I want to follow up on why the Children's Aid Society of Ottawa decided to participate in this exciting initiative. It really is about the fact that we persistently struggle in finding adoptive families for older children and sibling groups. When children come into care they often experience positive growth while they're in foster homes, but regardless of how positive their experience is, they are always wanting a “forever family”.
For them it is about what is going to happen when they leave care, when they leave the system. Who is going to be at their graduation? Who is going to help them move into their first apartment? Who is going to be there when their first baby is born? Who is going to help them figure out their finances? All of these are things that those of you who are parents in this room know. You parent forever, and children want to be children forever and have that support.
We are constantly challenged to find people who are willing to open their home to older children; there is this classic kind of picture of adoption with babies. So because of that, this innovative process was introduced to us by the Adoption Council of Canada. We were quite excited about it, because we've found that what works best for recruitment is child-specific recruitment--in other words, creating that personal connection. We know, with the studies in social marketing, that the use of Facebook and pictures is a way of creating a connection. We were very pleased when this option came forward to us.
I think the piece we liked the best, and what was really positive for us, is that the children we approached to see if they were interested in being a part of this gallery felt very excited about it. They felt that they were part of the process. They first of all have to agree that they want to participate.
When older children are in adoption, they can be your partners in finding the adoptive family of their choice. This gallery provides them the option. They have these pictures that capture the essence of who they are. They write their own little biography about who they are and what they can offer family, recognizing that they have something to bring into a family. As well, they have the opportunity to really feel they are trying to make a difference to their own lives.
It has been a very positive experience to date in terms of the reaction of the children to this process, so we're feeling very positive. We hope that in your discussions there is the recognition that there is something different about adoption and that there is a need for children to be adopted, that every child in Canada needs a family, and, within that, that we need to be creative about how we find those families and how we support those families in preparation and the ongoing role of being an adoptive parent.
We look forward to seeing the results of your report.