Project 1.27

For the past several days I have been hungrily reading blogs written by those fortunate enough to attend the Together for Adoption conference in Austin, Texas last weekend. Several of the blog posts address the orphan crisis in our own "backyard" as Americans - i.e., the US foster care system. One entitled "James 1:27 and the Church" will surely challenge and inspire you, and in turn will lead you to the Project 1.27 site, an initiative launched in 2005 by the Christian church in Colorado to find loving families for the 875 legally free children and youth in their state. Five years later, only 365 children and youth are still waiting for their forever families!

Something that stood out to me in this special program was a new requirement for adopting families, called the "Lifeline" Requirement. According to the Project 1.27 website:

Starting in January 2009 all Project 1.27 adoptive families are required to recruit two(2) Lifeline families before they are allowed to proceed to their county/agency for certification. A Lifeline family is a family or friend who has committed themselves prior to your packet turn in date to:

1. Spend time with your children or youth
2. Two times a month
3. For 3-4 hours
4. Throughout your placement period through finalization
5. In coordination with your case worker.

What a wise and wonderful thing. Recognizing that adding a child to your family is hard and that support is key, this ministry has built in the care and compassion that is often lacking for adoptive parents when their children come home. They quote Ecclesiastes 4:12 and it is so true, "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."