Stars Align for Adoption
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Stars Align for Adoption
By Susan C. Young Special to The Washington Post
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Faith Hill watched the TV monitor as the story unfolded of one child's journey
from foster care to a loving home, then walked out on the stage to sing "There
You'll Be" and instantly choked up with tears.
"Oh, mercy. I had to start over, which never happens," Hill said about her
experience taping this year's CBS holiday special on adoption. "As an adopted
child, I really have a place in my soul for these children. You'd have to be
made of wood not to feel the emotional impact of these stories."
Hill's husband, Tim McGraw, as well as Melissa Etheridge, Jamie Foxx and Gavin
Rossdale, are among the performers featured on "The 10th Annual A Home for the
Holidays With Faith Hill," airing Tuesday.
Musical performances and personal stories from celebrities frame segments
focusing primarily on families who have appeared on the holiday show during the
past decade.
One segment tells the story of Frederick Millner of Santa Clarita, Calif., who
stayed in foster care until he was 18. Millner, who with his wife adopted a
young boy in foster care, said, "I tell my son how much I love him every day.
There was always an outline to my life, but my wife and son are the light that
has filled the darkness."
These heart-tugging segments even affected the hard-rocking Etheridge.
"I ended up in tears by the end of the show," said Etheridge, who adopted her
four children. "TV can be so cynical and stale, but every year this program
reaches out and you see the results and see those children getting adopted. . .
. It's a total 10-hankie show."
Betsy and David Miles of Richmond, who adopted 9-year-old Katy, recount how they
were asked to consider a 14-year-old boy, Haisten, as a temporary placement.
(The average age for foster care adoption is 8, and older children are often
harder to place.) The couple eventually adopted Haisten.
Older children aren't as appealing to people who want to adopt, said Hill, 41,
who was adopted as an infant. "It's easy to forget in this world of excess,
shock value and getting the most bang for the buck that the simplest things in
life are the ones most valued," Hill said.
"A Home for the Holidays" is presented by the Dave Thomas Foundation for
Adoption, which was established in 1992 by the late Thomas, the founder of
Wendy's restaurants, who also was an adopted child.
In the United States foster care system, about 129,000 children are eligible for
adoption, according to a January report by the Department of Health and Human
Services.
This may be the result of misconceptions about adopting foster children,
including the idea that they are more likely to be juvenile delinquents, said
Rita Soronen, executive director of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
"That couldn't be further from the truth. These are kids who had a rough start
in life and need a supportive family," Soronen said. "And there's a lingering
sense that the biological families can reclaim these children, but that's not
true."
For some, it seems as though a program such as this puts children on parade for
the holidays. But Soronen said the holiday-themed special just nudges people
into making a commitment they've probably been considering for some time.
As Hill talked about her own Christmas plans -- spending time with family and
friends, baking cookies -- her husband chimed in from the background that
they'll be watching football. After a quick laugh, she said this is what she
wants for these foster children -- the kind of family she has now, and the
family she had growing up.
"I was always very grateful that I had my family -- my two brothers and my
parents, who now have been married for 52 years," she said.
Hill and McGraw's children -- Gracie, 11, Maggie, 10, and Audrey, 7 -- know
their mom was adopted and their father was raised by a stepfather who adopted
him.
"We never forget that there are children who don't have families, who have to
move from one location to another, never sure if they will get pulled out of a
situation," Hill said. "This program makes the gap smaller between people who
want to adopt and the children who are waiting to find a permanent home."
"A Home for the Holidays" airs Tuesday at 8 p.m. on CBS.
© 2008 The Washington Post Company
________________________________________
Reprinted for educational purposes only.
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Stars Align for Adoption
By Susan C. Young Special to The Washington Post
Sunday, December 14, 2008; Y03
Reprinted for educational use only.
kippah...@hotmail.com
Between the tears and the cookies, I am almost undone.
But they are focusing on the needs of older children who need homes as
well as trying to break down some of the prejudice against children
who've had a difficult start in life.