Thank you for this opportunity
to introduce you to some of the services, policies, and paperwork
involved in an adoption plan with our agency.
ALTERNATIVES
IN MOTION, sometimes known as AIM,
has been a licensed child-placing agency since 1984.
We invite you to check out our history by contacting our licensing
representative Eli Alfaro at (713) 940-5207. We are
a non-profit agency with a 501(3)c status which means we are
tax exempt and receive no other government assistance.
All operating costs and services are provided through fees
paid by adoptive families. Except for financial contributions,
the agency has no other resources for funds.
Because of your
interest in adoption, the agency has information packets which
can be made available to you.at no obligation. You may
request one by phone (1800-776-6508) or by E-mail at alandry@aimadoptions.org
. When you receive this information packet, please look
over all of the materials provided. Be sure to examine
the information thoroughly. We encourage you to ask
questions. You will not be pressured by anyone at the
agency to make a hasty ill-informed decision.
If you should
decide AIM is the agency that will best meet your needs, you
will be assigned a caseworker. You will have access
to your caseworker 24-7 through her cell phone number which
will be given you at the time that you make a commitment to
work with our agency. The cell phone is set up to receive
E-mail, Alpha Messages, and numeric messages. We ask that
non-emergency needs be handled during reasonable waking hours
whenever possible. All urgent/emergency requests will
be dealt with immediately while non-urgent requests may be
scheduled for a time convenient to the caseworker and you.
If you have any problem reaching your caseworker, please dial
the regular office line (281-821-6508). A staff person,
who will assist you in locating the caseworker, answers this
line 24 hours a day.
One of the first
issues we must deal with is your health and the health of
your child. If you are pregnant and are not receiving
regular prenatal care, we will assist you with locating a
doctor or clinic where you will be comfortable. We will
provide transportation to all pregnancy related medical care.
All legal matters
will be addressed during your first counseling session.
At that time, you will be given a sample copy of all legal
documents that will be signed to complete an adoption.
You will be asked to sign a receipt documenting we have given
this information to you and instructed you to seek whatever
advise is available to you to understand the documents.
Our attorney is also available to interpret the documents.
You will be informed about the legal status of your case as
it progresses.
Although adoption
is a very loving option for young women finding themselves
in a crisis situation, other alternatives must be looked at
to make sure that the best plan is made for the child.
During your initial interview with AIM, you will be assigned
a qualified counselor; Counseling is an important part of
your plan. You and your counselor will discuss options
besides adoption, such as: parenting your child with resources
offered through TDPRS (food stamps, AFDC, Medicaid, HUD housing,
etc.), family members to assist you in parenting, seeking
the biological father as resource for support and assistance
to you and your child, etc. If you should complete an
adoption for your child, post-adoption counseling is encouraged
and available for an indefinite period free of charge to you.
AIM has several
books and pamphlets to assist you with understanding the adoption
process as well as helping you customize an adoption plan
to meet your particular needs. Please ask your counselor about
materials that would be helpful to your individual situation.
Adoption in
the 21st century is very different from those adoptions
that occurred during the time your parents were growing up.
AIM still offers closed adoptions for biological families
who prefer them; however, the majority of today's adoptions
are "open." Open adoptions offer a variety of information-sharing
and communication between the biological family and the adoptive
family. There are no limits to the possibilities.
Each open adoption is tailor-made to meet the needs of all
three of the triad members: the biological family, the
adoptive family and the child. Your counselor and our
Family Service Director will be able to help you work out
a plan that will be comfortable. It is believed
that openness will diminish the need for adopted children
to search for their biological families because ongoing contact
will always provide an avenue for contact at an appropriate
time.
TDPRS provides
the Voluntary Adoption Registry as a system allowing adopted
children, biological parents, and biological siblings to locate
each other if ongoing contact has stopped or has never been
established. Adopted individuals must be 18 years old.
For more information, contact: TEXAS CENTRAL ADOPTION
REGISTRY @ (512) 834-4485.
Housing or reasonable
living expenses are paid by AIM when the agency can demonstrate
that the funding is necessary because the birth parent does
not have resources to meet these needs. These expenses
may be met only while the birth mother is incapacitated due
to pregnancy and/or childbirth and no longer than six weeks
following childbirth.
ALTERNATIVES
IN MOTION is geared toward the needs of young women in crisis
situations who are planning for their child(ren).
Our belief is that the plan is yours.we are only here to
assist you with that plan.not to tell you how to do it!
We aim to do this in a very open and caring manner.
The decision
you are making is one of the most important ones you will
ever make.. Be sure you understand everything that is
offered you and everything you are required to do. DO
NOT HESITATE TO ASK QUESTIONS AND HAVE THINGS EXPLAINED TO
YOU IN A MANNER THAT HELPS YOU TO UNDERSTAND.!
We are licensed by the Texas Department of Human and Regulatory
Services.
Our Facility # 196466 our licensing representative is Eli
Alfaro 713-767-2579, our physical address: 2509 FM 1960 East
Suite B, Houston, Texas 77073, 1-800-776-6508 or 281-821-6508,
our fax 281-821- 0356 |
