Join the Doe Network.

I cannot imagine the horror of someone I love going missing. Hopefully, you can’t imagine it either, and never will. But for some of us, that horror is all too real. And the longer a person is missing, the harder it is to find them. That’s why there are so many unsolved missing persons cases. That’s where the Doe Network comes in.

The Doe Network is “a volunteer organization devoted to assisting Law Enforcement in solving cold cases concerning Unexplained Disappearances and Unidentified Victims from North America, Australia and Europe. It is our mission to give the nameless back their names and return the missing to their families.” They work in three ways:

• using their website to give the cases exposure
• organizing volunteers search for clues on these cases and making possible matches between missing and unidentified persons
• soliciting media exposure for these cases that need it

This process has been used to close numerous cases through finding the missing person and naming or finding an unidentified person. You can help solve more cases by volunteering with the Doe Network or its sister agency North American Missing Persons Network. Many states and other organizations have their own networks which can use support.

So if you are good at solving mysteries, if you never forget a face, if you want to reunite loved ones, consider joining the Doe Network. Someone will be very grateful for the closure your efforts can help bring.

"Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live." - Dorothy Thompson

Lend a hand.

Have you ever tried to organize friends and family to help out a loved one in a time of need? It can be a challenge to respond to needs following a medical crisis, arrange meals for a new parent, caregiving for a parent, or support for the family of a deployed soldier. Lotsa Helping Hands can help make that process a lot easier.

Lotsa Helping Hands is a free online service that helps people organize “circles of community who are eager to help those in need.” Simply visit their website to set up private and secure network. Your community of friends and family can then sign on and sign up to lend a hand. Use it to

• Organize meals, transportation to doctor’s appointments, and home visits to someone dealing with a debilitating illness.
• Keep those who care up-to-date on medical progress or family activities.
• Securely share medical, legal, or financial information with designated people.
• Plan group activities, volunteer projects, school or religious events.

It takes only minutes to build your site. And once you do, your community members can sign up for tasks, receive email reminders of commitments, view a calendar of activities, and much more. Lotsa Helping Hands is certainly better than endless emails and phone tag. So when you need to get a group together for a set of activities, us Lotsa Helping Hands to facilitate the process. It makes lending a hand a lot easier.

"Forever is composed of nows." - Emily Dickinson

Keep your land.

I’ve written before about my great-great-grandfather Griffin Henry Belk. He had been enslaved and after his freedom was acknowledged, he spent several years searching in vain for his parents. Eventually, he settled on 160 acres of land in Ozan, Arkansas that he purchased for $11 (that’s right, eleven dollars). His descendents still own the land we call the Belk Estate. My mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother were born there. Now that I’m back in Arkansas, I look forward to visiting this spring. I haven’t been there since I was a child, though I clearly remember the pond and forests that cover much of the land. My grandmother always talked lovingly of the five acres she grew up on.

You don’t have to read much of this blog to recognize that I generally think it’s better that resources are spread among many people rather than being concentrated among just a few. For that reason, I am a big promoter of people keeping their family land. It can be a challenge as families grow in size and members move away and lose contact and interest in the land and the taxes associated with it. But given the history behind the land and its value, it can make even more sense to keep it and make it useful. Here are some resources to help you do just that:

* Get in touch with land preservation organizations like the Federation of Southern Cooperatives
Land Assistance Fund or the Arkansas Land & Farm Development Corporation that can help you keep your land. They may be able to help you use land trusts, and other legal tools to help maintain your interest in the land.

* Visit the Forestry Service (or similar office) in your state. Many of them have programs designed to help people develop uses for their land (cutting timber, starting an organic farm, opening a campground, etc.) that can provide income to pay the taxes.

* Talk to your neighbors. If you all are in similar straights you may be able to work together to keep your land. For example, the members of the Sapelo Island Cultural and Revitalization Society were able to get zoning regulations instituted that favored them keeping their land as homesteads rather than allowing massive development on their high value (and gorgeous) land.

* Talk to your relatives. Some of them may not even know about the land. Others may have interesting ideas about how to use it. I know of a family in Arkansas that built several cabins on their land. They use them for family vacations and rent them out to others who want to visit or have a gathering. You may be surprised at the options. Be sure to talk about them all before you sell, because it’s hard to get it back once it’s gone.

