2009 Conference Schedule

 

Creating Kin: Forever Families Through Adoption

 

Saturday, November 14, 2009

 

Download the 2009 Adoption Conference Brochure

Download the 2009 Conference Schedule

 

Bay Trail Middle School, 1760 Scribner Road, Penfield, NY  14526

 

8:00 a.m. Registration & Coffee

8:45 a.m. Welcome & Morning Keynote -

Rita Sorenen, Executive Director, Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption

Forever Families for Kids

9:45 a.m. Workshop Session #1

11:00 a.m. Workshop Session #2

12:00 p.m. Lunch

1:00 p.m. Luncheon Keynote -

Leslie Pate Mackinnon. LCSW

Where Do Babies Come From: The Real Truth About Today’s Families

2:00 p.m. Workshop Session #3

3:15 p.m. General Session & Closing

 

Why attend?

LEARN about the unique issues of foster care and adoption.

COLLECT helpful tips for parenting foster and adopted children.

GATHER information to begin the adoption process or to learn about becoming a foster parent

FIND information and resources to search for biological relatives.

NETWORK with others in foster and adoptive relationships.

 

Featured Speakers:

Rita Soronen, Executive Director - Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption

 

Rita is the executive director of the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, which works to find loving adoptive families for the 150,000 waiting children in the United States and Canada. In 2007 the Foundation dedicated more than $12 million to grants and award-winning national awareness activities, including Wendy’s Wonderful Kids, Adoption-Friendly Workplace, and National Adoption Day. More than 400 children have been adopted as a direct result of Wendy’s Wonderful Kids. Rita is a graduate of the University of Louisville and the recipient of the Angels in Adoption Award from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption.

 

Leslie Pate McKinnon, LCSW - "The Girls Who Went Away"

Leslie has over 30 years experience as a psychotherapist specializing in families created through alternative means. Leslie was drawn to the field by her own experience of placing two sons in “closed” adoptions. She has been involved in adoption education and reform and is an expert on the complex issues encountered by these modern families. She is committed to educating the psychotherapeutic community to adoption and donor issues. Married and raising 18 year old IVF twins, Leslie has written a book on families created by alternative means.

 

 

Susan Badeau - Casey Foundation

Susan is director of the Cross Systems Integration team within the Knowledge Management department of Casey Family Programs. Sue has also served as executive director of the Philadelphia Children’s Commission and as deputy director of the Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care. Sue and her husband, Hector, have two birth children and twenty adopted children. They have also served as foster parents to more than 50 children and have been recognized by President Clinton for their work on behalf of adoption and children in foster care.

 

Josh Kroll - North American Council on Adoptable Children

Josh is the project coordinator of the Adoption Subsidy Resource Center, a program of the North American Council on Adoptable Children. Josh has extensive knowledge of federal and state adoption laws and policies to answer thousand of inquiries from parents, workers, and administrators across the United States.

 

 

Special Feature: This year's conference will also provide an opportunity for families to meet youth who are freed for adoption and in need of a forever family. The youth will assist with conference registration, book sales, and lunch monitoring, as well as share their stories on a panel facilitated by Rita Sorenen.

 

 

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