Our experience was so miserable from start to finish. Before we even realized our adoption would end in failure, we had decided we would not adopt a second child because of how unpleasant this agency was to work with. We've subsequently learned that the whole adoption community isn't like ACD, and adoption agencies actually can be nice to adoptive parents. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to adopt with one of the nice ones.
In the mean time, we just want to prevent other adoptive parents from having to go through the same experiences we did. One of the worst things about working with ACD was being treated so rudely while having to bite our tongue as much as possible for fear they would disrupt the adopton if we said anything wrong. As our adoption was starting to fail, they confronted me on my probably less than kind behavior toward them. When I apologized and tried explaining I was under a bit of stress but had been expecting better service (after they made us wait 2 extra hours at the hospital the night our girl was discharged so they could go out to dinner, had us fly to town 2 weeks earlier than needed before the baby was born, and refused to help when our ICPC process got hung up, resulting in us being out of town for a total of 5 weeks--not to mention all the other rude, confusing, or untrue statements they made to us along the way), they told me I couldn't talk to them about stress until I had a baby ripped out of my arms. Since our adoption ended in failure three months after our girl was born, I guess I now qualify to talk to them about stress...although I hope I never have to.
We were told to disregard negative posts about this agency, and now are trying to prevent others from making the same mistake we did. Both adoptive and birth parents need and deserve honesty, compassion, and respect from the people helping them through the adoption process.Somewhere along the way, this agency has lost sight of these basic human needs, as the people at this agency provide anything but these qualities.
We hope and pray that there is another agency out there that can help us fulfill our dream of adoption. We are just starting to work with the regulators to help us recover from our losses with this agency, and want to warn others to avoid them lest your heart be broken too. Please send us a private message if you would like your voice to be heard with the regulators, are willing to provide character witness against them, or would simply like to learn of a few simple mistakes and pitfalls to avoid.
I totally agree with the above posts. When I saw this rating website, I immediately looked them up. That is exactly how I found them. It was our first experience in adoption, and it nearly turned into my last. After some research I found they are the exception, rather than the rule. Oops, I have to give them a star... oh well, I didn't waste much money on them.
Is there a way to rate them in negative stars?
Unethical, corrupt, incompetent, rude are just some of the adjectives that come to mind. I can't imagine a worse agency to use. In the end our adoption was successful despite them. The only positive thing i can say is that the lawyer they had us use (Carol Rainey) seemed ok.
They need to be shut down, i wish we had been warned of these con artists.
The communication lines at ACD are horrible. We had the worst time getting hold of anybody to get our questions answered. We finally made contact with AnnaMarie and were treated like criminals for simply trying to clarify our responsibilities. She actually threatened to give our daughter to another couple after we had held her in our arms! I have never been treated so poorly. And the pricing is all "ala carte" .... the basic fee for ACD is comparable to other agencies, but ACD adds all basic costs in addition to the fee where other agencies include most costs as part of the fee. These people are in the business for the money, not for the children. I should add that their social worker Susan was very helpful, although she did not get support from the head office to handle our case when she had to take a couple of days off - leaving us stranded in Las Vegas for an extra 5 days.
They are legally "selling" babies -meaning that they allow birthmothers to extort families for astronomical amounts of money right before the baby is due. They need to be put out of business. Never ever use these horrible people
Two years later...after a fairly routine successful adoption with this agency...I wanted to post something to warn others. I have 2 adopted children, and have worked with a networking agency too. I wanted to keep this simple. This is not a post to "express frustration or anger". It is a WARNING. Yep, you can get a baby with this agency. However, they will make you feel stupid, inadequate, bothersome, and fearful, also unsure, during the process. For the money we paid them, NOT the birthmother but them, we should have gotten a few drops of customer service. I, as others above, was "chewed out" for calling with concerns, worries which were legit. Exactly 2 phone calls in 1 month. They lost documents also --delaying ICPC. My husband and I are very social, easy going, and highly educated people, but this agency treated us like idiots. So sad that they make the process fearful instead of cautiously joyful. We will pray for them. Check out agencies in Oklahoma for a pleasant experience.
Well I was typing fast and sorry about the spelling I was just a lil frustrated at the time typing has never really been my stongpoint......... Thank you I hope I got the message across anyway.. God Bless you all..........
we adopted our son in may 2006 and since then I have been trying off and on to locate an online adoption agency rating website and came across this website tonight. I want to add my voice to all of the others to say that the people who work at this agency are some of the nastiest, mean-spirited people I have ever come across and clearly they are only doing adoptions in order to make money. They were nasty throughout the process not only to us, the adoptive parents, but to the birth parents, and they clearly lied about any number of things and without a doubt kept money that they said was going to go to the birth parents.
I cannot express enough about how awful they were and that is why over 4 years later I find myself writing this review. our son is wonderful, the birth parents were wonderful and even their social worker in carson city, nevada, was a decent person, but the people in the office in Poulsbo were truly some of the most wretched individuals I have ever encountered. Please find another adoption agency to use and if you have to use them beware that they are nasty crooks and will do everything they can to make your life difficult.
good luck in the adoption process.
p.s., I only gave them a star because the rating field is required. if possible I would give them a negative rating of somewhere between 8 to 10 (with 10 being the lowest).
I would like to reiterate what others have posted that the positive comments had to have come from A Child Dream's staff. I saw a posting in the Washngton Yellow Pages that was posted by Michael, the owner, so I know they have done this before.
We had a successful adoption with A Child's Dream, but it could not have been more unnecessarily difficult. Basically, once they have your money they could care less. And this is the charitable interpretation of their behavior. What's fascinating is that this seems to be the general consensus in the Puget Sound adoption community as well, and these are individuals that work with A Child's Dream on a frequent, professional basis. And they are NOT dissapointed parents, nor for that matter are we. We are so grateful for our child, but stunned at how an agency in this field of work could be so unprofessional.
We agree with those who stated that Anamarie was needlessly insensitive, but we had even worse experiences with someone named Kristi Hoffman. However, not everyone there is awful - there is someone who works there named Micah who seemed very nice and helpful, but ultimately she had no power to make the place a better agency. Michael, Anamarie's husband and the owner, also seemed very nice, but it must have been superficial, since he has to know how horribly the agency is run, but does nothing to improve it.
