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National Adoption Day

About

National Adoption Day is a collective effort to raise awareness of the more than 113,000 children waiting to be adopted from foster care in the United States. A coalition of national partners — Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, and Alliance for Children’s Rights and Children’s Action Network — founded National Adoption Day.

On November 18, 2000, the coalition and the Freddie Mac Foundation encouraged seven cities to open their courts on or around the Saturday before Thanksgiving to finalize and celebrate adoptions from foster care.

The first National Adoption Day was inspired by the innovative efforts of Michael Nash, a former presiding judge of Los Angeles County’s Juvenile Court. He opened the court on Saturdays, engaged the volunteer efforts of court personnel, and finalized adoptions to reduce the backlog of one of the busiest courts in the nation.

Today, policymakers, practitioners, and advocates collaborate to plan these annual, one-day events in 400 communities across the United States and to date, the dreams of more than 75,000 children in foster care have come true as part of National Adoption Day events.

Each year, National Adoption Day events draw media attention from local outlets all over the country, as well as nationwide media coverage. CCAI works with the National Adoption Day coalition to engage Members of Congress, the White House, governors, mayors, and other elected officials in this effort. Through these combined efforts approximately 5,000 children and youth find permanent, loving families on this special day every year.

In addition, CCAI has partnered with NFL teams including the Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints to celebrate this special day.