Land is a limited resource, so it would probably be better if no one owned it. But since that's the model we're using, it's better that many of us have a share and that we use it wisely and sustainably.

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony." - Mahatma Gandhi

Listen.

I was blessed to grow up in a household in which holiday gatherings meant story time. My parents and grandparents taught all who would listen about their lives and those who came before them: Griffin Henry Belk, Sarah Suttles, Andy Suttles, David Maclin, Mose Neal, Jim Neal, Willie Beatrice Jones Neal, and many others. They shared the triumphs and horrors of the past and their hopes for our future. I treasure those memories, those stories, and those expectations for my own life. Over the years, I learned to value the experiences and lessons of the past, in part because of the relevance they have for the present and future.

That's why I am excited that today is the First Annual National Day of Listening. StoryCorps suggests: "This holiday season, ask the people around you about their lives — it could be your grandmother, a teacher, or someone from the neighborhood. By listening to their stories, you will be telling them that they matter and they won’t ever be forgotten. It may be the most meaningful time you spend this year." Visit NationalDayofListening.org to

* Download the free Do It Yourself Guide to selecting your questions, recording your conversations, and more.

* Upload your interview to share your conversation with others.

* Request NPR's StoryCorps visit your community.

* Sign up for free weekly stories by email.

Now is the perfect opportunity to give the gift of listening. So take time today, and everyday, to listen, and learn.


"Carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero. Seize the day, trust not to the morrow." - Horace

Celebrate fatherhood.

Today is Father's Day in the US. Both boys and girls need a father or father figure in their lives, but not all children have one. On this Father's Day, you can choose to make a positive difference in a child's life. Here are just a few ways to get started:

* Become a virtual mentor through the Orphan Foundation of America. Mentors are needed for current and former foster children. You can make a big difference even online.

* Volunteer with Big Brothers, Big Sisters. "Volunteering just 4 hours a month can change a young person's life" and you can share many of your current activities with your 'Little'.

* Become a foster parent. It's hard for many of us to imagine not having our parents. Foster parents fill the gap and provide a caring family and home for those whose parents are unable to care for them.

* Expand your family by adopting a child. Call 1-800-TO-ADOPT or 1-888-200-4005 or write info@adoptuskids.org for more information.

Think about all the people who made a positive impact on your life. Thank them, and consider how you can contribute to a child's life. I expect you'll receive much more that you give.

Happy Father's Day to all, and especially to my two favorite fathers: my dad, Olly Neal, and my husband, Kwadjo Boaitey. I love you both!

"You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions." - Naguib Mahfouz

Give a child a family.

What do you have to be thankful for this year? As of Saturday, November 17, more than 3,300 children are thankful for their new adoptive parents. On National Adoption Day these children and their parents finalized adoption proceedings and made their families legal. Congratulations!

There are still 114,000 children in foster care, hoping for loving permanent families. Want more information?

* Visit www.nationaladoptionday.org
* Call 1-800-TO-ADOPT or 1-888-200-4005
* Write info@adoptuskids.org

There is a child waiting for you. You can change a child's life and your life for the better. Won't you consider being an adoptive parent or foster parent?

"Every child begins the world again." ~Henry David Thoreau

Stop buying, stop drinking bottled water.

There is a growing movement against bottled water. All kinds of folks from newspaper columnists to religious groups to city governments are eschewing bottled water.

Here's why:
* 86% of plastic water bottles used in the United States become garbage or litter. That means less than 15% are recycled.
* Transporting heavy bottled water uses lots of oil for shipping. More oil is used to make the plastic for the bottles. That means more air and water pollution, and increased dependence on petroleum products.
* 40% of the bottled water is just over priced, high-falutin tap water. Read the label.

What a waste of money and resources! Not to mention the increased pollution. "So what can I do?"

* Stop using bottled water. Pick up a glass and turn on the tap. Ahh! Good water!
* Order "still water from the tap" at restaurants. Environmental stewardship is nothing to be ashamed of.
* Provide cold quenching tap water at your parties, events and home.
* Promote the passage of a bottle bill in your community. These provide an incentive to recycle and increase recycling rates.


Okay, okay. I know bottled water is convenient. So if you must carry around the plastic, do the following:

* Purchase a heavy duty plastic bottle that will last for years.
* Refill it so you can use it multiple times.
* Recycle it so someone else can use it multiple times.