There is no way that anyone honestly had a good experience with ACD and specifically Anamarie. She must be writing the positive reviews herself. She is the rudest, most unethical adoption "professional" (or person for that matter) that I have ever encountered. I think she has a severe mental illness because there is no other excuse for the way she treated us. We needed very simple help with an already identified birthmother and we signed on with ACD at the very last minute because it was too late to find another agency. Anamarie did everything in her power to sabotage our adoption. She seemed to be angry at us and hate us before we ever even had a conversation with her. We made it happen ourselves through sheer force of will and we had to push ACD along every step of the way. They repeatedly asked for more money after telling us it was a one time fee. It got VERY expensive when they really didn't have to do much of anything in our case at all. They were insulting and terrifying to our daughter's birthmother, at one point telling her they were going to take the baby away from us and place her with another couple. Our birthmother was absolutely horrified and cried all day until she found out they couldn't really do that. I can't understand how they stay in business. I have adopted one other child with another agency which was fine but ACD was truly appalling.
I find it hard to believe that the positive postings about this agency are posted by people unrelated to this agency--unless there is a branch somewhere in the country with completely different workers. We did not imagine our experience at all...we were treated rudely and unprofessionally every step of the way, and we watched everyone around us treated equally as poorly as well. We initially vowed to never adopt again (before there became a problem with our adoption), because we never wanted to be treated this way again.
If you really have had a positive experience with this agency, great. But for others out there, we just want to warn you to prepare yourself for unpleasant treatment. As my adoption was failing, I was told I could not talk to this agency about stress since I had never had a baby ripped out of my arms (apparently, I only qualified to talk about stress once I experienced the actual pain a month later). The day our baby was returned after 3 months in our care, they tried to offer us another baby (before the transfer even occurred). And finally, when our baby girl was a few minutes late for the transfer, they left threats on our answering machine to call the FBI.
You'd think we were making this up, but we are not. We haven't even mentioned all the negative things we heard this agency say about both birth parents thorughout our failed adoption process. Adoptive parents, please be aware. If you are callous and don't mind poor quality treatment (including being accused of missing paperwork you have already provided, being given wrong advice, and being insulted throughout the adoption process), go ahead and use this agency. By the goodness of God, not this agency, you might end up with a wonderful baby despite the way this agency has treated so many of the rest of us. If there is a good office out there, by all means, please share where it is. If you say it's in Poulsbo, then I find it hard to believe it's true. We had anything but a pleasant experience with them (with anyone other than their attorney, Carol Rainey), and would have felt the same way whether or not our adoption went through. We cannot believe how different we have subsequently found other agencies to be.
I can't even bring myself to give them any type of rating. They placed our oldest son with us. While I am grateful for that, that is about all. Their social worker dropped him off at our motel, we signed papers, she asked for the clothes back that he had on (so he came to us in a blanket and diaper) and that is the last we saw of her. The only phone calls that we received were from AnnaMarie wanting to know where her check was! At the time of our finalization (up until then we had heard nothing from her) we were contacted and she tried to tell us our finalization was illegal! Claiming we had not summited all the necessary paperwork. We also lost any money that was put in trust for possible counseling and they claimed it had been used to off set additional costs. Needless to say, they really need to be put out of business. I make sure to spread the word whenever the topic of adoption comes up.
DO NOT WORK WITH THIS AGENCY!!!!! Every negative thing I read about them absolutely came true!!!! I even wondered how some of the people who posted were mad even after they got a baby -- I can see why now!! We didn't get a baby from them, but if we had, I'd still say DO NOT WORK WITH THEM! First, they are as rude as you can imagine - for no reason at all. You'd think that wouldn't bother you, but it's so unecessary and blatent. And just like others have experienced, they start tacking on thousands of dollars at the last minute - while being rude about it. They should not be in business! Please do yourself a favor and do not work with this agency. Believe the negative posts! Anything positive you read was written by them! They don't deserve the one star I had to give them.
About 5 years ago I used this agency in placing my then unborn son up for adoption. I have no regrets in my decision but the memory of this agency still haunts me. I first met with a women named Gina who talked me into signing a contract with them. She then arranged for me to live in a apartment complex over an hour away from my family. Stating that "sometimes it just best to get away from family" . I was not even allowed to see my own doctor. A doctor was arranged for me by Gina and she actually went to all the appointments. She had me do a phone interview with a man in Georgia who wanted me "to gage the color of my sons skin color". When I refused to talk to him anymore she demanded I reconsider sighting he is "very wealthy". After I refused then Gina really turned mean and was very cruel and emotionally degrading and abusive to me. I placed a call to ACD and spoke with AnneMarie. I begged her for a new case worker and she said it would be arranged, it never was. When I did settle on a couple to adopt my son Gina arranged for them to TAKE HER to lunch. I thought it was very unprofessional for her to expect them to pay for her to go out. Originally the open adoption arrangement was to include a visit with my son once a year. But then Gina decided that it was not going to be like that. When I could not take it anymore I tried to get away from ACD and that's when I was threatened with a lawsuit. I later found out that Gina is not the "specially trained" case worker she claims to be. She is in fact the daughter of the owner of ACD. I also found out later that no such lawsuit could be filed by ACD. Another of Gina's lie's. After my son was born and placed with his new parents I was driven back to the apartment and left there without any follow up care or support. I was not even given a post delivery exam by the doctor. Finally I got a letter from ACD saying I needed to vacate the apartment. That is the last I ever heard of them. Please! If your a pregnant women or a potential adoptive couple do NOT use ACD. The treat there birth mothers like breeder cattle and exploit adoptive parents for money and other "perks". They should not even be in business. Thank you.
Positive reviews are popping up every few weeks in a desperate attempt to improve the reputation of this unethical agency. Please don't believe them. The agency has not changed since we adopted in 2008. We recently had to contact them for some information regarding our adoption and they tried to charge us $200 just to find our records and were not at all nice about it either. This was true to form. They are all about the money and they certainly do not care about babies, adoptive families or birthmothers. They should not be allowed to stay in business. I have used two other agencies and the difference was like night and day. I will never forgive these people for the way they treated us and our daughter's sweet, beautiful birthmother whom they threatened and frightened. She was going through one of the most difficult experiences of her life and they treated her so badly it still makes me want to cry. They were terrible to us as well but I feel much worse about the way they treated her. Thank heaven we knew enough about adoption at that point to make things happen successfully on our own because it seemed like they wanted to sabotage us every step of the way. Please, please, find yourselves a good, ethical agency and do not risk everything by using this terrible agency.
I'm writing because I have a concern about some of the posts here. I think that some people (like tchirocat) who posted positive reviews worked with Dee Rodriguez who I believe is in A Child's Dream's Nevada office. Most of us who have written negative reviews worked with the Poulsbo, WA office. Can you confirm that you worked primarily with the Nevada office? It would be helpful for people to know that, and it might help to clear up the conflicting nature of the reviews posted. (it might be that the Nevada office is good, while many of us believe the WA office should be avoided). Because the heading of this page reads that the office is located in Poulsbo, that office may be receiving kudos earned by the Nevada office rather than itself. Likewise, my very negative experience with Anna Marie and the Poulsbo office should not necessarily be a concern to those considering the Nevada office.
