Grants and Loans

Now that we have been approved to adopt and have a copy of our home study I have begun the process of applying for interest free loans and grants.  Of the $26,600 the adoption is going to cost us (this is a minimum-if everything goes perfectly) we have about $4,000 saved.  You can do the math....

It's so crazy to me that an adoption can cost so much.  The average cost for a U.S. newborn adoption is $20,000- $30,000 .  Where does all this money go?  Here's a breakdown from our own agency:

So, obviously the huge chunk is going to the agency.  Here's a basic breakdown of where that money is going to (lawyers, staff, counseling for birth mothers, case workers, the agency handles correspondence and records between you and birth mom forever...) 

I have no earthly idea where the remaining $22,000+ is going to come from, but I kind of see it as God's problem.  We are willing to work our hiney off for it...we already do but it's going to take a miracle. It's tough because we work so hard and live pretty simply.  Our savings has all gone to putting Sam through nursing school (he's currently working on his second nursing degree).  I've been working on an iphone app with my partner Hope for over a year now and it should launch in the next month so maybe that will do amazingly... but considering I'm going to only ten cents per download I'm not sure I can count on 220,000 downloads in the next year.

Adoption should not be for the rich only.  Anyone with a desire to adopt a child should not be stopped by financial reasons.  For a starter it costs practically nothing to adopt from the Foster care system.  The reason we have chosen not to do this is only because I felt specifically led to our agency and although you can foster newborns and they might later become available for adoption you can't immediately adopt a young baby.  I feel like it is best for my family to not disrupt the birth order of our children and since our youngest is 2 years old I think a newborn would be the healthiest addition for us right now (I'm definitely not saying we wouldn't or won't adopt an older child in the future).

With my research here are the most accessable grants and loans I have found to help those in need of financial help concerning the adoption fees:

No-Interest Loans (I think the monthly payback agreement is between $125-$300/month):

Lifesong for Orphans
ABBA Fund

Grants:
Gift Of Adoption Fund - Awards grants averaging $3,426 with a max of $7,500

Matching Grants- they match what your friends, family, and church raise
Lifesong for Orphans
God's Grace Adoption Ministry

There are a few others I saw but I am not able to apply to them because I missed their deadlines.  If the matching process takes a long time I will probably apply for them as the time comes.

I honestly have zero idea what our chances are for any of these.  It is hard to think about going into $22,000 of debt now that we are out of debt and it seems embarrassing to ask friends and family for money towards a matching grant (if we were even to be approved for one).  I'm trying to remember that money is just money and that it all belongs to God anyway.  I hope the above links are useful to anyone starting the adoption process and that others might feel led to give to one of the above organizations.