We need not succumb to the advertising and marketing that would have us believe that there is no good alternative to bottled water. We know that tap water is the better choice for us and in the environment in which we live.

"The night whose sable breast relieves the stark,
White stars, is no less lovely being dark." — Countee Cullen (1903–1946)

Get the Good Stuff.

The folks at the Worldwatch Institute are all about social justice and environmental sustainability, and all the ways those concepts are connected. They, along with nine partner organizations put together a guide to help us all make responsible purchasing choices. You can download Good Stuff? A Behind-the-Scenes Guide to the Things We Buy for free online. What a service!

Just check out www.worldwatch.org/pubs/goodstuff/ to get the skinny on the social and environmental impacts of the production, use and disposal of 25 common items, from chocolate to CDs. You may be surprised at what you learn. For example, once you know how much energy regular light bulbs waste, you may want to switch to CFLs. And when you find out what goes into chocolate production, fair trade chocolate sounds a whole lot sweeter.

So visit Worldwatch and download your free guide to today. Then read it and use it to make responsible purchasing decisions that will not only improve your life but will make a positive difference in our world.

"Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place." - Zora Neale Hurston

Go to the charity mall.

It's been over two years since I suggested readers shop with a purpose. Consider patronizing these 'charity malls' which donate a portion of their profits to a great cause, perhaps even one you choose! Here are just a few of the malls from which you can choose:

* Giveness describes itself as "A Social Network for Philanthropy." Shop Amazon, EBay and other retailers to raise money for your favorite organization. Or use some of the many other features.

* Benevolink works with hundreds of online businesses which contribute a percentage of every dollar you spend to the nonprofit organizations of your choice.

* Giveline has over 1 million products from which you can choose. And every purchase results in a donation to your favorite charity.

* IGive.com works with almost 600 online businesses and donates up to 27% of the purchase price to your favorite worthy cause.

* Buy for Charity allows you to shop at over 350 stores. A portion of your purchase price goes to the charity you choose.

* MyCause.com donates up to 12% of your purchase price to your favorite organization.

And for those in the UK:

* rectifi charity shop donates 20% of your purchase price to charity. Choose from over 400 UK shops. They also make donations for Yahoo web searches done from the site. Thanks Jonny!

Remember that for the shopper, the contributions are not tax-deductible. That's why the businesses participate. Since they make the donation, it's tax deductible for them. But since you're going to shop anyway, that probably doesn't matter. If you run a non-profit, considering registering your organization. That way, shoppers can more easily support your work. In each case, almost any charity qualifies and it's free for them to join. And often schools and colleges qualify too. So think of your favorites and start shopping! In the words of Benevolink, "I Shop. Therefore I Give."

"A hurtful act is the transference to others of the degradation which we bear in ourselves." - Simone Weil

Consider burial alternatives.

The cost of funerals is rapidly approaching $10,000, not as much as most weddings, but still pretty steep. The expense alone is enough reason to consider burial alternatives, but you may also be concerned for other reasons: land use, contamination of ground water by toxic embalming fluid, use of nonbiodegradable coffins and vaults, and the like. Thankfully there are many good alternatives for green burials that honor the deceased and comfort the bereaved. Here are a few of your choices:

* Natural burial "ensures the burial site remains as natural as possible in all respects.  Interment of the bodies is done in a bio-degradable casket, shroud, or a favorite blanket.   No embalming fluid, no concrete vaults." 

* Donation of the body for forensic research or medical training.

* Memorial reefs are an option for those who have been cremated. The cremains are used to create a "permanent living legacy that memorialize the passing of a loved one." Reefs are lowered into the sea to help restore the marine environment by creating artificial reefs and fish habitats.

* Cremation, a low-cost, widely-available alternative for those who are interested.

Many of us find it uncomfortable to think or talk about our own deaths, but having conversations about end-of-life care, organ donation, financial issues, and the like, can make things so much easier for your loved ones.

"One's death should mean something." - Edward Abbey

Furnish from the heart.

We've been doing a lot of cleaning up and discarding lately, and in the process have found numerous items that can be donated for reuse or recycled. We knew what to to with the old rechargable batteries, the clothes we no longer wear, the old cell phones, excess school supplies and some other stuff. But what about the furniture we no longer needed? It can be hard to find an agency that will accept and use good quality, used furniture. That's where NFBA comes in.

