[thesearchguru]

Greetings!
My name is Colleen Buckner and I am an adoptive mom that searched for and located my daughter's birth family in 1994. If you have any questions about search specifics in your state just let me know and I will try to direct you to resources that can assist you in your search journey. Be sure and let me know:

...the state of birth for the adoptee
...the adoption agency that handled the adoption

[chillian008]

Hi Colleen, I am a 25 yr. old adoptee beginning the search for my birth mother/family. I was adopted in South Carolina in 1976 through Catholic Charities and the records are sealed. Was wondering the best way to go about the search. How do I petition the court?? How can I find out if legal notices were required in SC or Florida at that time?? How much do lawyers charge to open records?? Thanks!

[thesearchguru]

Hi Heather,

You mentioned both South Carolina and Florida but said that you were adopted in South Carolina. Were you born in Florida? The first thing you should do is request your "non-identifying information" about your birth parents from Catholic Charities. This will give you the ages of the birth parents, marital status, education, religion, and reason for relinquishment. You should also request a "Waiver for Consent to Contact" from Catholic Charities. If a member of your birth family also files a waiver the agency will try to reunite you.

In order to petition the court find out what county your adoptive parents were living in at the time of your adoption. Call the court office, usually in the Family Court Division, and request their petition form to use to open a sealed adoption file.

Usually legal notices were filed for several reasons including if the birth father did not sign the relinquishment papers. Normally the legal notices were filed in another city or in a legal trade journal that is not usually read by the public. If the law required that a legal notice be filed (and not all adoptions had this requirement) then the notice was generally filed in an obscure publication.

Attorney fees vary from state to state regarding filing to open a sealed file. You might check the yellow pages in your local phone book under "Adoption Services" and see if it lists any attorneys that specialize in adoptions.

You might also check with this support group in South Carolina for additional search resources:

Heather Lowe
Phone: 843-821-5034
email: hslowe@earthlink.net
website: //hslowe.tripod.com/index-2.html

Warmest Regards,
The Search Guru

[LEIGHRANCH]

HI COLLEEN, I AM A BIRTH MOTHER TRYING FOR THE FIRST TIME ON-LINE TO LOCATE MY DAUGHTER, BORN 05/28/68 IN PACIFIC HOSPITAL, LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA, BIRTH NAME OF ANGELA ATKNISON. I REGISTERED YEARS AGO WITH AN AGENCY CALLED T.R.Y (TODAY REUNITES YESTERDAY) IN MASS. BUT HAVE NEVER HAD SUCCESS. I WAS FORCED TO GIVE HER UP AGAINST MY WILL AND WOULD APPRECIATE ANY HELP. I DONT KNOW VERY MUCH ABOUT USING THE COMPUTER YET, I M JUST LEARNING THE INTERNET. IT WAS HANDLED THROUGH THE STATE AND COUNTY I BELIEVE AND MY COPIES OF THE ADOPTION WERE TAKEN AND DESTROYED BY MY MOTHER. PLEASE HELP????? THANK YOU

[thesearchguru]

Hi Leigh,

The first thing you need to do is contact the adoption agency that handled the adoption and request "non-identifying" information about the adopting family. You also need to request a "Waiver for Consent to Contact" form. Fill out the consent form and return it to the agency to be placed in your daughter's adoption file. If your daughter does the same thing the agency will try to reconnect both of you.

If you do not know the name of the agency contact this office below and request the waiver and non-id forms. If it was a private adoption this agency will send you the form and non-identifying information. If it was an agency adoption they will give you the name, address and phone number of the agency and have you request the waiver form and non-identifying request through them.

State of California
Dept of Post Adoptions
744 P Street MS 19-31
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-322-3778

Also, post your information on as many on-line registries as you can. Be sure and leave your email address in the message. Give the date of birth, place of birth, your maiden name at the time of relinquishment and the name of the adoption agency used. It's important that you do not change your email address while you are waiting for a response. Many possible reunions are thwarted because the message contains an invalid and no longer functioning email address.

Warmest regards,
Colleen Buckner
email:

[Stacey Bailey]

Hi Collen, my name is Stacey Bailey. I am a 35 year old adopte. I was born in Geneva, New York. And if I read my adoption paper correctly my parents didn't go through an agency, but through lawyers. The firm was Antell, Harris, Githler & Calleri in Rochester, New York. I am not really sure what other information you might need. This is all new to me. Thank you in advance for any help that you can give me.

[thesearchguru]

Hi Stacey,
If your adoptive parents are open to talking about your adoption they might have some information that they haven't shared with you yet. There possibly might be paperwork with your original birth name on it if you were a private adoption. Some adoptive parents have a "if they don't ask...don't tell". Also, they might think that you aren't interested in knowing so they haven't brought it up in conversation.

Also, contact this office below and request that your adoption information be placed on the New York Registry and request information abut your "non-identifying" information in your adoption file. This non-identifying information will give the ages, occupations, marital status, physical description of your birth parents. It may also give valuable information about your aunts, uncles and grandparents.

