Barker Foundation

[Anonymous]

I went to one of the informational sessions offered monthly by Barker last evening. We are interested in domestic adoption.

I left feeling like the domestic Director was only going through the motions and didn't really feel any conviction for what she was doing. It made me suspect of what the experience would be working with them.

I'm not trying to attack this person personally. Just curious of others perceptions either from last night or working with the agency with the domestic portion of the agency were in general? Maybe I am just expecting too much.....

[Anonymous]

I had a phone conversation with someone there a while ago and was not very impressed. A close friend met one of their reps at an event and the Barker person said something along the lines of, "You have your job. Well, this is my job." I know they are one of the bigger agencies locally but I did not use them and I would not trust them to help me with such a big life-altering decison and often a roller coaster process. There are PLENTY of other agencies and pathways.

good luck!

[Anonymous]

I only have experience with them through the international adoption program (not what you're looking for, I know), but they were very helpful and on top of things with us.

[Anonymous]

Ditto PP about going through the international program at Barker. We felt like they did a thorough, generally strong job for us.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks for the comments/replies.

[Anonymous]

Go to info session at the agency, Adoptions Together, I suspect you'll find folks there much more passionate about what they do...We really liked them.

[Anonymous]

You should go to several information meetings at different agencies. Ask how many babies have been placed within the past year. Trust your gut instinct.

[Anonymous]

OP again. Thanks for the additional replies.

Does anyone have any suggestions/recommendations for other domestic agencies? Either local or out-of-state. I have signed up for the informational session at Adoptions Together. Thanks for that suggestion.

[Anonymous]

Hey, OP, when you go to the Adoptions Together information session, can you post back about it? And if anyone goes to any awesome information sessions, could you tell me where? I took my husband to the Barker info session last spring and he was underwhelmed. He needs adoption education in a big way, and that session did not help. I agree that it was underwhelming.

Thanks!
Another woman who wants to adopt but needs to teach her husband about why it would be wonderful for our family.

[Anonymous]

If you are in Virginia, try Catholic Charities. You don't have to be Catholic to adopt from there. They have information sessions monthly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hey, OP, when you go to the Adoptions Together information session, can you post back about it? And if anyone goes to any awesome information sessions, could you tell me where? I took my husband to the Barker info session last spring and he was underwhelmed. He needs adoption education in a big way, and that session did not help. I agree that it was underwhelming.

Thanks!
Another woman who wants to adopt but needs to teach her husband about why it would be wonderful for our family.

If you have family members who need education, make sure you ask if the programs have adoptive parents you can talk to. I'm an adoptive parent, as well as an international adoptee, and I know if someone asked me questions, I would be sure to be 100% honest about the whole process.

[Anonymous]

OP again.

Thanks for the lead in Virginia. Any other leads are definitely appreciated if anyone else has thoughts.

To 21:21 poster, I'm happy to post after attending. I'm somewhat in the same position...and definitely the "advocate" in my family.

[Anonymous]

If you are in Virginia, try Catholic Charities. You don't have to be Catholic to adopt from there. They have information sessions monthly.

Do you have to live in VA? I live in DC (this is 21:21 again).

[Anonymous]

We adopted our daughter domestically. We used the Barker Foundation for our home study and they were terrific. Our social worker was so pleasant to work with and so accomodating with regards to scheduling meetings. That being said, we did not use them for our adoption. We didn't want to wait 2-3 years for a caucasian infant and opted to go the independent/private route with an attorney in CA. We signed on with her in Sept. 2007 and our daughter was born in Dec. 2007

Also, my husband and I educated ourselves/researched adoption for one full year before making our decision. There are plenty of books out there and the internet, of course. We also talked to other adoptive parents. There is a wealth of info out there on the subject.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Is there any way I can get in touch with the person who just posted about using the CA attorney? My husband and I have been talking about that and if you'd be willing to answer a few questions, we'd really appreciate it. Many thanks!