Need Help :

Please someone answer this message. Hi, My Husband and I were adopting a sibling group of three a fews years back. About 6 weeks from the adoption I was in an accident and was in a wheelchair. The children were placed in foster care and separated. After 6 months and a better recovery then expected, I called the agency to have the children come home. I was told to leave them alone, they were happy. I found out two of the children were adopted. I was devastated. A few months ago my husband and I signed up with another foster agengy. It has been a little less than two years since the children left our home and adopted. At a foster parents meeting this past week, I found out that the youngest child was removed from the adoptive home and now is in foster care with the agency we signed up with. I called the agency yesterday and found out the child is back up for adoption. I asked if we could adopt her since we had a history with her for over two years. The agency said the foster mother had first rights to adopt her. This lady only had her for 6 weeks, she is a single parent and she works full time. Not to say a single parent should not adopt. I have no problem with that at all. The agency said it is their policy to let the foster parent have first rights. I just want to
know if we have any rights since she was with us until I was injured and we were planning to adopt all three children. Is it the State Of Pa. law or just the agencys?. Should we obtain a Lawyer and fight this in court? Please help us.

This agency sounds like it screwed you around in the past and is trying to do so again, so maybe it is time to work thru another agency and get an adoption attorney and seek to adopt this child if you and the child want that. And at this point in time, since the agency separated the siblings when there was a home for them, I question the agency's motives and commitment to the children and keeping sibling groups intact.
a site with good info is http://www.adoption.com

Thank you for your prompt reply. The children when we had them were under a C&Y agency in another county then which we live in. I saw one of the children listed on SWAN and called. The C&Y had custody. We got approved from an adoption/foster agency in a near by city. Now we signed up with the C&Y in our county. Trying to avoid the foster agency and the C&Y we were previous involded in, since we had bad feelings for them. The two girls now 6 and 12 were adopted in our county by the family that fostered them when I was hurt. Since the family that fostered the children and then adopted them live in our county the children as least the two girls are in my county. The boy now 13 was never adopted, but still under the C&Y from the orginial county. I don't know where he is but I did see him listed on swan. I called and was told to call the two agencies we had problems with. I know they wont let us take him. When I got hurt, my husband works out of town for two weeks at a time and we asked for someone to come in and help with the children. We have a girl now 10 who we adopted when she was 1 day old. That made 4 children under the age of ten with special needs in the house while I was in a wheelchair with both my leg and arm in a cast. When I called to have the children come home, I was told. "you disrupted their lives enough". By the C&Y case worker. I called a Lawyer today and I am waiting an answer. I just don't know if we can fight the system. I was told by the C&Y that the youngest now back in foster care is being considered by the foster mother who has her now. The family that adopted the two girls still have the 12 year old girl, she has MR and CP. A few weeks ago I ran into the youngest, she came running to us and hugged us and kissed us she said the adoptive mom told her we did not want her and we had died. She asked me "where are your wings, did you come from heaven to visit me? I cried for about 3 hours when I got home.
We have been screwed big time and I have been told I should go to the media. This is a Livetime TV story. When the kids first left I called the foster home several times to see how they were and I was told they are happy and do not want anything to do with us. At that time, I was soooo depressed I guess I belived her. Now I found out the youngest was taken from them for God knows why and they cried for us for weeks. The youngest told me the adoptive mom told her that her brother is dead too. I tried to find him but no one will tell me where he is and I would have to go through the two agencies who do not like us and made that very clear. I have all their things packed up clothes they did not take that were too small and school papers, and tons and tons of pictures.
I really hope to get all three back, but the youngest is safe now and out of the dreadfull home the C&Y placed her in. I don't see how a foster mom who only had her 6 weeks can have priority over us who
had her over 2 years.
Thank you,

God Bless

Hi,
We have had a lot of problems with C & Y too. So when we decided to adopt out of foster care again we went to Bethany Christian Services in Lancaster, PA. They are wonderful people. We have liked everyone there. Maybe they would be able to help you but keep in mind that the caseworker usually picks the adoptive home. Good luck.