| CONTACT: |
Joan Kenney/Charlotte Whiting
617/557-1114
joan.kenney@sjc.state.ma.us
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
November 18, 2009 |
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Jacqueline Schelfhaudt
Juvenile Court
617/788-6550
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Jocelynne Welsh
Probate and Family Court
617/788-6600 |
Judges to Legalize Over 200 Adoptions on National Adoption Day on November 20
Middlesex Juvenile Court in Cambridge Designated as Lead Court
To celebrate National Adoption Day, the Juvenile and Probate and Family Court Departments of the Massachusetts Trial Court will finalize the adoptions of 212 foster children by families throughout the state on Friday, November 20, 2009. This is the seventh year the courts have participated in this state and national event, which is organized in cooperation with the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange and the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families
The Middlesex Juvenile Court, located at 121 Third Street in Cambridge, was designated to be the lead court this year. Governor Deval Patrick will be the guest speaker in a morning program beginning at 9:00 a.m. Other speakers include Juvenile Court Chief Justice Michael F. Edgerton; Probate and Family Court Chief Justice Paula M. Carey; Middlesex Juvenile Court First Justice Jay Blitzman; Department of Children and Families Commissioner Angelo McClain; Secretary of Health and Human Services, Dr. JudyAnn Bigby; Eliot Tatelman, CEO of Jordan’s Furniture; and the Sheppard Family.
The adoptions and celebrations will take place in eight courts across the Commonwealth. There will be 112 legalized adoptions in eastern Massachusetts, 51 in the central part of the state and 49 in western Massachusetts. The participating courts are the following:
- Boston: Edward W. Brooke Courthouse, 24 New Chardon Street
- Brockton: George N. Covett Courthouse (Brockton Trial Court), 215 Main Street
- Cambridge: Middlesex Juvenile Court, 121 Third Street
- Hadley: Franklin/Hampshire Juvenile Court, 116 Russell Street, Rt. 9
- Pittsfield: Berkshire Juvenile Court, 190 North Street
- Salem: Essex Juvenile Court, 45 Congress Street
- Springfield: Hampden Juvenile Court, 80 State Street
- Worcester: Worcester Juvenile Court, 1 Highland Street
“National Adoption Day presents a unique opportunity to celebrate the generosity and commitment of adoptive parents who have opened their hearts and homes to children in need
of a safe, stable and loving family. It also presents an opportunity to highlight the number of foster children who are awaiting adoptive homes and to encourage people to consider becoming adoptive parents and making a difference in the life of a child who desperately needs someone to care,” said Juvenile Court Chief Justice Edgerton.
“These adoptive families are heroes to all of us for their selflessness and willingness to make a difference in the lives of so many children,” said Probate and Family Court Chief Justice Carey. “National Adoption Day is a tribute to the families who have demonstrated a full commitment to vulnerable children in need of warm and caring homes.”
Celebrated annually throughout the country, National Adoption Day highlights the joys and benefits of adoption and encourages families and individuals to consider adopting children who are in the foster care system. In Massachusetts, approximately 2500 children in foster care are awaiting adoption; nationwide there are 129,000 children in foster care waiting to be adopted.
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