You are in the middle of making a very difficult and important decision. The decision you choose will affect you and your child for the rest of your lives. We believe that you can make the best choice when you have access to all the information about your options. We have briefly outlined the options currently available to you. It is our hope that this will answer your initial questions and guide you in exploring, in detail, the choice that is best for you.

Parenting

This is often the first choice many women consider when they discover they are pregnant. Think about the following as you consider this option: your financial resources; who and where the people are that will support you; your emotional maturity; your current living arrangement; your employment options; how the father will be involved; and what your child will need from you physically and emotionally. These are not all of the issues, but they are some of the important ones you may want to consider.

If you are interested in parenting and need assistance obtaining additional resources in the Commonwealth of Virginia like housing, pregnancy and parenting, insurance, food, financial and counseling services and day care assistance, link onto the United Way Services Information and Referral Center at www.yourunitedway.org or call 1-800-230-6977.

Abortion

Although some of the expectant women reading this information may be too far into their pregnancy or opposed to this option, it is still a choice for women in Virginia. Think about the following as you consider this option: your moral, ethical or religious beliefs about abortion; which clinic or physician can offer counseling and a full explanation of the abortion procedure; the physical and emotional effects of abortions; the biological father's opinion and the financial resources needed for this procedure. These may not be all the issues, but they are some of the important ones you may want to consider.

Adoption

There is more than one choice available if you decide to place your child for adoption. This agency can best assist you with Parental Placement Adoption, sometimes called "Open Adoption". Think about the following as you consider this option: the level of involvement you want with the adoptive family; your willingness to appear in court to give your consent; how you will involve the biological father in this process; what services/resources you will need from the agency or the adoptive family; and how it will feel to meet your child's adoptive family.

Another adoption choice is Agency Placement Adoption, sometimes called "Closed Adoption". This is the more commonly known type of adoption in which you place your child in the custody of an adoption agency. This choice may involve a temporary foster care placement for your child. The Agency would then place the child with adoptive parents they have selected. Agencies differ in how much they allow parents to be involved in the choice of which adoptive parents will receive your child. In this type of adoption, no "identifying" information is shared (no names or addresses). Think about the following as you consider this option: how much you trust an agency you have chosen to make an acceptable choice for your child; what services/resources you need from the agency; and how you will involve the father in this process.

You could also choose to place your child with a family member. In this state, you would follow the laws and guidelines for a Parental Placement Adoption. That means the family member would need to have a home study completed by a licensed child-placing agency. Consider the following: how your relationship with this family member will be affected; what your relationship to the child would be after placement; how comfortable you are with being in close contact with your child that you are not raising; and how the father will be involved with this child.

Visit our Waiting Family Profiles to find information about some of our clients who are hoping to build their families through adoption.

Finally, you could also choose to place your child in Temporary Foster Care with your local Department of Social Services. Please see the referral list for phone numbers of local public and private child placing agencies. This choice could provide you with time and resources to make a plan for parenting your child. You may want to be aware of the law regarding the termination of your parental right (you could lose your parental rights after a certain period of time). Consider the following: whether you will need more time after the birth of your child to make a final decision: how comfortable you are with being involved with a public agency; whether you eventually want to parent this child; how willing you are to plan and set goals with the agency and to work to meet those goals in order to have your child returned to your custody; and how the biological father will be involved in those goals.

Each of the above is only a brief and general description about the choices available. Coordinators²inc offers a suggested reading list for parents considering adoption for their child. If you request a counseling session with one of our social workers, we will be happy to explore any of these choices in more detail.

No matter what option you choose, it is very important to your child that you share as much information as possible about your child's genetic and medical history, about yourself and circumstances of his/her birth.

If you are interested in talking with a counselor to explore your options, please call (804) 354-1881 or (800) 690-4206 and ask to speak to a counselor about your placement options. For more general information about Coordinators²inc or to simply ask more questions, please e-mail us at info@c2adopt.org.