The National Furniture Bank Association "is a non-profit association representing almost 70 furniture banks across America. The mission of the NFBA is simple - increase the capacity of existing furniture banks, and open new ones." They list several reasons to donate furniture:

* It's a very worthy cause. We all want to ensure that no child in America has to sleep on the floor.

* Furniture banks make it easy for people to dispose of furniture they're planning to replace. It will go directly to a family in need of essential home furnishings.

* Lastly, it's good, green thinking. Furniture banks keep thousands of tons of items from going into incinerators or landfills every year.

And they make it easy. Just click to find the furniture bank nearest you. We used the Furniture Bank of Metro Atlanta. They picked up our items and the donation is tax-deductible! You can't beat it.

So next time you need to dispose of furniture you're planning to replace, consider donating it to the furniture bank nearest you. You'll love providing "Furnishings from the Heart." (Thanks, Kwadjo!)

"The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." - Plato

Use cloth napkins.

Several years ago, when I was in college, some friends and I drove from Swarthmore to Little Rock to spend spring break in the South. We had a great time, and my mom enjoyed getting to know my friends better. One of them was an environmentalist; he recycled, was a vegetarian, chose reusable mugs over paper or styrofoam, used handkerchiefs, you get the idea. After we used paper napkins for a few meals, he asked my mother if she had ever considered using cloth napkins instead of paper ones. Well, my mother's frugal person and a seamstress, and she always has extra fabric around the house, so we had cloth napkins by the end of the week!

Here are some reasons you may want to use cloth napkins too:

* Cloth napkins are less expensive, even with washing. Just throw them in with your regular load. That's what we do.

* Cloth napkins are easy to make. You can use almost any spare or scrap fabric, reducing the cost even further. Here are some other directions, if you prefer.

* Cloth napkins last forever or pretty close to it. This dramatically cuts down paper waste.

Some folks think cloth napkins are a little too fancy for everyday use. But remember, you can make them out of anything (prints, colors, cottons, not just white or black linen), and once you use your cloth napkins with some buffalo fish or some barbecue, you'll forget you ever thought they were 'too fancy.' They can be keepsakes too! My mother made the napkins for our wedding, and after laundering them, gave sets to family members (including us) to mark the occasion. We love using our wedding napkins for everyday meals, as it reminds us of our wonderful day.

My mother still uses cloth napkins exclusively, and she gave me my first batch just after I got my first apartment. So give cloth napkins a try. You may never go back to paper. (Thanks Aaron! Thanks Mommy!)

“Paper napkins never return from a laundry - nor love from a trip to the law courts.” - John Barrymore, American stage and film Actor. 1882-1942

Do right by those you love.

Love does it's best. But sometimes it can be hard to do better or do your best even though we know we should, or know we can. When you get stuck in a place that is less than your best, and you know you need to do better but you can't, won't, don't know how, or are afraid to make a change, GET HELP. Click the links below to find the resources to improve your life.

--> If you are hurting or neglecting someone you love, your spouse, your partner, your child, your parent, your friend, yourself, or someone else, physically or emotionally, GET HELP. If you are being hurt, abused, or neglected by someone you love GET HELP.

--> If your emotional state or mental illness (depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, etc.) is causing you to hurt or neglect someone you love, your friend, your child, your partner, your parent, your spouse, yourself or someone else, physically or emotionally, GET HELP. If you are being hurt, abused, or neglected by someone you love, GET HELP.

--> If your addiction(s) is causing you to hurt or neglect someone you love, your partner, your friend, your child, your parent, your spouse, yourself or someone else, physically or emotionally, GET HELP. If you are being hurt, abused, or neglected by someone you love, GET HELP.

Sometimes we need help to do our best. And since those you love deserve your best, do all you can to improve yourself and your relationships. If you need a little help to do so, ask for it. There's no shame in getting help to be your best. It's what love demands. Honor those you love, including yourself, by being the best person you can be.

"Love feels no burden, regards not labors, strives toward more than it attains, argues not of impossibility, since it believes that it may and can do all things." - Thomas à Kempis (1380–1471), German monk

Make all hands safe.

