November is National Adoption Month – I don't actually know the legacy of how this came to be - but as a national movement, it raises adoption to a new level of awareness.
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Topics: Uncategorized, #iamgladney, #NAM2017, #NationAdoptionMonth
The Gladney Center for Adoption is 130 years old this year! We want to celebrate all year long by sharing fun and interesting adoption facts about our history and culture. Check out these 11 facts that we put together in October.
- Construction of Gladney's current campus officially commenced with a groundbreaking ceremony on this day 17 years ago. The new campus complex includes offices, a visitors center, community center, a building for counseling services and a residence hall for expectant mothers. Gladney welcomes guests to walk through the visitors center and absorb the 130 years of adoption history.
- Much of the movie based on Edna Gladney’s life, Blossoms in the Dust, is fictitious. There may have been a Tony; Mrs. Gladney had no adopted sister who committed suicide; and she had no child herself who died at a young age. If you’d like to know more about Edna Gladney and her life, we recommend reading “Texas Adoption Activist Edna Gladney: A Life and Legacy of Love” by Sherrie McLeRoy.
- Mrs. Gladney was succeeded by Walter Delamarter as the Executive Director of Gladney, because in the words of Mrs. Ruby Lee Piester, "no woman could have followed her." Delamarter had a masters degree in social work from the University of Illinois and was on the boards of several welfare groups.
- By the early 1920s, the Texas Children's Home and Aid Society (nka the Gladney Center for Adoption) was the leading child placing organization in the state of Texas.
- Mrs. Ruby Lee Piester began group-counseling sessions for young residents to get to know and better understand each other.
- Buildings were constructed on the 2300 Hemphill Street campus one at a time, as funds were raised for a particular building. Construction highlights included:
- Marks Hall, now The Graham Building, home to The Gladney Fund, 1954.
- Dining Room, 1964.
- Johnny Mitchell Maintenance Building, 1976.
- Horlock Auditorium, 1977.
- Fair Dormitory, 1977.
- Nina Reese Counseling Center, 1977.
- Blakemore Education Building, 1977.
- Ruby Lee Piester Dormitory, 1980.
- Sproesser Wynn Dormitory, 1984
- I.Z.T. Morris, 1887-1914;
- Belle Morris, 1914-1920;
- Roy Stockwell, 1920-1927;
- Edna Gladney 1927-1960;
- Walter Delamarter, 1960-1963;
- Ruby Lee Piester, 1963-1984;
- Eleanor Tuck, 1984-1988;
- Michael J. McMahon, 1988-2007; and
- Frank Garrott, 2007-2017.
8. The movie about Edna Gladney’s life, Blossoms In The Dust, generated so much publicity and attracted so many birth mothers that some babies slept in dresser drawers for lack of crib space.
9. The Texas Children’s Home and Aid Society (nka the Gladney Center for Adoption) never intended to be an orphanage. Instead, it was a "handling home," where children were accepted for adoption placement and cared for until the right homes could be provided for them. If you’re interested in starting your adoption journey, please request Gladney’s free Adoption Information Packet.
10. Mrs. Ruby Lee Piester joined the staff as director of social services in 1960. In 1963, she was named executive director, a position she would hold for more than 20 years.
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Topics: 130th Anniversary
Note: Since we are going to be traveling in Taiwan and posting about our trip but we also have so many files of children from China that we want to continue sharing about I will be putting China and Taiwan in the post title to tell you where the child is from.
Sebastian is a sweet 2 year old boy who is described as active and outgoing. We met him in October of last year. He was very attached to his foster mom and had fun throwing a pen on the floor over and over. It reminded me of when my boys were 1 and would intentionally drop a toy just to watch me pick it up!
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Topics: Superkids, Uncategorized, Waiting Child, China
Maggie is described as a kind, cheerful, energetic and lively little girl. She is always happy to lend a helping hand and gets along with well with all of her peers. Maggie likes riding her bike, flying kites, and kicking around a soccer ball. She also loves playing with Legos and even took a Lego class!
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan Adoption
We leave for Taiwan this week! But before we talk about that we have some super duper exciting news!
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan, Uncategorized
Adoption is stressful. Financing adoption should be the least of your worries. One way to raise money for your adoption is to hold a bingo night fundraiser. This attracts people of all ages and is a fun way to bring the community together for a great cause. Here are some steps in planning the event:
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Topics: Adoption Finance
What is that you say? One week until...
