We are pleased to announce that, effective April 13, 2009, Carolina Hope Christian Adoption Agency has become part of Nightlight Christian Adoptions, and our office will be operated as the South Carolina branch office of Nightlight. Information on this website (www.CarolinaHopeAdoption.org) about the adoption services that were formerly provided by Carolina Hope remains accurate — but these services are now rendered by our office as a part of Nightlight Christian Adoptions. Read more here.

Resources

Young child smiling with mouth open

Adoption Information & Resources

If you’ve spent much time on the Internet searching for adoption information, you’ve no doubt discovered that the number of adoption Web sites is overwhelming! Carolina Hope has compiled a list of what we believe to be some of the best sites available. Some of our criteria for selection are each site’s professionalism, reliability, and clarity. Sites specific to particular country programs or topics are linked to from Carolina Hope’s other pages.

ACES: Adoption Coalition for Education and Support
This South Carolina Upstate organization was started to provide adoptive families with referrals to resources in addition to educational opportunities.

Adoption LawSite
A service of the National Center for Adoption Law and Policy at Capital University Law School, the Adoption LawSite is a clearinghouse for adoption law information. The site compiles statutes, regulations, key cases, and articles concerning child welfare and adoption laws for each U.S. state. Also included are plain English summaries of most of the legal material hosted there. The service is free, but it requires registration.

Adoption Learning Partners
This educational Web site offers several courses related to adoption, most of them free.

Adoptive Families of America
This site is a good source for articles and resource lists on domestic and international adoptions. The information is a little hard to navigate because of the site’s “crowded” feel, but with a little patience, you’ll find the information to be helpful. Be aware that adoption agencies in the agency listings have paid an advertising fee to be included.

Child Welfare Information Gateway
The Child Welfare Information Gateway is maintained by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Most of the information is for domestic adoptions. You can search here for adoption agencies and home study agencies by state. Unlike sites like adoption.com and Adoptive Families of America, the listings here are not paid advertisements.

Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute
The Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute specializes in adoption public policy. This is an excellent site containing in-depth adoption research. (Note: the Institute is sometimes agenda-driven in its policy recommendations, and some of its research is suspect in its quality or presentation.)

Joint Council on International Children’s Services
The JCICS advocates for orphaned children around the world and offers a wealth of material on international adoption issues. Carolina Hope is a member of the JCICS.

National Council for Adoption
The NCFA is a fabulous source for adoption news, and the Web site is easy to navigate. The organization advocates for adoption and provides a great deal of helpful online information and resources. (Carolina Hope is not a member of the NCFA.)

RainbowKids
RainbowKids.com hosts articles by professionals and parents, displays photolistings and text-listings of waiting children, and provides overviews and advice for the adoption process. (Carolina Hope photolists children at RainbowKids.)

Adoption Reading

There are many great books on adoption, and you can find plenty of recommendation lists online. From time to time we may add more books here, but for now we’ll just tell you about this one.

The Complete Adoption Book
This book was co-authored by Carolina Hope’s director, Laura Beauvais-Godwin, and her husband, adoption attorney Ray Godwin. Laura and Ray are adoptive parents of two daughters, and they write out of their personal and professional experience.

Gifts To Each Other
This children’s book is about a Christian family’s experiences adopting a child after they had three children by birth. The adopted child is a gift to the biological siblings, and they in turn are a gift to the child who’s been adopted. (Clicking on the title above will take you to the book at Amazon. You can also buy the book directly from the publisher.)

Adoption Financial Information

This section has been moved to its own page: Adoption Funding.

Finding grants for your adoption plans can be very difficult. We cannot guarantee that this information will yield finances for your adoption, but you may find help if you’re persistent.

Adoption-Friendly Workplace
Your employer may offer adoption benefits. The Adoption-Friendly Workplace Web site has prepared an excellent list of companies that provide adoption benefits.

Child of the King
Child of the King is a foundation established by two adoptive families who wished to provide assistance to other adoptive families and to raise adoption awareness.

Family Trust Foundation
Family Trust Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that assists families in need of adoption funding. The foundation works directly with the adoptive family’s agency or attorney to provide this assistance. If you would like to help adoptive families with their funding or if you need help funding your adoption, contact the Family Trust Foundation.

IRS Adoption Tax Credit Information
The IRS offers a tax credit of over $12,150 to adoptive families. The credit can be spread out over 5 years.

Lifesong for Orphans
Lifesong offers matching grants and interest-free loans to qualifying adoptive families that are adopting. Lifesong, a Christian organization, also helps churches set up adoption funds.

Shades of Us
This organization helps you raise funds by selling specialty products. Shades of Us grew out of an adoptive family’s personal work to raise funds for their own adoption. Now they help other adoptive families.

Shaohannah’s Hope
Steven Curtis Chapman, a musician and adoptive father, established Shaohannah’s Hope to help adoptive families find financial assistance for their adoptions. The organization provides grants (on a limited basis) and also has a very good resource list pointing to other places that provide assistance.

South Carolina Adoption Credit
Most international adoptions are considered special needs adoptions by the South Carolina government, so South Carolina adopters usually qualify for a $1500 “non-recurring cost” subsidy. Carolina Hope provides all of its home study clients with the necessary form and information for applying.