I previously wrote a review on 5/18/11 entitled: Positve Experience...thanks ACD!
Well, as promised, I am back to give them the fifth star. We had some trouble with our post placement agency in our home state and ACD did everything to work with us in order to meet all of our post placement requirements. Our agency here caused us and ACD a lot of headaches. When our last post placement visit was done it took our post placement agency so long to get the paperwork to us and we wanted to finalize in December 2011. When ACD received the paperwork they got right on it and gave us an incredibly fast turn around so that our attorney could try to file in time for a December finalization. Despite the efforts of ACD we didn't finalize until January. The only reason for the hold up was the difficulties with our post placement agency. We thank ACD (especially Dee) for working on our case so quickly and giving it a terrific effort.
Adopted children are often referred to as chosen children. People with love to give and none to bestow it upon seek out a child to raise with love. Some parents choose to conceal their child's adoption thinking that it will only cause him pain and a sense of non-belonging. Others choose to tell their chosen child thinking that he will find out anyway. When a child finds out that he is adopted, it may gave rise to feelings of confusion and alienation. The important thing to remember is that having parents that love you whether biological or chosen is a tremendous gift.
This is my child, Yet she is not mine-
My flesh and blood, but their sweat and tears-
She caries my genes, Yet will be shaped by their
personalities-
She lives strong in my heart, but her heart
feels for them-
She lives in my fantasies, my dreams.
Yet she's their dream come true, their beautiful
and precious reality-
I gave her life, with which she made theirs whole
I learned so much to love her, that I let her go-
My child, their child it doesn't make sense,
Yet at the same time-
My child, my dream for her to have better, then I
could give,
Their child, their dream, to give her better then
I could give,-
My child, so painful, the hurt caused by her
leaving so much grieving,
Yet a world full of happiness in their receiving.
All I ask from anyone is to get pictures of her please not a day goes by that I do not think of her.... I beg you please. When I call please no cold shoulders please consider my feelings.. If I could turn back time I would but I cant I know you guys love her more than anything.. She is yours she belongs to you but waititng twice a year to know how she is killing me and I can't fight back the tears and my heart is breaking please....
(one star because i didn't want to inflate ACD's rating)
If anyone is looking for an alternative in the Seattle area, whether you are a birthmom or birthparents, or looking to adopt, I have an adoption lawyer contact for you:
Janna Annest http://www.annestadopt.com/home.html
I haven't worked with Ms. Annest, but know of her via mutual friends, and have talked to her on the phone and she seems great.
We used ACD when we were matched by our California facilitators (Adoption Network) in WA state. They referred us to ACD. But if someone else finds themselves in the position of needing help in WA state, please consider Janna or other alternatives -- thanks!
Yes all these comments are negative and it has nothing to do with the adoptions not going the way we want. You talk about focusing on the children, that is what ACD should be doing? We are focusing on the children, afterall that is why we are adopting. The common theme in most of these posts is that ACD is more concerned about the money than about dotting all their i's and crossing all their t's. They have used funds designated for one thing to offset other things. They can't even keep track of who their own employees are! I'm glad that your 2 adoptions went well, I'm also thankful that my 1 adoption was eventually finalized. But if you truely read all these posts then you would know that was not always the case. My hope and the hopes of several other people unfortunate enough to have gotten involved with ACD hope that we can keep some other families from having to go through what we did. You make us sound like a bunch of little kids throwing a temper tantrum. Wish it was that simple. You should take note that you are one to a whole list of others.
Recently, I adopted a beautiful baby through “A Child’s Dream”(ACD) and I am writing to report my very positive adoption experience. I worked with a reputable consultant group where my adoption led to the ACD agency. I worked with Dee Rodriguez, the agency director; Susan Scheuber, an agency social worker; and George Maricic, an agency affiliated attorney.
Mr. Maricic, “George,” served as my primary initial contact, dealt with the agency contractual arrangements and provided all information prior to departure from my home state. He was extremely professional, thorough and helpful. He encouraged all and any questions, was very willing to spend time answering questions and assured my understanding of issues. George responded quickly to inquiries; he was extremely dependable with information and necessary responses.
These same behaviors continued with Ms Rodriguez, “Dee,” and Ms Scheuber, “Susan”. They were welcoming, professional and respectful. The packet of instructions and information emailed to me was easy to follow and helpful. Dee and Susan were extremely accessible and quickly responded to questions. They displayed obvious care and concern for the baby, birthmother and for me. In my adoption placement the birthmother chose not to meet the adoptive parent(s). From my observations, Susan developed a very close, caring relationship with my birthmother.
Additionally, Dee kept the process moving efficiently. She provided hospital records at an impressive rate of speed. Diligently, she worked through the process to get us home as quickly as possible. On a couple of occasions Dee contacted me just to be sure all was going “ok.”
In closing, I had a great adoption experience with “A Child’s Dream.” I commend George, Dee and Susan for their hard work and devotion to the adoption process. While I move through the process, I look forward to completing the finalization process near the end of this year.
adoption was the most challenging experience of our life, during which we had to deal with many people, and swallow good amount of "poop". However, childs dream adoption agency was a pleasant exception. the staff members treated us with great respect, kindness and understanding.all necessary documents and services were provided in prompt and efficient manner, never rude or impatient. Special thanks to Dee Rodriguez for taking such good care of us and heplping us to get home safely and fast with our new son Lenny. i would strongly recommend this agency to anyone who is interested in adoption.
