Adoption & Foster Care Services
Nash County Department of Social Services

Open Your Home & Heart To A Child. Consider Adoption.
Nash County Department of Social Services is now providing Confidential Intermediary Services for adult adoptees, adult lineal descendents of a deceased adoptee (son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, etc.), parents of adoptees under the age of 21, and to biological parents. Confidential Intermediary services for parents of adoptees under the age of 21 is limited to obtaining current non-identifying health and background information.

The agency cannot guarantee that it will be able to obtain the information desired or locate the person sought. Nor can the agency guarantee that any person located will agree to contact or to share identifying or non-identifying health information.

For more information and a copy of Nash County's Confidential Intermediary Policy, please click here.

For more information concerning Foster Care contact Ginny Cobb at 459-1287 and
information concerning Adoption contact Wanda Avent at 459-1428.

Children cleared for Adoption

What is Foster Care?

A Temporary living arrangement for abused, neglected and dependent children who need a safe place to live when their parents or caretakers cannot take care of them.

What Foster Parents Do . . .

• 
 Provide basic necessities
• 
 Encourage positive relationships
• 
 Protect the child
• 
 Discipline in a positive way
• 
 Help the child to grow
• 
 Work as part of a team
• 
 Help support and prepare the child for future plans

Children available for Foster Care and Adoption are children separated from their parents because of:
• 
 Physical or sexual abuse
• 
 Neglect or abandonment
• 
 Physical or mental illness of a parent
• 
 Death of parents
• 
 Child's emotional or behavioral problems
• 
 Children from all backgrounds
• 
 Children with specific needs

General Requirements for Foster Parenting and/or Adoption in Nash County

• 
 Be a resident of Nash County
• 
 Attend a 30-hour training course
• 
 Be at least 21 years old
• 
 Have a stable income
• 
 Be in good physical and mental health
• 
 Have the ability to provide good physical, emotional and spiritual care
• 
 Have a stable family relationship
• 
 Have enough room for a child
• 
 Have a telephone
• 
 Be fingerprinted and have a criminal records check completed
• 
 Have a home study completed

Who can adopt or become a Foster Parent?

•  People who are single, married, divorced or widowed
•  People who have children and people who don't
•  People with high and low incomes
•  People who did or did not finish school
•  People who own their home or rent

What is Adoption?

The primary purpose of the Adoption Services of the Nash County Department of Social Services is to help children who would not otherwise have a home of their own and who can benefit from family life, to become members of a family that can give them love, care, protection, and opportunities essential for their personal growth and development.

Characteristics Important to Successful Adoptive Parents

• 
 Ability to express tenderness
• 
 Ability to be tolerant of others
• 
 Ability to speak up for the needs of children
• 
 Ability to "bounce back" from hardship
• 
 A strong sense of commitment
• 
 The ability to sacrifice today in order to reap rewards in the future
• 
 A lifestyle flexible enough to accommodate a child

Most children available for Adoption in NC are featured on the NC Kids Adoptions website.

Total number of children in Foster Care in Nash County as of 7/1/08: 57

Ages
Black
White
Other
Males
Females
Totals
0 - 5
10
6
7
18
5
23
6 - 12
9
7
1
12
5
17
13 and up
11
3
3
10
7
17
Total
30
16
11
40
17
57

Children in Foster Care in Nash County cleared for adoption and have no identified family as of July 1, 2008. Viewing the flyers below requires a PDF reader. Requires Acrobat Reader

Caucasian male - age 13 - Dustin
Caucasian - female - age 16 - Kelly
African American - male - age - 15 - Jeremy
 

Nash County Adoption Services: Legally clears children for adoption, prepares children and prospective parents emotionally for placement, finds the best family possible, make reports to the court and supervises adoptions after placement until the adoption is finalized. This service also provides for the recruitment, training and assessment of prospective adoptive parents.

Contact person: Sheila D. Jefferys (252) 459-1447

For information or questions about Adoption email: AdoptionInfo@nashcountync.gov

Nash County Foster Care/Permanency Planning Service for Children: Provides counseling and treatment services to children, birth families or foster families to remedy personal problems, behavior or home conditions which led to the need for out-of-home care for the children. This service also provides for the recruitment, training and supervision of volunteers who serve as foster parents.

Contact person: Stephanie Grischow (252) 459-1257

For information or questions about Foster Care/Permanency Planning email: FostercareInfo@nashcountync.gov
Viewing the articles below requires a PDF reader Requires Acrobat Reader or the
Flash plug-in Requires Flash Plug-in.
  
Information  
 
 
 
 
Waiting Children
  
Privacy
These children may live in your neighborhood, attend your church, or go to school with your children. We ask you to respect their privacy. Please do not approach a featured child to talk about adoption or the fact that you saw the child's picture on the Internet. Help us to ensure that the information about our children is used as it was intended.
 
  
Dustin | Chante | Kelly | Jeremy
     
Links:
  
AdoptUSKids.org (National Search)
  
Foster Child Adoption in NC  
Complete NC Photo Adoption Listing Service (PDF)  
North Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 48. Adoptions  
A Kid's Guide to Adoption  
We've Got Something to Say II
http://www.csrox.org/sot.html
Massachusetts Families for Kids Speak Out Team is a group of teens and young adults who are or were in foster care or who are adopted. This monograph contains essays, drawings, and poems from some of these young people.		  
Casey Family Programs
National Center for Resource Family Support
http://www.casey.org/cnc
 		 

                                   Last updated by webmaster@nashcountync.gov on 02/16/10
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