[thesearchguru]

Welcome to the Search and Reunion Message Board!

Here is some information for searching in the province of Quebec:

General Searching Information for Adoptees born in Canada and taken to the USA.

If anyone was born in Canada and adopted by American adoptive parents and taken to the United States, contact the US Dept. of Immigration and obtain a copy of your Entry Visa. This form should show your full birthname. This is required for all persons taking up permanent residence in the U.S.


General
This is the office for Greater Montreal Area. There are smaller, local offices around the province. This location will give you information on where to contact if your adoption was completed outside Montreal.

Centre de Protection de l'Enfance et de la Jeunesse
Service de l'Adoption
1001 boul. Maisonneuve est, 6e etage
Montreal, PQ H2L 4R5
Tel: (514) 896-3200
Fax: (514) 896-3190
service for "Antecedents biologiques" (514) 896-3155 [answering machine]

Registry
To get non-identifying information (or Antecedents biologiques) you have to contact the provincial government agencies. If you don’t know the agency, please contact the address above.

Adoptions that went through English/Jewish agencies (called "Children Service Center", "Ville-Marie Social Services", "Children Aid Society of Montreal"...) are handled by:

Batshaw Family Services (was Ville Marie Social Services Centre)
6 Weredale Park
Westmount, Quebec H3Z 1Y6
Tel: (514) 932-7161

Non-Identifying Information
Available, but as of January 1994 the Centre was years behind the requests.

Passive Registry
Priority is given to reunions requested for medical reasons and where the birth parent is more than 70 years old. If there is a corresponding applicant, a match is generally made within six months. Service is available to adoptees and birth parents.

Active Search
Active searches are done on behalf of adult adoptees and birth relatives. The cost is $450. If the birth mother denies contact, they will not contact anyone else. If the birth mother is deceased, Centre Jeunesse or Batshaw does not search for the birth father or birth relatives because the mother died with her secrets so the file is closed.

There's a "Project Pilote" (trial project) at the Ville Marie (Batshaw) and Centre Jeunesse where the social worker will trace the birth mother (Child) and ask her/them if she /he wishes to contact and would agree to a reunion, where the Social Worker will trace the birth mother and ask her if she wishes contact and would agree to a reunion. By law they are only allowed to INFORM her, and cannot SOLICIT!

They'll advise the birth mother on the different avenues (anonymous contact, letters...) With this Project, you'll have to pay the Social Worker (government doesn't assume their fees or expenses for that service). They'll have files for all legal adoptions. Those made from private sources outside the government agencies (called in those years "Societe d'adoption et de protection de l'enfance") are unfortunately not accessible by them.

Mouvement Retrouvailles is an independent support group whose members are children and birth parents, who would like to find their child or mother. They do not do any search but have a database with names of mothers and children that they can search for a match and then have it verified by Centre Jeunesse before putting them in contact with one another. For more information, contact:

telephone (450) 445-1795, cell phone (514) 817-5045.

Since April 1995, this trial project is available everywhere in the province. Please notify them of your whereabouts! They have cases pending because people have moved (married...), and didn't forward their new address!

Costs:
$150 fee for localization, tracking down;
$180 fee paid in two installments for preparation, counseling prior to the reunion;
$120 fee for the reunion.
If the birth mother refuses contact, you won't pay for the $300 fees (only $150). The Social Workers aren't allowed to make a second contact. But the birth mother can change her mind any time (even years after), and call the social services.
The pilot project was originally run from September 1993 until March 1994. At that time there were approximately 1500 outstanding requests.

Counselling
Available prior to reunion.




Email:


Other great websites to check out:
http://www.adoptionchat.com
http://www.adoptionlists.com
http://www.adoption.com
http://www.adopting.org
http://registry.adoption.com/