National Adoption Day

Observed every year on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, National Adoption Day is a holiday in which communities and courts all over the U.S. come together to finalize the adoptions of thousands of children who are in foster care.

Every year, hundreds of events are held, in just about every part of the United States, and they are all designed to finalize the adoptions of children in foster care. In 2015, over 4,000 children were adopted on this day, and over 58,000 children in total have been adopted since its inception in 2000.

In the U.S., there are over 125,000 children waiting to be adopted, and the number increases every year, so this is the perfect day to spread the word about that fact and help these children get adopted.

History of National Adoption Day

Started by a coalition of groups which include the Children’s Action Network, The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, The Alliance for Children’s Rights, and the Freddie Mac Foundation, National Adoption Day became a reality in November of 2000.

Over the years, sponsors of this day have worked with various state foster care agencies, law firms, courts, and child advocates to complete foster care applications. By 2003, over 120 jurisdictions participated in adopting over 3,000 children.

In 2011, over 300 events were organized. Overall, over 58,000 children, as of 2016, have been adopted on this holiday. Despite the challenges imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, over 75,000 children have been adopted thanks to events thrown on this holiday.

Facts About Adoptions & The Adoption Process

We’ve learned quite a few things about adoption and the adoption process as we did the research on this holiday. Facts that we think everyone can benefit from learning about, so we decided to list some of them below.

Adoption In The U.S. has Existed For Over 171+ Years

Adoption as an official and legal process has existed in the United States for almost two hundred years. It was first implemented in the U.S. in 1850.

One Out Of Twenty-Five U.S Families Have At Least One Adopted Child

Every single year, there are approximately 135,000 children are adopted in the United States. That means that 1 out of 25 families in this country have at least one adopted child. However, this only accounts for domestic adoptions and doesn’t take into account the 7,000 foreign adoptions that happen every year.

Almost Half Of Domestic Adoption Come From The Foster Care System

Another thing that some people might not realize is that a full 40% of all domestic adoptions in the United States come from the foster care system. The remaining 60% come from inter-family adoption, private adoption agencies, and adoption within native tribal communities.

Adoption Can Be An Expensive Process

Some adoptive families will have to spend up to $40,000 during the adoption process. This can include the costs of adoption agency fees, hospital and medical care fees, and travel costs. This means that some families are financially unable to adopt a child, even though they might want to do so.

Millions of American Families Have Considered Adoption

Even though adoption can be a challenging process for some people that doesn’t mean a whole lot of American families haven’t given it some serious thought. It’s been estimated that approximately 80+ million American families have considered adopting a child.

Unfortunately, while American families are taking time to consider adoption, almost 25,000 children age out of the foster care system without ever finding a home. Of these children, only 2% will move on to receive higher education.

Another thing worth mentioning is that 80% of the current prison population has been in foster care at some point during their lives. This illustrates the importance of adoption.

There Are Over 100,000+ Children Waiting To Be Adopted

At this moment in time, there are almost 108,000 children who are not only eligible for adoption but are also waiting for it in foster care. It’s been estimated that approximately 29% of all children will spend at least three years in the foster care system. The average age of the children in the foster care system was 7 years old.

A Lot Of Adoptions Happen Among Relatives

Another thing that some people might not realize is that 41% of children are adopted by relatives. Only 59% are adopted by non-relatives in the U.S.