Showing titles in Adoption & Fostering

How does a woman go from a normal Midwestern mom to sitting across the table from a bounty hunter? That's what Kathleen English Cadmus wondered as she took one more surreal step in her quest to find and save her teenage daughter, Laura. The beautiful baby Kathleen had adopted from Korea was on the run again, fueled by another manic episode brought on by her bipolar disorder. Having already lost her son Shawn to a tragic accident, Kathleen couldn't bear the thought that she had failed to protect another one of her children.

"It sounded at first like something out of an old horror movie. I thought maybe someone was just playing around, but then I heard it again and again, a loud piercing cry, and less like Hollywood every time. The windows were down in my police cruiser on that warm fall day, but I still couldn’t tell where the sounds came from. I began looking around for the unlikely sight of someone being disemboweled in a mall parking lot on a Saturday afternoon. Seeing nothing, and still hearing the screams, I called in a “disturbance”.... Around the next corner I found the source of the commotion.

Faces of Foster Care has heartfelt and frank messages from people around the country who have been involved in some way with foster care. Told like mini memoirs, their inspiring and sometimes heartbreaking stories bring us into their lives and show us unique perspectives of foster care in the United States.

There are hundreds of thousands of children throughout the world who need forever families. Loving families provide the best conditions for the development and happiness of all children. Every child deserves a loving family. Gathering Israel's Children is a collection of personal experiences of individuals and families who have gathered children into their families through adopting them, mentoring them, and simply loving these children in need.

Abandoned by his mother at birth, Kevin was enveloped in a labyrinth of adoption, addiction, and child sexual abuse. By age 20, a shell of the boy he once was, Kevin succumbed completely to a suicidal lifestyle of drug dealing and prostitution. At 45, after many years of recovery, Kevin began a painful journey to uncover his origins, and the hopeful search for his mother. Dear Stephen Michael’s Mother chronicles the unfolding of these two stories.

A poignant true story of a woman who turned her tale of foster care and adoption by a Jewish family into a heart-rending play. A courageous and energetic storyteller, she brings life’s complex issues of identity, strength, character, and charm to the stage. We experience what it must have been like to grow up adopted. The listener is taken on a beautiful journey that explores self-identity, the importance of family, and the search for self. We follow her path and realize we are all in a constant search despite our experiences.

Uncovering the mystery of her mother’s disappearance as a child: Laura Cumming, prize-winning author and art critic, takes a closer look at her family story. In the autumn of 1929, a small child was kidnapped from a Lincolnshire beach. Five agonising days went by before she was found in a nearby village. The child remembered nothing of these events and nobody ever spoke of them at home. It was another 50 years before she even learned of the kidnap.

Rowan Kelly knows she’s lucky. After all, if she hadn’t been adopted, she could have spent her days in a rice paddy, or a windowless warehouse assembling iPhones - they make iPhones in Korea, right? Either way, slowly dying of boredom on Long Island is surely better than the alternative. But as she matures, she realizes that she’ll never know if she has her mother’s eyes, or if she’d be in America at all had her adoptive parents been able to conceive. Rowan sets out to prove that she can be someone’s first choice.

"Hearts Across Borders" is an inspiring and heartfelt story that delves into the life of a gay couple, Alex and his partner, who embark on a journey to adopt siblings from Cambodia.

What happens when you receive a piece of information that changes your life? Mum’s the Word is not just one way to react, but also a 40,000-word memoir that takes you through how the author handled such news. Suspense builds as a story of family secrets, unknown adoption, and an amazing search to find answers, the real truth, unfolds. This journey reveals the complexities of love, relationships, and coming to terms with unexpected life events.

Critically acclaimed, praised by therapists, parents, and patients. This short, powerful depiction of life with an emotionally traumatized daughter should be required listening for anyone involved in adoption, parenting difficult children, or healing wounded hearts. The true story of Ani’s struggle with Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) will inspire listeners long after the book is done. Ani's journey will forever change the way you see childhood trauma and what it means to parent with love.

Delving into gender, class, racial, and ethnic complexities, as well as into the complex relationships between Korean women - sisters, mothers and daughters, grandmothers and grandchildren, aunts and nieces - Older Sister. Not Necessarily Related. describes in visceral, lyrical prose the painful ripple effects that follow a child's removal from a family, and the rewards that can flow from both struggle and forgiveness.

Robert Tickner had always known he was adopted but had rarely felt much curiosity about his origins. Serving in the Hawke and Keating governments, he held the portfolio of minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander affairs, and while there he was instrumental in instigating the national inquiry into the Stolen Generations. When, in his 40s, Robert at last turned his attention to the question of his own birth, he had some sense of the potentially life-changing course that lay ahead of him.

Shattered by infertility, Anna Maria knew that adoption was the only way to realize the family of her dreams. That is how she found herself in a Mexican orphanage ready to meet a six-year-old girl. Once in their forever home, her new daughter cried and pleaded to return to the women who had cared for her since birth. Anna Maria was devastated.

Adopted as an infant from Colombia and raised in the United States, Mariela Andersen has always been curious about her biological roots. She wants to know about her birth family and wonders if they ever think about her. When a search agent helps her locate her birth family and the mystery of her past is revealed, she discovers more than she could have ever imagined.

"Why should I become a foster parent?" "Am I fit to be a foster parent?" "Do I have the right home and life to be a good home for foster children?" If you have asked yourself any of these questions, then this audiobook is for you.... 50 Things to Know About Being a Foster Parent by Tina Butters-Hargrave offers an approach to deciding about foster parenting. This will be a decision not to take lightly. My goal is to give you the confidence to take the leap to a wonderful experience.

Angelina Moehlmann invites listeners to journey with her on a raw and emotional path to motherhood through adoption. Faced with the challenges of infertility, unexpected setbacks, and the overwhelming uncertainty of the adoption process, Angelina never gave up on her dream of becoming a mother. In this heartwarming memoir, Angelina shares the struggles, tears, and ultimate triumph of her adoption story, capturing the moments that made her stronger along the way.

In April 1969, a day before her 22nd birthday, Judith Ellen Bock gave birth to a 5 pound 15 ounce girl in a Tulsa hospital. Under the secrecy of a “NO SHOW, NO TELL” order, even Bock was kept from knowing much of anything about her newborn. Although she consented to the subsequent relinquishment of her parental rights and her daughter’s adoption, she was haunted by unresolved grief that she submerged for years under the mantra that she had “done the right thing.”

Faith to Foster is a candid look into the life of ordinary foster parents T.J. and Jenn Menn. It is a journey chronicling their decision-making process, how the children arrived, the birth parents struggle to rehabilitate, help from friends and family, emotional goodbyes, and how faith in Jesus empowered them through it all. TJ and Jenn share their experiences and feelings in a way that encourages any listener to serve their neighbors, not just foster parents. Faith to Foster reminds Christians how God can use them to make a difference in their community.

Kaiser is a dog who grew up on the streets with his owner - although they were homeless, they had each other and with that came an unbreakable bond. However, when Kaiser's owner is diagnosed with terminal cancer, their future together is cut short and Kaiser is at risk of being left alone and in danger. However, this is when Michelle - founder of the charity Dogs On The Streets - met Kaiser and his owner. She immediately knows that she must help Kaiser and tirelessly campaigns on his and his owner's behalf.