New Jersey Adoption Resource Clearing House

Our International Team is excited to host this webinar and to share information about adopting from South Africa. Spence-Chapin is proud to have the longest history of any US-based agency of facilitating adoption from South Africa and we work with adoptive families living across the entire United States. The South Africa program welcomes adoptive applicants regardless of marital status or sexual orientation. In this webinar we will discuss common medical and developmental needs of children who are currently living in South Africa and waiting for their forever families. We will provide an overview the adoption process. We look forward to answering any questions you may have about adoption in general and specific questions about adoption from South Africa.

RSVP by July 25th to CieraM@afth.org or AmandaG@afth.org

Please bring a picnic lunch!

Join AFTH staff and families for a time to connect with your community. AFTH will provide snacks and drinks, and there will be a few raffles! Children and families will have access to playgrounds, shared pavilions, and bathrooms are down the street.

Attention: If you are inviting your child’s birth family, please send a letter of invitation for us to pass along. Include a separate confidential note to our staff with your full name and birth parent’s name. Be sure to send it in with enough time for us to forward to your child’s birth parent & receive response.  Note: Birthparents will not be invited without adoptive parent initiation. An invitation to birth families is kept in your child’s record. 

Monthly virtual support calls provide a safe space for BIPOC adoptive, foster and kinship parents of BIPOC teens and young adults.

Join Raquel Vivanco, Director of the Adoptive Parents of Color Collaborative (APCC) and fellow adoptive parent, to find community and talk about parenting adopted and foster teens and young adults of color, including challenges, and helpful strategies. We will discuss how relationships shift as our young ones grow in their journey and how we can support ourselves and our loved ones.

These calls are free to current members of Pact. If you do not have a current Pact membership you can join or renew at pactadopt.org.

This call is for people of color who are parenting adopted/foster teens and young adults of color.  Please be respectful of their space.

This evidence-based, trauma-informed workshop helps parents recognize the signs and symptoms of prenatal substance exposure and trains them on techniques that work best with kids exposed prenatally to alcohol and drugs. Each 90 minute session is held on Zoom and includes facilitated discussion with other caregivers working with these children. We are able to offer this workshop free through the support of the Jockey Being Family®Foundation.

Learning Objectives:

1. Learn to recognize the primary symptoms and secondary impacts of prenatal substance exposure.
2. Understand and learn the process and available resources for diagnosis.
3. Understand the five keys to support family success.
4. Learn a 3-step approach with strategies to support your child.
5. Apply knowledge of symptoms and strategies to address issues in children of various age levels.

Workshop Dates:
All Sessions begin at 7 pm Eastern Time Zone. 

Join us to learn about our Colombia Adoption Program. Our Colombia Adoption Program is open to singles, married couples, unmarried couples, and welcomes LGBTQ+ parents. In this webinar, we will detail the pathways to adopt from Colombia, including pathways available to individuals without Colombian Heritage as well as pathways available to individuals who hold a Colombian Cedula. We will share information about the system of child protection in Colombia and will share photos of some of the children’s homes where children reside while in protective care. We will discuss common medical and special needs of children who are awaiting adoption in Colombia. We will speak about eligibility factors for prospective adoptive parents in Colombia. Bring your questions – we’ll save time for Q&A.

Neurodiversity is a framework for understanding how brains function and the diversity of human cognition. Moving away from a deficit framework, a neurodiverse lens allows us to recognize and support different ways of thinking, learning and behaving. All adoptive parents can benefit from learning about supporting neurotypical and neurodiverse youth at home and school.

*Live Webinar: Attend a live real-time presentation, followed by a brief Q&A chat. You receive a recording of the webinar after the live event, whether or not you are able to attend.

Join Pact’s Executive Director and fellow adoptive parent, Beth Hall, to find community and talk about parenting adopted and foster teens and young adults of color, including challenges, helpful strategies and how to support yourself and your loved ones.

This call is open to current Pact members only. If you have not purchased a Pact membership (or your membership is not current) you can join at pactadopt.org.

FREE!

Voices of Adoption (V.O.A.) is a virtual space for adopted people 18+ world-wide to join in conversation, meet peers and talk about the topics that are important to them. Hosted by Jessica M. Luciere, transracial adoptee born in Bogota, Colombia, and Manager of Community Engagement at Spence-Chapin, V.O.A. welcomes adopted people of all backgrounds to experience community amongst other adoptees.

These support groups provide safe space where LGBTQ+ adoptive and foster parents of children of color can find community and talk about their parenting joys and challenges, intersections with our own queer identities and helpful strategies.

This call is open to current Pact members only. If you have not purchased a Pact membership (or your membership is not current) you can join at pactadopt.org.

Spence-Chapin’s Birth Parent Support Group is a virtual meet-up for individuals who made an adoption plan (with Spence-Chapin or elsewhere) and are in any stage in their placement journey. This group is a safe place to get support and know that you are not alone. Topics will include coping with feelings of grief and loss, sharing challenges and successes with open and closed adoption, and improving communication with friends and family around your adoption plan.

