|
|
   
|
Changing the world for waiting children is what Diakon Adoption &
Foster Care is all about. We are dedicated to bringing permanency
to the lives of children in need. From special needs, international (Maryland office only),
and domestic adoption to multiple levels of foster care and legal-risk
placements (foster-to-adopt), we offer a range of services designed
to unite children with forever families.
While the name Diakon Adoption & Foster Care may be new, our
tradition of serving children in need certainly isn't. In fact,
our adoption program has been finding permanent adoptive homes for
children with special needs for more than 33 years! And our foster
care program was created just as long ago to meet the needs of children
and youths transitioning to community living from institutional
placements.
Diakon Adoption Services was formed through the Jan. 1, 2000, affiliation
that created Diakon Lutheran Social Ministries. Both agencies that
created Diakon—Tressler Lutheran Services and Lutheran Services
Northeast—had long and storied histories of service to children
dating to the late 1800s. While both Tressler and The Lutheran Home
at Topton began as orphans home, they expanded services over the
years so that, by the early 1970s, both had begun adoption programs. Foster care
services began around the same time.
Pioneering the adoptive placement of children with special needs,
Tressler Adoption Services became a national model for its use of
adoptive parents in training prospective parents. The Lutheran Home
at Topton became known as an advocate for children with special
needs. Over the years, both organizations excelled in serving children
and youths.
In 2005, Diakon’s
adoption and foster care services were combined into Diakon Adoption & Foster Care to create a unified effort
to bring permanency to the lives of ever-more waiting children. |
|