I would like to tell you all of my situation and the experience that I had with 2 agencies. I was a expecting mother who had to make a very difficult decision in my life. Whether or not I could truly provide the means of this baby I was carrying. I had spent alot of time on the computer researching and looking for an agency to help me with the decision I had made. I was confused by all the referrences I was reading. The laws are different in every state, and are very confusing to follow. I came across an agency on line who I thought would be the solution for my situation. I contacted them and they sent me all the neccesary paperwork to fill out, I sent it all back, and waited, and waited. I would end up calling them more than they called me. And I couldn't always get a hold of someone, sometimes it would take two or three phone calls first. Anyways, I was involved with this particular agency for over two months, and I had 3 weeks left before my baby was due. That agency was Adoption Spacebook. New Years Day I am sitting at my computer when all of a sudden my water broke. Three weeks early. After I had given birth of my son and was in recovery, a social worker came to inform me that the people at Adoption Spacebook had called to inform that they would no longer be able to be of service to me. She then brought me a list of agencies of who I could call to ask for service. I randomly picked one and called. A Childs Dream Adoption Agency, the representative Dee who I spoke with had a social worker Ruth at my bedside within two hours, going through all the paperwork with me. They stayed in constant contact with me through the whole process. Even after the finalization of terminating my parental rights. They walked me through every step, I never had to call them they were always calling me even just to see how I was doing. AnnMarie in the Washington office is an angel. She oversaw the whole proceedings, and always made time for me when I would call. Ruth was also great out of the Nevada office, even picked me up from my house to take me to finalize the papers and brought me a picture of my son. I even get pics and updates of how my son is doing until he turns 18 years. I was also adopted as a baby. And I never knew that it could be this way. I wished it would have been like that for me. As my child grows I get to write him letters and send him cards. And he will receive them later on. I would have died to have had that as a adopted child. I, to this day don't know who my real parents are, and Yes I would like to know, if nothing else than for the knowledge of who and where I came from. A Childs Dream Adoption Agency is absolutely AMAZING to me and I wil forever hold them in my heart for all that they have done for me and I will recommend them to whom ever asks me where to turn to. All the staff from both offices are very Understanding, Compassionate and Professional. They are truly Angels in my book. I Didn't have to do anything, they took care of it all. They had a wonderful family set up to adopt my son within two days. I got to know all the information on the Adoptive parents as well. And it was my choice to choose them or not. I felt so overwhelmed, and confused, frightened, I didn't want to reget my decision later on down the road. Giving your child up for adoption is one of the hardest decision a person could have to make in life and the guilt behind it is overwhelming. I would have never expected it to be such a emotionally wrenching decision to make. My heart was ripped out of my body and the Guilt was Unbearable. But after dealing with this agency, I can sit here today and honestly tell you that I feel good about my decision and good about who is raising my child. God bless you A Childs Dream, AnnMarie, Ruth, and Dee, my hats off to you ladies for being who you are and what you are doing. I know it must be difficult to do what you all do, but I am so glad that you were there for me. Love you all. Cyndi
Cyndi New A.K.A. synister1229
I just posted a positive comment about ACD...just want to say that I DO NOT work for ACD. I am not the owner, director and I hadn't even met any of the employees before were were matched with our birth mother. Take every review with a grain of salt (even mine, if you must) and remember that those who feel "burned" are more likely to post a review than those who had a good experience.
WOW…I can’t believe all of the bad reviews I’ve read on this site about this agency. I must say that I am in complete disagreement with these bad reviews. My husband and I just returned to our home state from Nevada with our beautiful baby girl. We found our “situation” with A Child’s Dream through a very reputable company which gives guidance to adoptive parents. We were just recovering from a disrupted adoption through another agency when we were matched with a birth mother through A Child’s Dream. It was a long match time (we were matched in late January and the baby was due in mid-May) but we put our faith in our advisors and jumped in with both feet. I’m so glad we did.
Things with the agency moved slowly in the beginning. I just felt that it was because our birth mother wasn’t due for several months and they had other birth mothers due much sooner. It took a little longer than expected to get the contract but they were also not worried about how fast we got fees to them. I kept feeling like I was just nervous and needy due to our prior “disruption”. When I expressed this to Kristi at the Washington office I was told, over and over, that I was never bothering her and I could call her anytime I needed anything or even if I was just starting to get too nervous and wanted to touch base.
Finally we got word that our birth mother was scheduled for a C section on May 13th (she had a previous C section and I knew that OB’s often will advise a mother that she might not want to labor again). The baby couldn’t wait and we got a call from Dee at the Nevada office and on 5/7/11 we were told the baby was on her way and we should make arrangements to get there as soon as possible so we could spend time with her even though we wouldn’t be officially placed with the baby until the 72 hour wait for the mom’s termination of parental rights. We met our daughter when she was about a day and a half old. Dee walked us through the whole process and, Ruth, our birth mother’s social worker, helped us so much as well. We know that Ruth helped support our birth mother emotionally and both of these ladies did the same for us. Our ICPC packet went out DAYS before we thought it would and they kept in touch with us constantly while we were in Nevada. There are still a few birth father legal issues to be worked out before finalization (which we hope will happen in December) but we feel this is all just formality and we feel sure it will all work out.
I have to say that A Child’s Dream did not work for us…they did not work for our birth mother…they worked for our daughter. She is who matters in the end. Ruth took our birth mother to her appointments and was a great help to her. She was even present for the birth of the baby when our birth mother went into labor unexpectedly and couldn't have a friend get to the hospital in time. We are so grateful that our birth mother was supported and cared for in this way. We did not feel like we were “soaked” or “taken” by our birth mother. We got a very detailed list of all expenses and how they would be dispursed BEFORE we signed anything and BEFORE we sent a penny to ACD. We know that our birth mother is happy that her baby is in the arms of a family who will love her and give her a good life. Adoption is very emotional and we know, first hand, that things can go wrong. We feel safe with A Child’s Dream and I would not hesitate to use them again if we adopt another child. I can give them 4 stars with confidence and, if our finalization goes as smoothly as the rest of the process, I will be back in December or January to change my four star rating to five.
I have adopted from ACD and have referred many clients to them and will continue to do so. It seems to me that some of you are very negative and not seeing the full picture. If someone at the agency does not worry about handling the funds then there will no more adoption. The agency has to pay the attorney's, social workers, and all fee's to the particular providers. If they do not have the money in their account how are they supposed to pay the professionals? Sounds like common sense to me. Please always remember there are two sides to a story and we have only heard yours. You all sound so angry when you should be grateful. Most of you sound like your are very bitter and your lashing out at the agency. If only we lived in a prefect world, but we don't. I can't see this agency and any of their employees that I work with being mean sprited. They were more than kind to us and everyone else I have referred so why not look deep into your hearts and try to remember the truth about your adoption. Also, as far as communication I (we) have always been able to get a hold of someone at the agency.. I Love ACD and very very grateful for my child and will go back to adopt another. Tabitha
I have had two extremely successful adoptions with A Child's Dream. While I understand that not every adoption is successful, I cannot help but notice almost all of you who have posted negative things, had successful adoptions and are able to hold your child. It seems to me a lot of you hold grudges, because it didn't go the way you wanted it to. We don't know what goes on behind the scenes when this agency is working on your behalf to make sure the adoption goes through. I think instead of just tearing an agency apart we should really focus on the children and the fact is, if they were not part of the process we would not have the children we do.
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Reviews
We will do everything we can
Our experience was so miserable from start to finish. Before we even realized our adoption would end in failure, we had decided we would not adopt a second child because of how unpleasant this agency was to work with. We've subsequently learned that the whole adoption community isn't like ACD, and adoption agencies actually can be nice to adoptive parents. Hopefully, we'll get a chance to adopt with one of the nice ones.
