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2509B FM1960E, Houston, Texas 77073
www.AIMadoptions.org
281-821-6508
ADOPTION
NEWSLETTER
SEPTEMBER, 2003
FROM JAN'S DESK..
Dear Friends and Families,
The Lord is wonderful!
He has blessed AIM with many new challenges
in 2003 that at times seemed insurmountable.and
then He provided the means to meet those
challenges. He does that to help
us grow. Of course, this is real
easy to see on THIS side of the mountain.
On the other side, we are all given the
choice of giving up or acting on His promises.
Summer
found us with an 8% increase in working
clients.and 12 employees wanting, needing,
and deserving a vacation. To add
to the stress, I found myself overwhelmed
with the challenge of keeping enough families
studied and waiting. In the
past, the waiting period for placement
of a child in an adoptive family's home
was a year. Currently, we are placing
families within 6 months of their completed
study. This puts me in a position
to increase the number of great adoptive
families that I recruit. Recruiting
families appears to be a job in itself.
I have participated in adoption symposiums
and we have stepped up our promotion by
"word-of-mouth" by asking our families
to put in a good word for us at their
churches, day cares, jobs, etc.
Although we have seen a slight increase
in the number of families inquiring, we
still need more families. I take
my job personally and expect to have the
best, most loving families for our birth
parents to choose from. and I want them
to have several families that are able
to meet their specific guidelines.
These young women are choosing adoption
for their unborn child because they want
a better life for their child.not because
they "don't want their baby".
Birth parents expect to be able to make
certain requests about the type of family
they prefer. They are rarely
rigid in their thoughts about any of these
categories, but it is a starting place
when we begin the process.
Religious preference, number of children,
urban/suburban/country, age.birth
families have some idea of "the perfect
parents" for their child and use these
categories to begin to define those parents.
We should have a variety of families from
different walks of life to give our birth
families a choice.
Our
next orientation is in September.
If you are considering another addition
to your family.or you know of another
great family.now is the time to act.
You can call our office at 281-821-6508
and request an information packet or check
out our website (www.AIMadoptions.org)
and request an information packet on line
by clicking on the Contact Us icon.
Love, Jan
BUNDLES FROM HEAVEN.
If
"beauty is in the eye of the beholder".then
surely "love is in the heart of the holder"
when
Gary & Sharon are holding Sarah
Kevin & Sandy are holding Chase
Paul & Jeanne are holding Livia
John & Cheryl are holding Mark
Jeff & Jennifer are holding Janelle
Merrill & Nancy are holding Laura
Devin & Tamra are holding Jackson
David & Tammy are holding Kaitlyn
Jeff & Danette are holding Aaron
Blake & Tracy are holding Tyler
Eric & Laura are holding James
Richard & Darlene are holding Austin
Brice & Erin are holding Emily
Jeff & Melissa are holding Jacob
Steve & Julie are holding Makalah
Tracy & Carol are holding Michael
David & Brenda are holding Myles
Bruce & Aline are holding Reese
Andy & Marianne are holding Annamaria
David & Kim are holding Jenni
Brett & Martha are holding Jillian
Troy & Rosan are holding Anna Rose
Michael & Lori are holding Katie
Steve & Patti are holding Parker
Peter & Laurie are holding Adele
Marc & Jenny are holding Abigail
David & Becky are holding Cooper
Mark & Betsy are holding Eliaih
Scott & Trish are holding Stephanie
Greg & Connie are holding Elena
Mark & Lisa are holding Marissa
Kip & Jackie are holding Tanner
Wayne & LeeAnn are holding Noah
A child's life is
like a piece of paper on which every person
leaves a mark. (Chinese proverb)
MAKE YOUR MARK COUNT.
"JASON'S PANTRY" BORN OF AN EAGLE SCOUT
PROJECT.
Sixteen
years ago, when Jason was placed in his
parents arms, we felt blessed to be a
part of the love that shown around Jason,
his birth parents, and his adoptive parents.
We never realized that those precious
moments would be the seed that the Lord
planted to grow a bigger blessing for
us and for the birth families that we
serve.
Last
year, Jason contacted AIM and announced
that as his Eagle Scout Project he planned
on conducting a food drive for us.
We were pleased and offered whatever support
and encouragement we could.and then went
on about our business. Occasionally,
we would get an email reminding us of
"the project". It was nice.and encouraging
to us that he and his family still thought
about us. We went on with our work.