State of New York
New York Adoption Registry
POB 2602
Albany, NY 12220

Warmest regards,
Colleen
email:

[sassy]

Hi I am looking for my neice she was adopted from Lancaster cailf by The losangels adoption agency for lancaster cailf. her birth name was Regina ann McCallerster her birth mom was rebeccka McCallersterand regina was born on sept 22 1974 I am her aunt and her Birth mom is looking for her and asked me to try to find her plz if anyone know how I can find her Or knows her plz let her know we are looking for her..we really want to find her and her mom told me to tell her she loves her very much ty again Sassy :} blue

[thesearchguru]

Hi Sassy,
There are several things that will help in your search but because of California adoption laws the birth mother needs to be involved because it will require her signature for authorization. This is the office that she needs to contact:

County of Los Angeles
Department of Children and Family Services
Adoptions
695 S. Vermont Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90005
Phone: 213-739-6262

The birthmother should write a letter to the agency above giving the following information:

...current name and address and phone number
...name at the time of relinquishment
...name of the birthfather
...date of birth of child
...place of birth of child (hospital/city/county/state)
...gender of child

In the letter the birthmother should request 1) "non-identifying information" about the adopting family and 2) request a "Waiver for Consent to Contact" to fill out and have placed in the adoption file. Social Workers seldom will tell a birthmother about the Waiver Form and it is up to the birthparent to know to ask for it. If the adoptee has also requested a waiver and it is in the file the agency will try to reunite the adoptee and birthparent.

The birthmother should attach a copy of her driver's license to the request for the Waiver and the Non-identifying information and have the form notarized before signing and mailing. She should also keep a copy for her records and follow-up with the agency to make sure that the requests don't get lost in the system.

The birthmother should also try to find an adoption support group in her area so that she can share her search journey and experience the journey of other adoptees and birthparents. If you don't know of a support group in your area let me know what city and state she lives in and I will try to find a group that is closeby if possible.

Warmest regards,
Colleen Buckner
Email:

[ajoy]

Hi Colleen,

I was born Dec 2, 1976 in Oregon and adopted in Oregon at 5 yrs old. I believe the adoption was handled through the state and I have requested an original/pre-adoption birth certificate from the Vital Statistics office. If I do not locate anyone from the names on the birth certificate, who do I contact in Oregon for assistance? Thanks! My case worker has remarried and I do not know her new last name. I appreciate your help!
Very Truly,

Audrey

[thesearchguru]

One of the best non-profit, volunteer organizations that will help you search in Oregon is WARM. You can contact them at:
email: warm@wolfenet.com
website: www.wolfenet.com/~warm/
Phone: 206-767-9510
Warmest regards,
Colleen
Email:

[velosity]

Hello Coleen and thank you for being here. I have to issues that are very hard to deal with. First my Son Joey DOB:12/18/73, He was taken from me in 1975 by an over zealous case worker, who felt that as a white woman i shouldnt have married a Black man. I wont take up your time now but when my son turned 23, i figured she wouldnt be there anymore i called social services, she was still there. She told me that it would be impossible to find my son because she was sure his adoptive parents moved with him to china. Later on I tried again and another woman said after so long there are no follow ups. My husband his Father was tragically killed in 1980, right after our 3rd child was born in Feb of 79. Iam also searching for our daughter Marie Annette. 02/09/79. Where can you go when it seems a system lost your children. Thank you so much again. patti6645@yahoo.com

[thesearchguru]

Greetings,
Please check the posts that I replied to on your two other messages. I went into a lot of detail for the states involved in the birth, relinquishment and adoption of your three children. Contact the offices that I suggested and request the forms and information that I listed that were available to you as a searching birth parent.
Warmest regards,
Colleen

[pemartin]

You had indicated in a post that you can assist individuals searching for loved ones. Can you please give me some pointers about searching for twin siblings in Rochester, NY. You can email me at: isotwins1967@yahoo.com

I am already registred w/ISRR and NYS

[thesearchguru]

WELCOME TO THE SEARCH AND REUNION MESSAGE BOARD!

If you know what adoption agency handled the adoption contact them for information from the adoption file that will help you with your search. If you do not know the name of the agency contact this office:

New York Adoption Registry
POB 2602
Albany, NY 12220
Phone: 518-474-1746
Website for more information: http://www.health.state.ny.us/nysdoh...s/registry.htm

“Non-identifying information” is information from the adoption file about the birth parents. It generally includes ages, marital status, states of birth, education, religion, occupations and a physical description of the birth parents. It should also include the reason for relinquishment and may include information about aunts, uncles and grandparents. It is called “non-identifying information” because it does not include any identifying information such as names, addresses or social security numbers. If you are an adoptee and already have your non-identifying information but it is information given to your adoptive parents at the time of your adoption you should re-apply for the non-identifying information. Agencies are giving out much more comprehensive information now that they did in the past.

The “Mutual Consent Registry” is a registry where adoptees and birth parents can register the adoption information. If both parties register normally the agency responsible for the registry will notify both parties that consent has been given to contact each other. Adoptees must have been born AND adopted in New York to use this registry. Contact the office in Albany above.



Colleen Buckner
The Search Guru


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