We placed three children last week. Words cannot describe my gratitude and awe. The family who is adopting two brothers and their sister is absolutely marvelous. Can you imagine? The kids have been to hell and back. They’re healthy and so they have to be angry. They have normal responses to the abnormal situation of serious abuse and neglect. Their new parents are saying by action, not just by word, ‘Yes, we know you’re angry. We welcome you and your anger. We’ll love you while you work through and get past that anger- even if it’s rage. We’ll show you how beautiful you are and how beautiful life can be.’
The family will succeed. They’re mature, loving, caring normal adults and that gives them the abilities they need.
To be involved with this is blessing of the deepest kind. Can you imagine how lucky I am? I still can’t comprehend the phenomenal hospitality and courage of the families I work for. Although I do have an inkling of that because of the love and sacrifice of my own parents. But I’m absolutley clueless when it comes to the experience of the children. After more than 25 years of contact with children in ‘the system’, I still cannot wrap my head around what they go through. I just can’t.
This family is a reason for being optimistic about all of us- and our future.
Every day we receive referrals of children who need families. At any one time, our family life advocates are discussing possible placements of as many as 1, 500 children. Of course these discussions end up with permanent families for only about 40 children every year – by us. But there are several thousand agencies nationwide working for the children. So we have an essential hope for all of the hundreds of thousands of children who need families in this country.
One of the referrals we recently received was of a young girl named Gabrielle. She is 13 years old and has already been a 24 foster homes. This is an abuse of unbelievable proportions. It’s beyond devastation to treat a child this way. It would be devastating to treat an adult this way. Despite having worked in this system since 1977, I cannot begin to comprehend the pain that this history brings.
I had one person suggest that there must be something wrong with her that she would have to be changed that many times. And I ask what could a child that young possibly do to warrant this kind of abuse? While I don’t know the specifics of those 24 placements, I can detail the kinds of reasons that this sort of thing occurs – they are not the child’s fault. It’s about adult commitment. But the point is that children go through Foster Care drift and they don’t have to.
The miracle is that children do survive the type of treatment Gabrielle has undergone. The miracle is that there are families who can and will respond. I already have a family interested in adopting Gabrielle.
- Brother Terence Taffe, OFM Cap
Assistant Executive Director, Downey Side Inc.
John, Anthony, and Aaron are three brothers who have been adopted by Erin T. They have extended their family with adopting Richard and Charlie. The family now consists of five boys. All of the children were recently baptized into the Catholic Church. They are active in sports and church events.
John is in the 10th grade, Anthony is in the 9th grade, and Aaron is in the 4th grade. They are all good students and love being with their new family.
Dear Downey Side Supporter,
Each year the Lenten Journey seems more and more up-hill. I find myself complaining to a God who calls us to give life to his waiting children through the love of a family of their own.
Last Tuesday night, I decided to give one of Downey Side’s biggest supporters, Bob, a call. I was fortunate to get him, as he was driving home. He welcomed my call and quickly sensed my frustration. Bob replied with “How can I help?” and “How much do you need?” I was uncomfortable in giving him a figure and he said “I know I’m going to send you $50,000, and you can send out a letter asking donors to match it. Then you can even double the amount, as before.”
Thank you Lord! Your Easter is almost here and you haven’t forgotten me. Probably tired of my complaining faith and letting me know that there are a lot of loving people out there that really want to be part of helping your waiting children!
The news from Bob made me also realize how grateful I am for all of our staff, both new and old. They’ve struggled along with me and I want to express my gratitude for their dedicated service.
I am sharing this Easter story to honor Bob’s special gift in hopes that you will participate and become part of our Easter miracle.
May the Lord bless you!
Fr.Paul Engel,ofm.cap
Mission Director
***All contributions may be sent to Downey Side, 210 W. 31st Street, NY, NY 10001. For credit card contributions, please call 1-800-US-CHILD
The Financial Communications Society (FCS), in partnership with Stowe Mountain Resort, is proud to present RACE FOR KIDS.
2011 marks the 12th year that Race for Kids will raise money for three important charities: The Hope and Heroes Children’s Cancer Fund, Downey Side and The Make-a-Wish Foundation of Vermont. The event attracts ski buffs and winter revelers from the financial marketing, advertising and media communities and their friends and families
The “weekend” starts on Thursday and lasts through Sunday morning, with the Race on Saturday morning. In addition to our “Fireside Forums” you’ll have plenty of time to ski, relax with your friends, network with industry colleagues, and just sit back and toast the beauty of Vermont in January. Even if you don’t ski, there’s a full list of “things to do” off the slopes. For 2011, we also have two days of events for kids so bring the family.
So if you’re looking to kick off the New Year in a special way or if you’re just itching to show off your stuff, register today for Race for Kids 2011.
Company sponsors and individual donors are also encouraged to support this unique charity fundraiser.
To download an event brochure, please click here.