Many of you already know the sad statistics about domestic violence:

--> 31% of women report abuse by an intimate partner at some time in their lives.
--> In the US, a woman is beaten every 15 seconds by her husband or parter.
--> Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 and 44 in the United States; more than car accidents, muggings, and rapes combined.

So, if you are in danger, need help or do not feel safe in your home, dial 911 or call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or 1-800-787-3224 (TTY). Click here to quickly exit this page.

In response to the violence, the Allstate Foundation recently launched Safe Hands: The Allstate Network for Empowering Women . They hope to reduce the incidence of domestic violence by:

Direct services: Providing programming and funding support through a financial empowerment curriculum and training materials; community volunteerism by Allstate employees, agents and agency staff; and a grant program to allow service providers to address the complex, broad and often immediate range of survivors’ needs.
Thought leadership: Supporting domestic violence advocates and service providers through
national conferences and other events and cutting-edge research. The Allstate Foundation Domestic Violence Program will conduct an annual, national research poll to determine current awareness and perceptions about domestic violence in the United States. The findings of this poll, conducted among a representative sample of adults in the U.S., will be used to continue to build the program and track progress over the coming years.
Public awareness: Creating a national effort to raise public awareness and change societal attitudes about domestic violence. This component of the Program will be phased in beginning in 2006.

Here's how you can get involved:

* Send a email to yourself and your friends. For each person that clicks the purple button in the message $1 is donated to the Education and Job Training Assistance Fund of the National Network to End Domestic Violence. This is a fast and free way to help women who have survived domestic violence. Most everyone reading this can make this contribution.

* Spread the word about Safe Hands and other programs working to end domestic violence.

* Participate in the good work by donating time, money or supplies to a women's safehouse, applying for a grant to support your work against domestic violence, volunteering at a safehouse,

Join Allstate and the numerous other people and organizations around the world who are working to end domestic violence. Thanks Jessica, for the heads up on this!

"Power and violence are opposites; where the one rules absolutely, the other is absent. Violence appears where power is in jeopardy, but left to its own course it ends in power’s disappearance." - Hannah Arendt (1906–1975), German-born U.S. political philosopher.

Celebrate Kwanzaa: Kuumba.

On this, the sixth day of Kwanzaa, we focus on kuumba (creativity) and "do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it."

I was always taught that we all have talents. Are you discovering, developing and using your talents? Here are some resources that may help you do so:

* Think creatively about the world's problems and how to solve them.

* Use your talents to serve your community, and we all benefit.

* Practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty.

* Be the person you want to be.

As humans, we are all members of that first African Diaspora. And accordingly, the principles of Kwanzaa apply to us all. Manifest the Kwanzaa principles today, this week, and all year long.

“What is beautiful is good, and who is good will soon be beautiful.” - Sappho

Celebrate Kwanzaa: Nia.

On this, the fifth day of Kwanzaa, we focus on nia (purpose) and "make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness."

A few years ago, I attended a festival at a local masjid with my Uncle Agin. As we walked around, enjoying the food, booths, lectures, and other activities, my uncle introduced me to several folks, one of whom asked me, "Karama, what is your purpose?" She was quite serious. And even though I had thought extensively about my career path, I knew immediately that she wasn't asking about those plans.

It bothered me that I didn't have an answer to her important question. So after I got home from the festival, I sat down to do some serious thinking, journaling, praying, and listening about what my purpose is; why God put me, in my particular uniqueness, on this planet. Over several weeks, I thought about my talents, listed my skills, considered my values, and realized that I am here:

"To promote an understanding of the inherent value and equality of all human beings, and serve my community with a focus on equal access to health care and education, particularly for communities and people of color in the southern US and throughout the world."

Today is a perfect day to begin to understand and define your purpose. As my friend Ayanna says, "We're here to do more than suck up air." What are you here to do? Are you doing it?

Think about how much better and more meaningful your life will be when you are doing exactly what you were made and meant to do. I am so happy that my Uncle's friend asked me that question, and even more pleased to now know the answer. As I understand more about my purpose and how to live it, I have become a happier, healthier person. It's a blessing I wish for all of us.

As humans, we are all members of that first African Diaspora. And accordingly, the principles of Kwanzaa apply to us all. Manifest the Kwanzaa principles today, this week, and all year long.

