Celebrating the Gift of Adoption

Every year during the month of November, adoption advocates raise awareness about the needs of foster care children in the United States and celebrate the finalization of adoptions.

Some family courts participate in National Adoption Day on the Saturday before Thanksgiving to finalize and celebrate adoptions. The adoption process can be a long and complicated journey for children and their families, taking anywhere from a few months to several years. When the big day comes for children to be legally adopted into their forever families, it is time to celebrate!

At WRTL, we especially want to recognize those mothers facing an unplanned pregnancy who make the difficult and selfless decision to put their child up for adoption. More information and a list of resources can be found here, for those facing an unplanned pregnancy. 

In private domestic, non-stepparent adoptions, also known as infant adoptions, prospective parents work with a birth mother through a private adoption agency to set up an adoption. In Wisconsin, private, domestic adoptions constituted 804 of all adoptions in 2023, a decline from a recent high of 1,675 in 2022. 

In 2023 there were 50,193 adoptions out of the foster care system in the United States, a 19% drop from 2019. This trend mirrors a decrease in the number of children in the foster case system. At the end of 2023, over 36,000 who were legally free for adoption were still awaiting a forever home. 

In Wisconsin the same year, an estimated 1,514 children were adopted, with foster care adoptions making up about 688 of the total. At the end of 2023, approximately 1,204 children were waiting for adoption in Wisconsin. 

Every adoption is a miracle, and at WRTL, we will continue to celebrate all adoptions and promote adoption as an option for those facing unplanned pregnancies.