There is no cost to attend.

Monthly virtual support calls provide a safe space for adoptive parents of color to connect and share their experiences.
This is a group intended to meet the needs of people of color who have built their families through domestic adoption, kinship adoption, international adoption, foster care, same race and transracial/interracial adoption.   This  call is free to current members of Pact. If you do not have a current Pact membership please join or renew at pactadopt.org.

This programming is for adoptive parents of color.  Please be respectful of their space.

In this support call first/birth parents will be able to connect, listen and share their experiences of adoption, both private and through the child welfare system. Space will also be provided for participants to explore and share experiences around open adoptions, closed adoptions, recent reunions, same-race adoption, transracial adoption, termination of parental rights, and other topics as decided by the group.
Please remember that this group is for birth/first parents who are related by birth to a child placed in adoption or foster care.

The Annual Autism Beach Bash is our favorite day of the year—and for many families, the best day of theirs.

This free event brings together more than 4,000 attendees for a one-of-a-kind day of community and connection. Last year, 150 individuals with autism rode the waves with Surfers Healing, building confidence and creating lasting memories with every ride.

Join us for a full day of surf, music, sunshine, and good vibes at New Jersey’s largest autism-friendly event. It’s a rare chance to be among thousands of others who get what it means to live with autism, who share your experiences, and who welcome you just as you are. That’s more than community. That’s what belonging feels like. And that’s what this day is built to deliver.

Our International Team is excited to host this webinar and to share information about adopting from South Africa. Spence-Chapin is proud to have the longest history of any US-based agency of facilitating adoption from South Africa and we work with adoptive families living across the entire United States. The South Africa program welcomes adoptive applicants regardless of marital status or sexual orientation. In this webinar we will discuss common medical and developmental needs of children who are currently living in South Africa and waiting for their forever families. We will provide an overview the adoption process. We look forward to answering any questions you may have about adoption in general and specific questions about adoption from South Africa.

Join us to learn about our Colombia Adoption Program. Our Colombia Adoption Program is open to singles, married couples, unmarried couples, and welcomes LGBTQ+ parents. In this webinar, we will detail the pathways to adopt from Colombia, including pathways available to individuals without Colombian Heritage as well as pathways available to individuals who hold a Colombian Cedula. We will share information about the system of child protection in Colombia and will share photos of some of the children’s homes where children reside while in protective care. We will discuss common medical and special needs of children who are awaiting adoption in Colombia. We will speak about eligibility factors for prospective adoptive parents in Colombia. Bring your questions – we’ll save time for Q&A.

FREE!

Voices of Adoption (V.O.A.) is a virtual space for adopted people 18+ world-wide to join in conversation, meet peers and talk about the topics that are important to them. Hosted by Jessica M. Luciere, transracial adoptee born in Bogota, Colombia, and Manager of Community Engagement at Spence-Chapin, V.O.A. welcomes adopted people of all backgrounds to experience community amongst other adoptees.

Between Hope and Heartbreak: Holding Space for Reproductive Loss

Reproductive loss is a common yet often overlooked experience, despite rising infertility rates in Canada and the fact that 15%–25% of clinical pregnancies end in loss. Many individuals navigating these losses struggle with feelings of ambiguity, wondering, “Does this even count as grief?”

Supporting clients through reproductive grief requires more than traditional grief counseling—it demands an understanding of ambiguous loss, trauma-informed care, and the unique intersection of grief and reproductive health. Designed for practicing therapists, this workshop explores reproductive loss up to 20 weeks’ gestation, offering deeper insight into clients’ experiences both inside and outside the therapy room.

Grounded in Internal Family Systems, Polyvagal Theory, and Attachment Theory, this workshop combines lecture-based learning with experiential exercises in a small-group setting. Participants will leave with a stronger therapeutic framework for supporting clients experiencing reproductive loss including practical therapeutic tools as well as well as client resources to enhance their clinical work.

Spence-Chapin’s Birth Parent Support Group is a virtual meet-up for individuals who made an adoption plan (with Spence-Chapin or elsewhere) and are in any stage in their placement journey. This group is a safe place to get support and know that you are not alone. Topics will include coping with feelings of grief and loss, sharing challenges and successes with open and closed adoption, and improving communication with friends and family around your adoption plan.

There is no cost to attend.

Grief in the Body: Understanding the Somatic Impact of Chronic Illness

Grief is not just an emotional experience—it is deeply felt in the body, often intensifying for those living with chronic health conditions. In this educational presentation, we will explore how grief manifests physically, impacts the nervous system, and intertwines with chronic illness.

Designed for therapists and counsellors, this presentation introduces key frameworks such as somatic experiencing, parts work, and polyvagal theory. Attendees will gain practical tools including guided body scans, vagus nerve regulation techniques, pendulation exercises, and compassionate approaches to working with grief-holding parts. You will leave with a deeper understanding of grief’s somatic impact and effective strategies to help clients process and heal.