On Saturday, November 20, 2021, children, and their families will be recognized at the Mecklenburg County Courthouse (832 East Fourth Street, Charlotte, North Carolina 28202) for their adoption in celebration of National Adoption Day. Beginning at 10:00 a.m., the event will feature a drive-through parade and pre-recorded program with remarks from adoptive families, community partners, court officials and county leadership. The parade will include music, treats, and gifts for the families. District Court Judge Aretha Blake will preside over the program.

Since 2000, National Adoption Day has been celebrated on or around the Saturday before Thanksgiving to finalize and celebrate adoptions from foster care. National Adoption Day is particularly focused on the more than 120,000 children in the United States that are waiting in foster care for an adoptive family. The average wait for a child in foster care to be adopted is nearly three years. More than 20,000 children age out of the foster care system every year with no family or permanent home.

This year, the court will recognize a total of eighty-four (84) youths who have received decrees between November 2020 and October 2021. Twelve (12) of these children are 12 years of age or older. Sixty-seven (67) of these youths were adopted through Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services (DSS)-Youth and Family Services Division from foster care, fifteen (15) were adopted through Mecklenburg County DSS Interstate Compact for Placement of Children (ICPC), and two (2) were adopted through Christian Adoption Services.

Read the full announcement below.