In the mean time, we just want to prevent other adoptive parents from having to go through the same experiences we did. One of the worst things about working with ACD was being treated so rudely while having to bite our tongue as much as possible for fear they would disrupt the adopton if we said anything wrong. As our adoption was starting to fail, they confronted me on my probably less than kind behavior toward them. When I apologized and tried explaining I was under a bit of stress but had been expecting better service (after they made us wait 2 extra hours at the hospital the night our girl was discharged so they could go out to dinner, had us fly to town 2 weeks earlier than needed before the baby was born, and refused to help when our ICPC process got hung up, resulting in us being out of town for a total of 5 weeks--not to mention all the other rude, confusing, or untrue statements they made to us along the way), they told me I couldn't talk to them about stress until I had a baby ripped out of my arms. Since our adoption ended in failure three months after our girl was born, I guess I now qualify to talk to them about stress...although I hope I never have to.
A Parent's Nightmare--Please Don't Use Them
We were told to disregard negative posts about this agency, and now are trying to prevent others from making the same mistake we did. Both adoptive and birth parents need and deserve honesty, compassion, and respect from the people helping them through the adoption process.Somewhere along the way, this agency has lost sight of these basic human needs, as the people at this agency provide anything but these qualities.
We hope and pray that there is another agency out there that can help us fulfill our dream of adoption. We are just starting to work with the regulators to help us recover from our losses with this agency, and want to warn others to avoid them lest your heart be broken too. Please send us a private message if you would like your voice to be heard with the regulators, are willing to provide character witness against them, or would simply like to learn of a few simple mistakes and pitfalls to avoid.
my worst nightmare
I totally agree with the above posts. When I saw this rating website, I immediately looked them up. That is exactly how I found them. It was our first experience in adoption, and it nearly turned into my last. After some research I found they are the exception, rather than the rule. Oops, I have to give them a star... oh well, I didn't waste much money on them.
A Parent's Nightmare
Is there a way to rate them in negative stars?
Unethical, corrupt, incompetent, rude are just some of the adjectives that come to mind. I can't imagine a worse agency to use. In the end our adoption was successful despite them. The only positive thing i can say is that the lawyer they had us use (Carol Rainey) seemed ok.
They need to be shut down, i wish we had been warned of these con artists.
Not for Children
The communication lines at ACD are horrible. We had the worst time getting hold of anybody to get our questions answered. We finally made contact with AnnaMarie and were treated like criminals for simply trying to clarify our responsibilities. She actually threatened to give our daughter to another couple after we had held her in our arms! I have never been treated so poorly. And the pricing is all "ala carte" .... the basic fee for ACD is comparable to other agencies, but ACD adds all basic costs in addition to the fee where other agencies include most costs as part of the fee. These people are in the business for the money, not for the children. I should add that their social worker Susan was very helpful, although she did not get support from the head office to handle our case when she had to take a couple of days off - leaving us stranded in Las Vegas for an extra 5 days.
They are legally "selling"
They are legally "selling" babies -meaning that they allow birthmothers to extort families for astronomical amounts of money right before the baby is due. They need to be put out of business. Never ever use these horrible people
This agency is unethical and
This agency is unethical and terrible. Words cannot express how bad this agency is. Please, never, ever, ever consider using this agency.
Experienced in adoption, and know a bad apple.....
Two years later...after a fairly routine successful adoption with this agency...I wanted to post something to warn others. I have 2 adopted children, and have worked with a networking agency too. I wanted to keep this simple. This is not a post to "express frustration or anger". It is a WARNING. Yep, you can get a baby with this agency. However, they will make you feel stupid, inadequate, bothersome, and fearful, also unsure, during the process. For the money we paid them, NOT the birthmother but them, we should have gotten a few drops of customer service. I, as others above, was "chewed out" for calling with concerns, worries which were legit. Exactly 2 phone calls in 1 month. They lost documents also --delaying ICPC. My husband and I are very social, easy going, and highly educated people, but this agency treated us like idiots. So sad that they make the process fearful instead of cautiously joyful. We will pray for them. Check out agencies in Oklahoma for a pleasant experience.
Hey
Well I was typing fast and sorry about the spelling I was just a lil frustrated at the time typing has never really been my stongpoint......... Thank you I hope I got the message across anyway.. God Bless you all..........
horrible and nasty agency
we adopted our son in may 2006 and since then I have been trying off and on to locate an online adoption agency rating website and came across this website tonight. I want to add my voice to all of the others to say that the people who work at this agency are some of the nastiest, mean-spirited people I have ever come across and clearly they are only doing adoptions in order to make money. They were nasty throughout the process not only to us, the adoptive parents, but to the birth parents, and they clearly lied about any number of things and without a doubt kept money that they said was going to go to the birth parents.
I cannot express enough about how awful they were and that is why over 4 years later I find myself writing this review. our son is wonderful, the birth parents were wonderful and even their social worker in carson city, nevada, was a decent person, but the people in the office in Poulsbo were truly some of the most wretched individuals I have ever encountered. Please find another adoption agency to use and if you have to use them beware that they are nasty crooks and will do everything they can to make your life difficult.
good luck in the adoption process.
p.s., I only gave them a star because the rating field is required. if possible I would give them a negative rating of somewhere between 8 to 10 (with 10 being the lowest).
Successful Adoption - Terrible Experience
I would like to reiterate what others have posted that the positive comments had to have come from A Child Dream's staff. I saw a posting in the Washngton Yellow Pages that was posted by Michael, the owner, so I know they have done this before.
We had a successful adoption with A Child's Dream, but it could not have been more unnecessarily difficult. Basically, once they have your money they could care less. And this is the charitable interpretation of their behavior. What's fascinating is that this seems to be the general consensus in the Puget Sound adoption community as well, and these are individuals that work with A Child's Dream on a frequent, professional basis. And they are NOT dissapointed parents, nor for that matter are we. We are so grateful for our child, but stunned at how an agency in this field of work could be so unprofessional.
We agree with those who stated that Anamarie was needlessly insensitive, but we had even worse experiences with someone named Kristi Hoffman. However, not everyone there is awful - there is someone who works there named Micah who seemed very nice and helpful, but ultimately she had no power to make the place a better agency. Michael, Anamarie's husband and the owner, also seemed very nice, but it must have been superficial, since he has to know how horribly the agency is run, but does nothing to improve it.
The worst agency ever
There is no way that anyone honestly had a good experience with ACD and specifically Anamarie. She must be writing the positive reviews herself. She is the rudest, most unethical adoption "professional" (or person for that matter) that I have ever encountered. I think she has a severe mental illness because there is no other excuse for the way she treated us. We needed very simple help with an already identified birthmother and we signed on with ACD at the very last minute because it was too late to find another agency. Anamarie did everything in her power to sabotage our adoption. She seemed to be angry at us and hate us before we ever even had a conversation with her. We made it happen ourselves through sheer force of will and we had to push ACD along every step of the way. They repeatedly asked for more money after telling us it was a one time fee. It got VERY expensive when they really didn't have to do much of anything in our case at all. They were insulting and terrifying to our daughter's birthmother, at one point telling her they were going to take the baby away from us and place her with another couple. Our birthmother was absolutely horrified and cried all day until she found out they couldn't really do that. I can't understand how they stay in business. I have adopted one other child with another agency which was fine but ACD was truly appalling.