In
June, we received an email from Jason
telling us that his project was almost
finished and he would be bringing the
food on the following Saturday.
Because we really wanted Jason and his
parents to know how much we appreciated
his thoughtful gift, we asked if he could
come one day during the week when more
AIM staff would be available to show our
appreciation. I mean, it was such
a nice thing for him to do.he deserved
as many people letting him know his effort
was appreciated. Sorry, the
responding note said, can't do it.
He could only get the trucks and vans
on Saturday. Trucks and vans?
Okay, what did that mean? We found
out when Jason and his troup arrived at
the office with...A TON OF FOOD!
In case you don't know, a ton of food
is 2000 pounds of cans, packages, and
bottles of food! We were overwhelmed.
The guys just kept coming in with box
after box after box. Is the Lord
great or what?
Well,
what do you do with 2000 pounds of donated
food? You open a food pantry for
your clients. What do you name the
pantry? How about.Jason's Pantry
after the founder/benefactor?
We used FIM donated funds to purchase
four utility shelves, cleaned out an alcove
in the office, and began to take advantage
of the bounty. We also received
a refrigerator/freezer from one of our
families and are in the process of filling
it with perishables.
Having
an on-premises-food-pantry is a boon to
our support staff. We are able to
take clients "shopping" on the spur of
the moment or we can pick up a bag of
groceries on our way out. We don't
have to take the time to get a check,
go to the store, etc. It saves us
time and money and makes our services
more beneficial. Many of our clients
run out of food a few days before it is
time for their food stamps to come in.or
need a supply of food while they wait
for their appointment to be qualified.
We now have an immediate "fix" to those
problems. Thank you, Jason.
Oh,
and one more note.anyone wanting to add
to the food pantry can do so. We
hope to make this a permanent part of
our services. Maybe your Sunday
School class, day care, play group, men's
club, or neighborhood group would like
to hold a food drive to replenish Jason's
Pantry.
Or,
maybe you have an Eagle Scout (neighbors,
nephews, godsons, friends count, too)
who would consider beginning a project
that benefits AIM clients. Two other
suggestions are:
*Collect
taxable items such as toilet paper, paper
towels, dishwashing soaps, bath soap,
toothpaste, deodorant, skin lotion, shampoo,
conditioner, razors, Q-tips, tissues,
etc. Annually, our agency purchases
about $12,000 worth of these items for
clients use.
*Collect
newborn blankets, socks, sleepers, bottles,
diapers, formula, baby bath, lotion.
Our foster parents receive $17 per day
to care for the newborns that are with
them temporarily. This money must
cover diapers, formula, clothing, hygiene
items..everything!
STAFF
NEWS.
 Grandchild
#3, granddaughter #2, Alli Runyan has
made her appearance. Jan and Alan are
especially thrilled because their "little
lady bug" and big brother, Tyler, have
moved from Bryan, Texas to Spring. They
get to spend more time with all three
grandchildren (Lexi turned 1 just a couple
of weeks ago). More time babysitting,
shopping, attending pre-school activities,
and.babysitting.
Bette and Jeff just returned from Austin
where they deposited their youngest, Meghan,
and several million of her personal belongings
on the UT campus. Meghan was accepted
into the UT School of Business last May.
What will Bette and Jeff do with their
time?
...Believe me, time is all they have..with
Meghan and Britney both in college. Speaking
of Britney, she is responsible for the
new insignia that graces our website,
business cards, and the marquis outside
of our office. The three hearts represent
the adoption triad.birth parents/adoptive
parents/child.
Denise and Dave have TWO seniors this
year! Their oldest (better known to us
as.the twins) are graduating from Spring
High in May of 2004. Matt hopes to use
his love for cooking and creating a beautiful
meal by studying to achieve his goal to
become a world-renowned chef! Megan aspires
to greatness in the technical part of
a film career.
Melissa is enjoying a very active motherhood
lately. Daughter, Sabrina is a pre-teen
(complete with the attitude.) who is learning
to assert her own preferences in her clothing
and personal appearance (no piercings,
tattoos, or gothic clothing.yet), plays
baseball and takes piano. Now she wants
to join a basketball team at a nearby
church. Between school activities, piano
practice and lessons, and the sports thing..Melissa's
car is a blur going from one activity
to another. Her spare time is spent .
wait a minute, she has no spare time.
Oh well, join the club.
GET READY.