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Topics: Superkids, Taiwan Adoption
Oh my! Are you ready for this?
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Topics: Superkids, Uncategorized, Waiting Child, China
Gladney Center for Adoption Named an Official Charity Partner of the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon Set for Sunday, November 5, 2017
“Gladney is proud to serve as an official charity partner of the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon”
Gladney Press Release
(New York, NY, October 25, 2017)--Gladney Center for Adoption announced today it is an Official Charity Partner of the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon. The race will take place on Sunday, November 5, 2017. The Gladney team consists of eight runners from Texas who all have special ties to adoption.
“Gladney is proud to serve as an official charity partner of the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon,” said Frank Garrott, President and CEO of Gladney Center for Adoption. “This opportunity offers a unique and wide-reaching platform for our runners to raise awareness and funds that benefit Gladney’s mission of creating bright futures through adoption. Through your support, you will confirm that each aspect in the journey of adoption is significant. From expectant mothers experiencing an unplanned pregnancy, unsure of their next steps; to children waiting in state foster care and international orphanages, longing for families to adopt them; to couples who desire to open their homes and start or grow their families.”
More than 350 official charity partners will be part of the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon. In 2016, 9,000 charity runners raised $36.1 million during the marathon on behalf of hundreds of not-for-profit organizations in New York City and across the nation. Since the inception of the official charity partner program in 2006, $235 million has been raised.
Gladney Center for Adoption is a national leader in adoption. Celebrating its 130th year in operation, Gladney is a pioneer and an important voice for improving the lives of children, adoptive families and birth parents. The organization believes every child deserves a loving and caring home and is leading the charge in advocating for foster care adoption throughout the country. In the U.S., there are 120,000 children in foster care legally free and waiting to be adopted.
The Gladney team fundraising page can be found here.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Gladney Center for Adoption as an official charity partner of the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon,” said Michael Rodgers, vice president of development and philanthropy for New York Road Runners. “Participants in our official charity partner program run for causes that are important to them, while raising critical funds that directly impact hundreds of charity organizations. We are inspired by the thousands of runners who take part in this program and wish them all the best as they begin their incredible journeys to the 2017 TCS New York City Marathon.”
The 2017 TCS New York City Marathon will feature a world-class American and international professional athlete field, charity runners, and thousands of runners of all ages and abilities. More than 10,000 volunteers help to support participants across the 26.2-mile race route, which touches each of New York City’s five boroughs and is lined with more than one million neighbors and guests.
The 2017 TCS New York City Marathon will be broadcast live locally on WABC-TV, Channel 7, and nationally on ESPN2.
About the TCS New York City Marathon
The TCS New York City Marathon is the premier event of New York Road Runners (NYRR) and the largest marathon in the world. Over 1,100,000 people have finished the race since its first running in 1970 with just 127 entrants and 55 finishers running four laps around Central Park. The race expanded to all five boroughs in 1976 and just celebrated its 40th year as a five-borough affair. Held annually on the first Sunday of November, the race features over 50,000 runners including the world’s top professional athletes and a vast range of competitive, recreational, and charity runners. Participants from approximately 125 countries tour the city, starting on Staten Island at the foot of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and running through the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx before ending in Manhattan. The NYRR Youth Invitational at the TCS New York City Marathon covered 1.8 miles of the race course in Central Park, beginning near mile 24 and finishing at the famed TCS New York City Marathon finish line. More than one million spectators and thousands of volunteers line the city streets in support of the runners, while millions more watch the television broadcast in 175 countries and territories, including viewers in the New York area on WABC-TV, Channel 7, nationally on ESPN2, and via various international broadcast partners. The race is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, which features the world’s top marathons—Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago, and New York—and crowns the top professional male and female marathoners each year. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a leading global IT services, consulting, and business solutions organization, is the premier partner of NYRR and the title sponsor of the TCS New York City Marathon. The 47th running of the TCS New York City Marathon is set for November 5, 2017. To learn more, visit www.tcsnycmarathon.org.
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Topics: Press Release, New York Marathon
Read the latest information about Gladney's China and Taiwan's adoption program in October's Gladney Newsletter.
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Topics: China Adoption, Taiwan Adoption, China & Taiwan Newsletter
