LAWRENCE COUNTY – Wednesday afternoon, families gathered together in the Lawrence County Circuit Court, to celebrate National Adoption Day, as two families lives were changed forever, and for good.
Lawrence County Circuit Court Judge Nathan Nikirk presided during the two adoptions, in a moment he says he always enjoys being a part of.
“The attorneys are the ones who do 99 percent of the work in these cases, and I am like the 9th inning reliever coming in to close it out,” said Judge Nikirk. “Today is a special day as all of the hard work from our friends at DCS and through the CASA program is finally complete, as we join these families today.”
Judge Nikirk shared the sad truth of the foster program and children who have been displaced or had their lives upended due to unforeseen circumstances that community members need to be made aware of.
“It’s an unfortunate truth in Lawrence County that there are a lot of children in need of a safe and loving home, so we want to bring awareness to Adoption Day, to help get these kids in a positive environment, as they deserve,” Judge Nikirk concluded.
The first family saw Rebecca and Michael Keefe add Ryan and Preston (formerly Owen and Noah) officially to their family. The twins had lived with the Keefe’s since September of 2021 under the foster care program, but today officially, and legally added the title of Mom and Dad.
“It took a long time, but we are excited to finally be here,” said Rebecca.
The following family, added Lennox and Lasiah, to parents Steven and Kyla Terrell, a day they were both excited for.
“It feels good to be here today and have this finalized,” said Steven. “We have waited for a while to get here, and to finally have it conclude is amazing.”
About National Adoption Day
National Adoption Day is a collective effort to raise awareness of the more than 113,000 children waiting to be adopted from foster care in the United States. Policymakers, practitioners, and advocates have collaborated to plan these annual events in 400 cities across the United States.
To date, the dreams of more than 75,000 children in foster care have come true as part of National Adoption Day events.
Approximately 2 million Americans are adopted, with about 150,000 adoptions happening each year, including about 50,000 through foster care. U.S. adoptions may be either domestic or international. Domestic adoptions can be arranged either through a state agency, an adoption agency or independently.