The
holiday season is right around the corner.
Don't forget to mark your calendars for
our annual family holiday party. As always,
it is held the first Saturday in December.
It's been that way for years and years
and we don't plan to change it. Having
that date makes things easy for you to
remember. All you have to do is fill in
the first Saturday in December as the
AIM Family Party when you get your 2004
calendar, and your 2005 calendar, and.
Do your family a favor, mark it down,
don't schedule anything else that day,
and come. It will be a blessing for you.
Do this for your children. It helps them
feel comfortable with their adoption.
It gives them the idea that you are comfortable
with their adoption. It gives an opportunity
for discussion about their adoption that
they may have not felt comfortable asking
before. No matter how open you feel your
adoption is.no matter how open you think
you are with your child about his adoption.he
or she might still have questions. And,
it certainly doesn't hurt for that child
to spend time with other families built
by adoption. It might make him feel like
his situation isn't all that different
from a lot of other kids.
Anger is the only
thing to put off till tomorrow.
(Slovakian Proberb)
SPEAKING OF THE HOLIDAY SEASON.
Don't forget these
important things: (And, if you do,
I will be reminding you in the next couple
of newsletters.)
Ø
Send letters, pictures, and gifts to your
birth parents early! Wrap packages
in plain brown paper and then wrap it
again. Label the outside of the
second wrapping, we'll discard that and
address it for you. Include postage.
These simple steps will insure that your
package gets to its destination in the
speediest manner.
Ø
Start looking for those garage sale items.
Remember that the items are displayed
at the client holiday party and offered
at no cost to the client.
Ø
Arrange to volunteer to help with the
client party. It takes a lot of
work and a lot of workers to put on this
celebration of love. Last year we
had almost 100 birth mothers attending
with their friends, parents, and children.
Ø
Consider a financial gift to provide holiday
items (food, wrap, gifts for their children,
trees, etc.) for our clients. You
will read more in later editions about
the kind of help we give our clients during
the holidays. We will be offering
assistance to YOUR birth parents as well
as many others.
And,
don't forget..
 Turkeys
are needed for Thanksgiving dinners. We
provide (actually you provide the dinner
through financial donations to the FIM
account) the makings for Thanksgiving
dinner with all the trimmings to each
client in our apartments. We have 10 apartments
at the present time.
We also provide the same for other clients
who do not have resources for Thanksgiving.
We can only do this through donated items
and money. Please share your bounty with
our clients. You will be blessed, we will
be blessed, and our clients will be blessed.
You certainly want to be a part of that.
JUST A REMINDER.
We
are a non-profit 501 © 3 corporation that
relies on your tax-deductible donations
to provide services to your birth mother
and other birth parents and children that
can not be covered with money from the
general fund. Certain things that
will make their lives a little more "livable"
do not directly relate to the pregnancy
or post-natal state. Such things
as: GED classes and testing, holiday
needs, diapers for their toddlers while
the mother is pregnant and unable to work
to provide for her children, dental work,
utility deposits, etc. While you
and your child(ren) are enjoying a holiday
filled with family, friends, vacations,
gifts, trees, special foods.your child's
birth mother might very well be struggling
just to keep a roof over the heads of
your child's biological siblings.
A GED could be the beginning of her ticket
out of poverty. Being able to provide
her child(ren) with a tree and a few wrapped
gifts might give her the hope to keep
on trying. Available funds for utility
deposits could mean she qualifies for
government housing.taking herself and
her children off the streets and out of
shelters. Please consider making
a financial donation during the holidays.
Ask your employer if the company matches
your gift. Some companies and churches
have funds available for non-profit agencies.it
could just take a phone call from you
to get the ball moving.
Don't let it be one of those "meant to
do" .call today.
Dear Families,
Please visit our website
at www.AIMadoptions.org.
If you have current digital snapshots
of your child(ren), consider sending me
one and I will see that it becomes a part
of our photo gallery. Just
send them to alandry@aimadoptions.org.
If you send the picture, your permission
for me to display the picture on our website
is implied. However, please include
in the text that you would like me to
do so. No last names are used.
Also, I would like
to have written testimonies from families,
birth families, and children of adoption.
These will be published on a new website
for that purpose. (Hey.this is your
chance to get published! And to
brag! And to promote adoption as
a positive alternative. And to share
your personal story with the world!
Don't procrastinate! Do it now!)
Thanks,
Anne |