For additional information regarding the FCS Race for Kids, please visit www.fcsraceforkids.org or contact:
Tim Hart – tim.hart@ft.com
(212) 641 6554
When we think of Thanksgiving, most of us think of eating turkey, shopping, and a 2-day holiday off from work. Many of us have forgotten the true meaning of the Thanksgiving holiday, which is family. Although at times we take our family for granted, there are hundreds of thousands of children waiting in foster care who would love to switch places with us in a heartbeat. The month of November is National Adoption Month. Last year there were 424,000 children in foster care, 115,000 of those children were waiting to be adopted, and only 57,000 children who were adopted. (Based on data submitted by States as of July 2010)
Downey Side, a not-for-profit adoption agency, has seen the challenges that children in foster care go through. All children have their fair share of issues, but those issues are normally resolved with help from their family. But what happens when a child has no family to turn to? What happens is that the child becomes “labeled”. Labeled as “special needs”, “disruptive behavior”, or a “problem child”. The labeling of children is what sometimes holds many children back from getting adopted. Many searching families see these “labels” in children’s profiles and are frightened away.
A family is a key essential to growing and having a healthy childhood. Children grow better in families. As we celebrate this Thanksgiving holiday, please remember the many children who are still waiting in foster care. They are patiently waiting for that special family to become part of their lives. The odds are that many of the youth will age out of the system without ever finding a family.
Are you interested in becoming an adoptive parent? Would you like to support our cause? Please contact 1-800-US-CHILD to learn more about adoption or to make a donation.
Downey Side Adoption Finalization
As we approach November, we want to celebrate National Adoption Month, a month set aside each year to raise awareness about the adoption of children and youth in foster care. We are thrilled that throughout our existence of more than 40 years, we have helped more than 6000 children find permanent families.
More than 110,000 children in the foster care system are patiently waiting for a family to adopt them. The odds are that at least 50% of these children will not find permanent families, but instead will age out of the system by the age of 18. It is a proven fact that children grow better in loving homes. They are more likely to have a higher self-esteem, and will excel in education, relationships, and more importantly, in their future.
Downey Side is a national adoption agency dedicated to special needs children whom we call “America’s Waiting Children”. We are one of the few national adoption agencies in the U.S. recruiting families for America’s Waiting Children.
· Older children
· Minority children
· Physically challenged children.
· Emotionally challenged children.
· Sibling groups (ages 2- 17 years old)
Downey Side’s mission is to prevent homelessness through relationships. We applaud all adoptive parents for making a difference in a child’s life. Learn more about adoption by visiting our website www.downeyside.org or by calling 1-800-US-CHILD.
Dear friends of homeless children,
The attached picture shows a crew of children at our recent picnic for adoptive parents. You can’t tell who is an adoptive or who is a birth child (neither can I!) These are only a few of the children for whom we’ve found permanent families. They inspire me- as do their families.
Our families are also very committed. We have a family who adopted a sibling group of four, one of whom suffers from a severe, dangerous mental illness. That family couldn’t make it- they were at the hospital, but the mom’s concern is that the hospitalization will prevent her from adopting!!
Despite the good work our staff does, we are ‘having difficulty’ navigating the toxic business environment we live in. We have exhausted our savings and our income is simply not covering expenses.
Looking forward to the next quarter, we see an improvement in our cash flow. Due to the recession, our donations have declined. Your assistance and your support is appreciated. We anticipate a positive cash flow within the next 3 months, but in the meantime we are looking in every nook and cranny for financial assistance. If you know of any others who can help us at this time, please let us know and we would be extremely grateful.
All donations may be sent to:
Downey Side Inc.
C/O St. John The Baptist Church
210 West 31st Street
New York, NY 10001
If you would prefer to make a donation using a credit card, please contact us by dialing 1-800-US-CHILD.
Yours for waiting children,
Fr. Paul Engel, OFM Cap.
Mission Director
I would like to introduce the first family that I was able to place children with. The Sampson family started their adoption journey with our Saint Cloud office in December of 2008. Lorri and Rob were able to have one child in 2005, a son named Tristan. They had always wanted a bigger family and when Lorri was informed that natural child birth would not be an option for her, their family began to explore adoption. The family initially wanted to move slowly towards one child joining the family, but Tianna and Nick had other plans for them. Once I found this sibling unit, I knew they belonged with the Sampson family. Was it easy? These children were covered under the Indian Child Welfare Act and while Lorri believed she had Native American ancestors, she had no other information. Lorri worked diligently for two weeks tracking down her ancestry and was able to identify a tribe. They were qualified to send in their home study, but would the children’s worker feel this was the right home as strongly as I did? The family went through the interview process, watched the children’s video and shared lots of laughs and tears as they waited for the decision to be made. I was so excited once I received that call that the children were going to become members of the Sampson family. Calling to notify the family was a great moment to share with them. Nick and Tianna immediately took to the Samson family and the transition was very smooth. The Sampson family has even opened their hearts and home to the children’s older brother and he has an open invitation to visit the family. Nick loves having an older brother to look up to and emulate. Tianna also loves having an older brother, but she enjoys pestering him. This family is thriving and remains in contact with the office. Here is the photograph of the family when the children were placed with them on 9/2/09.
Written by: Jennifer Keena, Downey Side Saint Cloud Family Life Center
Downey Side had it’s 7th Annual Gala event on May 27, 2010. It was a success! Thanks to Sr. Liz Engel, Kate Gioglio and the New Jersey Executive Committee, the Gala turned out to be a beautiful event. Downey Side was able to raise more than $20,000 for our mission.
We would like to thank everyone who came out to this event and helped make it into a success. As well as all of the individuals who donated gifts to us for our silent auction. We look forward to next year’s event!
Tuesday, January 17th, 2012 