Are the positive Postings Real or Plants?
I find it hard to believe that the positive postings about this agency are posted by people unrelated to this agency--unless there is a branch somewhere in the country with completely different workers. We did not imagine our experience at all...we were treated rudely and unprofessionally every step of the way, and we watched everyone around us treated equally as poorly as well. We initially vowed to never adopt again (before there became a problem with our adoption), because we never wanted to be treated this way again.
If you really have had a positive experience with this agency, great. But for others out there, we just want to warn you to prepare yourself for unpleasant treatment. As my adoption was failing, I was told I could not talk to this agency about stress since I had never had a baby ripped out of my arms (apparently, I only qualified to talk about stress once I experienced the actual pain a month later). The day our baby was returned after 3 months in our care, they tried to offer us another baby (before the transfer even occurred). And finally, when our baby girl was a few minutes late for the transfer, they left threats on our answering machine to call the FBI.
You'd think we were making this up, but we are not. We haven't even mentioned all the negative things we heard this agency say about both birth parents thorughout our failed adoption process. Adoptive parents, please be aware. If you are callous and don't mind poor quality treatment (including being accused of missing paperwork you have already provided, being given wrong advice, and being insulted throughout the adoption process), go ahead and use this agency. By the goodness of God, not this agency, you might end up with a wonderful baby despite the way this agency has treated so many of the rest of us. If there is a good office out there, by all means, please share where it is. If you say it's in Poulsbo, then I find it hard to believe it's true. We had anything but a pleasant experience with them (with anyone other than their attorney, Carol Rainey), and would have felt the same way whether or not our adoption went through. We cannot believe how different we have subsequently found other agencies to be.
A Child's Dream is anything but
I can't even bring myself to give them any type of rating. They placed our oldest son with us. While I am grateful for that, that is about all. Their social worker dropped him off at our motel, we signed papers, she asked for the clothes back that he had on (so he came to us in a blanket and diaper) and that is the last we saw of her. The only phone calls that we received were from AnnaMarie wanting to know where her check was! At the time of our finalization (up until then we had heard nothing from her) we were contacted and she tried to tell us our finalization was illegal! Claiming we had not summited all the necessary paperwork. We also lost any money that was put in trust for possible counseling and they claimed it had been used to off set additional costs. Needless to say, they really need to be put out of business. I make sure to spread the word whenever the topic of adoption comes up.
DO NOT WORK WITH THIS AGENCY!!!!!
DO NOT WORK WITH THIS AGENCY!!!!! Every negative thing I read about them absolutely came true!!!! I even wondered how some of the people who posted were mad even after they got a baby -- I can see why now!! We didn't get a baby from them, but if we had, I'd still say DO NOT WORK WITH THEM! First, they are as rude as you can imagine - for no reason at all. You'd think that wouldn't bother you, but it's so unecessary and blatent. And just like others have experienced, they start tacking on thousands of dollars at the last minute - while being rude about it. They should not be in business! Please do yourself a favor and do not work with this agency. Believe the negative posts! Anything positive you read was written by them! They don't deserve the one star I had to give them.
A birth mother's nightmare
About 5 years ago I used this agency in placing my then unborn son up for adoption. I have no regrets in my decision but the memory of this agency still haunts me. I first met with a women named Gina who talked me into signing a contract with them. She then arranged for me to live in a apartment complex over an hour away from my family. Stating that "sometimes it just best to get away from family" . I was not even allowed to see my own doctor. A doctor was arranged for me by Gina and she actually went to all the appointments. She had me do a phone interview with a man in Georgia who wanted me "to gage the color of my sons skin color". When I refused to talk to him anymore she demanded I reconsider sighting he is "very wealthy". After I refused then Gina really turned mean and was very cruel and emotionally degrading and abusive to me. I placed a call to ACD and spoke with AnneMarie. I begged her for a new case worker and she said it would be arranged, it never was. When I did settle on a couple to adopt my son Gina arranged for them to TAKE HER to lunch. I thought it was very unprofessional for her to expect them to pay for her to go out. Originally the open adoption arrangement was to include a visit with my son once a year. But then Gina decided that it was not going to be like that. When I could not take it anymore I tried to get away from ACD and that's when I was threatened with a lawsuit. I later found out that Gina is not the "specially trained" case worker she claims to be. She is in fact the daughter of the owner of ACD. I also found out later that no such lawsuit could be filed by ACD. Another of Gina's lie's. After my son was born and placed with his new parents I was driven back to the apartment and left there without any follow up care or support. I was not even given a post delivery exam by the doctor. Finally I got a letter from ACD saying I needed to vacate the apartment. That is the last I ever heard of them. Please! If your a pregnant women or a potential adoptive couple do NOT use ACD. The treat there birth mothers like breeder cattle and exploit adoptive parents for money and other "perks". They should not even be in business. Thank you.
Do Not Believe The Positive Reviews
Positive reviews are popping up every few weeks in a desperate attempt to improve the reputation of this unethical agency. Please don't believe them. The agency has not changed since we adopted in 2008. We recently had to contact them for some information regarding our adoption and they tried to charge us $200 just to find our records and were not at all nice about it either. This was true to form. They are all about the money and they certainly do not care about babies, adoptive families or birthmothers. They should not be allowed to stay in business. I have used two other agencies and the difference was like night and day. I will never forgive these people for the way they treated us and our daughter's sweet, beautiful birthmother whom they threatened and frightened. She was going through one of the most difficult experiences of her life and they treated her so badly it still makes me want to cry. They were terrible to us as well but I feel much worse about the way they treated her. Thank heaven we knew enough about adoption at that point to make things happen successfully on our own because it seemed like they wanted to sabotage us every step of the way. Please, please, find yourselves a good, ethical agency and do not risk everything by using this terrible agency.
Please state whether you used the Poulsbo or Nevada ACD office
I'm writing because I have a concern about some of the posts here. I think that some people (like tchirocat) who posted positive reviews worked with Dee Rodriguez who I believe is in A Child's Dream's Nevada office. Most of us who have written negative reviews worked with the Poulsbo, WA office. Can you confirm that you worked primarily with the Nevada office? It would be helpful for people to know that, and it might help to clear up the conflicting nature of the reviews posted. (it might be that the Nevada office is good, while many of us believe the WA office should be avoided). Because the heading of this page reads that the office is located in Poulsbo, that office may be receiving kudos earned by the Nevada office rather than itself. Likewise, my very negative experience with Anna Marie and the Poulsbo office should not necessarily be a concern to those considering the Nevada office.
