State vs. Private Adoption in Florida

Over the past eight years of working in the field of social work, specifically in adoptions through the state, I have learned a lot about the world's varying views about adoption.  When I tell people that I’m an Adoption Specialist, they automatically think that I’m finding "forever homes" for infants whose parents made the decision to give them up for adoption.  I have yet to meet a person who initially thought that I might have played a hand in many successful adoptions of teenagers, sibling groups, children with lifelong medical needs, etc.  So I take every encounter with someone who is curious about my profession as an opportunity to educate about the type of adoptions I help to facilitate and continue to spread the word about the need for quality forever adoptive homes for our teens, sibling groups, etc., as well as the need for temporary foster parents for these very same children.