"Let the refining and improving of your own life keep you so busy that you have little time to criticize others." - H. Jackson Brown

Celebrate Kwanzaa: Kujichagulia.

On this, the second day of Kwanzaa, we focus on kujichagulia (self-determination) and "define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves."

That's really what So what can I do is all about, determining what you want from and for yourself and your surroundings, and claiming the personal agency to make it happen. Here are some tools to help you do just that:

* Think about what you want to accomplish today, this month, in your lifetime and make it happen.

* Think about what justice means to you (and why). Then live your life accordingly.

* Think about what doing the right thing, means in your life, then live ethically.

As the sidebar says, "People are blessed with the ability to change their environments and situations to suit their liking. I started this blog so that we all can exercise that power" to make ourselves the people we want to be.

As humans, we are all members of that first African Diaspora. And accordingly, the principles of Kwanzaa apply to us all. Manifest the Kwanzaa principles today, this week, and all year long.

“We face neither East nor West ; we face Forward” - Kwame Nkrumah

Celebrate Kwanzaa: Umoja.

On this, the first day of Kwanzaa, we focus on umoja (unity) and "strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race."

Unity comes, in part, through mutual understanding and respect. Here are some learn about and gain respect for others:

* Practice tolerance of those who may be different from (or the same as) you in some way. You don't have to agree with someone or share their beliefs to respect them as a person.

* Learn about others through programs like Women for Women International (Thanks KCB!), People to People International, and study abroad and exchange programs.

* Read about folks in their own words through their books, magazines, newspapers, and blogs.

As humans, we are all members of that first African Diaspora. Accordingly, the principles of Kwanzaa apply to us all. Manifest the Kwanzaa principles today, this week, and all year long.

“On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, "Is it safe?" Expediency asks the question, "Is it politic?" And Vanity comes along and asks the question, "Is it popular?" But Conscience asks the question, "Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Share your blessings.

Today, many folks in the US celebrate Thanksgiving, a harvest celebration and feast when we take time to be grateful for all the good that has happened. Of course, we can and should give thanks and be grateful every day. One of the best ways to recognize all we have to grateful for is to share some of what we have with others. This blog is chock full of ways to share your blessings. In this post, I'll focus on those involving food, since, for many of us, this is a food-focused holiday. Here are a few of the many ways you can fight hunger:

* Feed a family, forever. You can do just that by contributing to Heifer International. They distribute livestock, trees, and other resources to "help people obtain a sustainable source of food and income." Heifer animals make great gifts.

* Feed a child today. The World Food Program is working to end child hunger by 2015. You can provide some immediate relief by clicking here. Each click will feed one child one meal. Won't you visit fighthunger.org and click now? It's free to you and takes less than a minute.

* Donate food time or money to your local food bank. They're working every day to feed those who are hungry or food insecure.

* Send a card. Each e-card you send from fighthunger.org will feed one child for one day. It will also spread the word about the World Food Program.

* Click again to feed more folks. Visit thehungersite.com and click daily. It's free to you and takes less than a minute.

No one makes it in this world alone. Just as others have helped you, you too can and should help others. Don't forget to say 'thank you' to those who've made your life easier or better. Let them know you appreciate them and their actions, and take time each day to express gratitude. Happy Thanksgiving!

"Nothing is more honorable than a grateful heart." - Seneca

Expand your family.

Today is National Adoption Day, "a collective national effort to raise awareness of the 119,000 children in foster care waiting to find permanent, loving families." If you are considering adoption as a way to expand your family and share your love, here are some ways you can begin the process:

* Read family stories to learn how adoption has been a blessing.

* Get more information on adoption. Resources include a Beginner's Guide to Adoption, a fact sheet, links and more.

* Find National Adoption Day events in your area. Events include adoption awareness classes, celebrations and more.

* Find the information you need if you are considering placing your child for adoption, are a member of a birth family, are an adoptive parent, or are an adopted person.

* Consider being a foster parent. Foster parents give love, care and support to over 500,000 children in the US.

Since this is National Adoption Month (Español), now is a great time to consider expanding your family and sharing your love with a child.


"By choice, we have become a family, first in our hearts, and finally in breath and being. Great expectations are good; great experiences are better." - Richard Fischer, adoptive parent