lucy Liu ("Charlie's Angels" and "Dirty Sexy Money"), Nia Vardalos ("My Big Fat Greek Wedding") and Willie Garson ("Sex and the City"). National Adoption Day Los Angeles is organized each year by The Alliance for Children's Rights (ACR), one of the founders of National Adoption Day in 2000. Liu, Vardalos and Garson also helped by assisting ACR attorneys with the adoption ceremonies for several families. Los Angeles is the birthplace of National Adoption Day, modeled on the Adoption Saturday program created by Judge Nash 11 years ago to expedite foster care adoptions in the county.

Nia Vardalos and her husband recently adopted a child from foster care. Vardalos decided to share her family's story on National Adoption Day in support of the thousands of children who are waiting for homes and to build awareness against adoption myths.

"The common misconception is it's expensive and complicated to adopt in the United States and you have to go out of the country," Vardalos said. "This is not true. Adopting in the United States through foster care is very simple and virtually free. I feel people don't know how to do it because the information is missing."

The National Adoption Day Coalition works tirelessly throughout the year with hundreds of communities and thousands of volunteers to dispel the myths about adopting from foster care and to raise awareness about the 129,000 children in need of adoptive families. The day also builds collaboration among local adoption agencies, courts and advocacy organizations and communicates the availability and need for post-adoptive services.

"Once again, I am amazed and so proud of the thousands of volunteers, community officials and advocates who came together to make National Adoption Day a success and are spreading the word of foster care adoption all year round," said Rita Soronen. "But, as the balloons fall to the floor and the celebrations come to a close, there is still a need to place the 129,000 children waiting in the foster care system for a permanent home. Sadly, each year, nearly 26,000 of those youths will age out of the system when they turn 18 with no family to support them in the future."

To hear more from Soronen on National Adoption Day, click here: http://www.nationaladoptionday.org/2008/video/nad_video.asp

National Adoption Day was sponsored by a coalition dedicated to improving the lives of children, including The Alliance for Children's Rights, Casey Family Services, Children's Action Network, The Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and the Freddie Mac Foundation. For more information about the events that took place across the United States and information on National Adoption Day 2009, please visit www.nationaladoptionday.org.