Thank you!
Finalization Went Great
I previously wrote a review on 5/18/11 entitled: Positve Experience...thanks ACD!
Well, as promised, I am back to give them the fifth star. We had some trouble with our post placement agency in our home state and ACD did everything to work with us in order to meet all of our post placement requirements. Our agency here caused us and ACD a lot of headaches. When our last post placement visit was done it took our post placement agency so long to get the paperwork to us and we wanted to finalize in December 2011. When ACD received the paperwork they got right on it and gave us an incredibly fast turn around so that our attorney could try to file in time for a December finalization. Despite the efforts of ACD we didn't finalize until January. The only reason for the hold up was the difficulties with our post placement agency. We thank ACD (especially Dee) for working on our case so quickly and giving it a terrific effort.
Is everyone from Calif and
Is everyone from Calif and that is why you are using George? Or does he practice in Nevada too?
My feelings......
Adopted children are often referred to as chosen children. People with love to give and none to bestow it upon seek out a child to raise with love. Some parents choose to conceal their child's adoption thinking that it will only cause him pain and a sense of non-belonging. Others choose to tell their chosen child thinking that he will find out anyway. When a child finds out that he is adopted, it may gave rise to feelings of confusion and alienation. The important thing to remember is that having parents that love you whether biological or chosen is a tremendous gift.
This is my child, Yet she is not mine-
My flesh and blood, but their sweat and tears-
She caries my genes, Yet will be shaped by their
personalities-
She lives strong in my heart, but her heart
feels for them-
She lives in my fantasies, my dreams.
Yet she's their dream come true, their beautiful
and precious reality-
I gave her life, with which she made theirs whole
I learned so much to love her, that I let her go-
My child, their child it doesn't make sense,
Yet at the same time-
My child, my dream for her to have better, then I
could give,
Their child, their dream, to give her better then
I could give,-
My child, so painful, the hurt caused by her
leaving so much grieving,
Yet a world full of happiness in their receiving.
All I ask from anyone is to get pictures of her please not a day goes by that I do not think of her.... I beg you please. When I call please no cold shoulders please consider my feelings.. If I could turn back time I would but I cant I know you guys love her more than anything.. She is yours she belongs to you but waititng twice a year to know how she is killing me and I can't fight back the tears and my heart is breaking please....
An alternative resource in the Seattle area
(one star because i didn't want to inflate ACD's rating)
If anyone is looking for an alternative in the Seattle area, whether you are a birthmom or birthparents, or looking to adopt, I have an adoption lawyer contact for you:
Janna Annest
http://www.annestadopt.com/home.html
I haven't worked with Ms. Annest, but know of her via mutual friends, and have talked to her on the phone and she seems great.
We used ACD when we were matched by our California facilitators (Adoption Network) in WA state. They referred us to ACD. But if someone else finds themselves in the position of needing help in WA state, please consider Janna or other alternatives -- thanks!
Dan
Are you truely observing?
Yes all these comments are negative and it has nothing to do with the adoptions not going the way we want. You talk about focusing on the children, that is what ACD should be doing? We are focusing on the children, afterall that is why we are adopting. The common theme in most of these posts is that ACD is more concerned about the money than about dotting all their i's and crossing all their t's. They have used funds designated for one thing to offset other things. They can't even keep track of who their own employees are! I'm glad that your 2 adoptions went well, I'm also thankful that my 1 adoption was eventually finalized. But if you truely read all these posts then you would know that was not always the case. My hope and the hopes of several other people unfortunate enough to have gotten involved with ACD hope that we can keep some other families from having to go through what we did. You make us sound like a bunch of little kids throwing a temper tantrum. Wish it was that simple. You should take note that you are one to a whole list of others.
A Positive Experience with A Child's Dream
Recently, I adopted a beautiful baby through “A Child’s Dream”(ACD) and I am writing to report my very positive adoption experience. I worked with a reputable consultant group where my adoption led to the ACD agency. I worked with Dee Rodriguez, the agency director; Susan Scheuber, an agency social worker; and George Maricic, an agency affiliated attorney.
Mr. Maricic, “George,” served as my primary initial contact, dealt with the agency contractual arrangements and provided all information prior to departure from my home state. He was extremely professional, thorough and helpful. He encouraged all and any questions, was very willing to spend time answering questions and assured my understanding of issues. George responded quickly to inquiries; he was extremely dependable with information and necessary responses.
These same behaviors continued with Ms Rodriguez, “Dee,” and Ms Scheuber, “Susan”. They were welcoming, professional and respectful. The packet of instructions and information emailed to me was easy to follow and helpful. Dee and Susan were extremely accessible and quickly responded to questions. They displayed obvious care and concern for the baby, birthmother and for me. In my adoption placement the birthmother chose not to meet the adoptive parent(s). From my observations, Susan developed a very close, caring relationship with my birthmother.
Additionally, Dee kept the process moving efficiently. She provided hospital records at an impressive rate of speed. Diligently, she worked through the process to get us home as quickly as possible. On a couple of occasions Dee contacted me just to be sure all was going “ok.”
In closing, I had a great adoption experience with “A Child’s Dream.” I commend George, Dee and Susan for their hard work and devotion to the adoption process. While I move through the process, I look forward to completing the finalization process near the end of this year.
dream agency, excellent and knowlegable professional staff
adoption was the most challenging experience of our life, during which we had to deal with many people, and swallow good amount of "poop". However, childs dream adoption agency was a pleasant exception. the staff members treated us with great respect, kindness and understanding.all necessary documents and services were provided in prompt and efficient manner, never rude or impatient. Special thanks to Dee Rodriguez for taking such good care of us and heplping us to get home safely and fast with our new son Lenny. i would strongly recommend this agency to anyone who is interested in adoption.
More than I ever expected. Truly AMAZING agency.
