Lawton Charities Office Offering Adoption Services

LAWTON — Catholic Charities Regional Office here is now offering adoption services, in addition to its counseling and case management programs.  

“Part of our core mission is to strengthen the family unit, and we feel that providing adoption services helps to address this issue,” said Deborah Odom, Catholic Charities Lawton Coordinator.  “November is National Adoption Month, and this is a great time let the public know about our adoption services here in southwest Oklahoma.”

The slogan for adoption month — “Answering the Call:  You Don’t Have to be Perfect to Be a Perfect Parent” — is true, Odom said.

“We want to let people know that the adoption process itself can be simple, and these kids need you. Couples do not need to be wealthy or picture perfect — they just need to provide a stable, loving home.

Catholic Charities is a licensed child-placing agency serving the western two-thirds of Oklahoma, within the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City.  Children placed for adoption are infants who are placed in the custody of Catholic Charities by birth parents who have made an adoption plan for their baby.

Adoption services through the Catholic Charities Lawton office are not limited to Lawton families.  “We service all the counties of southwest Oklahoma,” Odom said.

Adoptive families don’t have to be Catholic, either, Odom said. “We want to help families of all faiths to realize the joy of welcoming children into their lives,” he said.

Adoption fees are on a sliding scale and are designed to cover the cost of the mother’s and baby’s medical care, legal fees for the birth parents and the child, infant foster care, counseling for the birth family, and follow-up services for the adoptive family.  No one is denied services because of inability to pay.

So what is the process? It begins with a phone call.

“When someone calls our office to request information, we will take some basic contact information over the phone,” Odom said. The agency then sends out   its adoption brochure and a pre-application form, which asks for more background information and the sort of child the couple is seeking.

Once the form is returned to the office, the formal application process gets underway. This includes home studies with Catholic Charities staff visiting the home.  Background checks are also run through the Oklahoma Department of Human Services and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

“Adoptive parents will go through the Catholic Charities adoption seminar,” Odom said. “ Once the child is placed in the adoptive home, the agency conducts a minimum of three scheduled and/or unscheduled visits within the first six months of placements.  The adoption is finalized after six months.”  

For the birth parents, Catholic Charities provides counseling services as they make the decisions that are best for their family.  The agency can also provide access to medical care for pre-and post-natal care, assistance with goal setting, decision making and plans for self-sufficiency, limited financial assistance and post-adoption counseling.

Other services through Catholic Charities’ Oklahoma City office include an adoption search program to locate birth family and the Holy Family Maternity Home for teenagers.  

For more information, contact the Catholic Charities Lawton Regional Office at 580- 353-1811.  The office is located at 1317 S.W. Washington.