I would like to tell you all of my situation and the experience that I had with 2 agencies. I was a expecting mother who had to make a very difficult decision in my life. Whether or not I could truly provide the means of this baby I was carrying. I had spent alot of time on the computer researching and looking for an agency to help me with the decision I had made. I was confused by all the referrences I was reading. The laws are different in every state, and are very confusing to follow. I came across an agency on line who I thought would be the solution for my situation. I contacted them and they sent me all the neccesary paperwork to fill out, I sent it all back, and waited, and waited. I would end up calling them more than they called me. And I couldn't always get a hold of someone, sometimes it would take two or three phone calls first. Anyways, I was involved with this particular agency for over two months, and I had 3 weeks left before my baby was due. That agency was Adoption Spacebook. New Years Day I am sitting at my computer when all of a sudden my water broke. Three weeks early. After I had given birth of my son and was in recovery, a social worker came to inform me that the people at Adoption Spacebook had called to inform that they would no longer be able to be of service to me. She then brought me a list of agencies of who I could call to ask for service. I randomly picked one and called. A Childs Dream Adoption Agency, the representative Dee who I spoke with had a social worker Ruth at my bedside within two hours, going through all the paperwork with me. They stayed in constant contact with me through the whole process. Even after the finalization of terminating my parental rights. They walked me through every step, I never had to call them they were always calling me even just to see how I was doing. AnnMarie in the Washington office is an angel. She oversaw the whole proceedings, and always made time for me when I would call. Ruth was also great out of the Nevada office, even picked me up from my house to take me to finalize the papers and brought me a picture of my son. I even get pics and updates of how my son is doing until he turns 18 years. I was also adopted as a baby. And I never knew that it could be this way. I wished it would have been like that for me. As my child grows I get to write him letters and send him cards. And he will receive them later on. I would have died to have had that as a adopted child. I, to this day don't know who my real parents are, and Yes I would like to know, if nothing else than for the knowledge of who and where I came from. A Childs Dream Adoption Agency is absolutely AMAZING to me and I wil forever hold them in my heart for all that they have done for me and I will recommend them to whom ever asks me where to turn to. All the staff from both offices are very Understanding, Compassionate and Professional. They are truly Angels in my book. I Didn't have to do anything, they took care of it all. They had a wonderful family set up to adopt my son within two days. I got to know all the information on the Adoptive parents as well. And it was my choice to choose them or not. I felt so overwhelmed, and confused, frightened, I didn't want to reget my decision later on down the road. Giving your child up for adoption is one of the hardest decision a person could have to make in life and the guilt behind it is overwhelming. I would have never expected it to be such a emotionally wrenching decision to make. My heart was ripped out of my body and the Guilt was Unbearable. But after dealing with this agency, I can sit here today and honestly tell you that I feel good about my decision and good about who is raising my child. God bless you A Childs Dream, AnnMarie, Ruth, and Dee, my hats off to you ladies for being who you are and what you are doing. I know it must be difficult to do what you all do, but I am so glad that you were there for me. Love you all. Cyndi
Cyndi New A.K.A. synister1229
One more thing...
I just posted a positive comment about ACD...just want to say that I DO NOT work for ACD. I am not the owner, director and I hadn't even met any of the employees before were were matched with our birth mother. Take every review with a grain of salt (even mine, if you must) and remember that those who feel "burned" are more likely to post a review than those who had a good experience.
Positve Experience...thanks ACD!
WOW…I can’t believe all of the bad reviews I’ve read on this site about this agency. I must say that I am in complete disagreement with these bad reviews. My husband and I just returned to our home state from Nevada with our beautiful baby girl. We found our “situation” with A Child’s Dream through a very reputable company which gives guidance to adoptive parents. We were just recovering from a disrupted adoption through another agency when we were matched with a birth mother through A Child’s Dream. It was a long match time (we were matched in late January and the baby was due in mid-May) but we put our faith in our advisors and jumped in with both feet. I’m so glad we did.
Things with the agency moved slowly in the beginning. I just felt that it was because our birth mother wasn’t due for several months and they had other birth mothers due much sooner. It took a little longer than expected to get the contract but they were also not worried about how fast we got fees to them. I kept feeling like I was just nervous and needy due to our prior “disruption”. When I expressed this to Kristi at the Washington office I was told, over and over, that I was never bothering her and I could call her anytime I needed anything or even if I was just starting to get too nervous and wanted to touch base.
Finally we got word that our birth mother was scheduled for a C section on May 13th (she had a previous C section and I knew that OB’s often will advise a mother that she might not want to labor again). The baby couldn’t wait and we got a call from Dee at the Nevada office and on 5/7/11 we were told the baby was on her way and we should make arrangements to get there as soon as possible so we could spend time with her even though we wouldn’t be officially placed with the baby until the 72 hour wait for the mom’s termination of parental rights. We met our daughter when she was about a day and a half old. Dee walked us through the whole process and, Ruth, our birth mother’s social worker, helped us so much as well. We know that Ruth helped support our birth mother emotionally and both of these ladies did the same for us. Our ICPC packet went out DAYS before we thought it would and they kept in touch with us constantly while we were in Nevada. There are still a few birth father legal issues to be worked out before finalization (which we hope will happen in December) but we feel this is all just formality and we feel sure it will all work out.
I have to say that A Child’s Dream did not work for us…they did not work for our birth mother…they worked for our daughter. She is who matters in the end. Ruth took our birth mother to her appointments and was a great help to her. She was even present for the birth of the baby when our birth mother went into labor unexpectedly and couldn't have a friend get to the hospital in time. We are so grateful that our birth mother was supported and cared for in this way. We did not feel like we were “soaked” or “taken” by our birth mother. We got a very detailed list of all expenses and how they would be dispursed BEFORE we signed anything and BEFORE we sent a penny to ACD. We know that our birth mother is happy that her baby is in the arms of a family who will love her and give her a good life. Adoption is very emotional and we know, first hand, that things can go wrong. We feel safe with A Child’s Dream and I would not hesitate to use them again if we adopt another child. I can give them 4 stars with confidence and, if our finalization goes as smoothly as the rest of the process, I will be back in December or January to change my four star rating to five.
Successful
I have adopted from ACD and have referred many clients to them and will continue to do so. It seems to me that some of you are very negative and not seeing the full picture. If someone at the agency does not worry about handling the funds then there will no more adoption. The agency has to pay the attorney's, social workers, and all fee's to the particular providers. If they do not have the money in their account how are they supposed to pay the professionals? Sounds like common sense to me. Please always remember there are two sides to a story and we have only heard yours. You all sound so angry when you should be grateful. Most of you sound like your are very bitter and your lashing out at the agency. If only we lived in a prefect world, but we don't. I can't see this agency and any of their employees that I work with being mean sprited. They were more than kind to us and everyone else I have referred so why not look deep into your hearts and try to remember the truth about your adoption. Also, as far as communication I (we) have always been able to get a hold of someone at the agency.. I Love ACD and very very grateful for my child and will go back to adopt another. Tabitha
Just an observation
I have had two extremely successful adoptions with A Child's Dream. While I understand that not every adoption is successful, I cannot help but notice almost all of you who have posted negative things, had successful adoptions and are able to hold your child. It seems to me a lot of you hold grudges, because it didn't go the way you wanted it to. We don't know what goes on behind the scenes when this agency is working on your behalf to make sure the adoption goes through. I think instead of just tearing an agency apart we should really focus on the children and the fact is, if they were not part of the process we would not have the children we do.