A Family For Every Child
A Family For Every Child
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Melissa and Adam
Melissa and Adam

Melissa and Adam
South Dakota

Basic Info

Melissa

Age: 45
Sex:
Race/Ethnicity:
Religion:

Adam

Age: 47
Sex:
Race/Ethnicity:
Religion:

Child Preferences

Age: 2 to 13 years old
Sex: Either
Max Number of Children: 2
Race/Ethnicity: Caucasian, Native American, Hispanic, Mixed, Bi-Racial, Unknown


Special Needs the Family is Open To: Animal Allergies, Asthma, Drug Allergies, Environmental Allergies, Food Allergies, Defiant, Difficulty in Attaching, Difficulty Making Friends, Lying, Manipulative, Poor Social Skills, Self-Abuse, Stealing, Wets the Bed, Failure to Thrive, Prenatal Drug Exposure, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Physically Disabled-Mild, Hearing Impaired, Speech Delays - Mild, Vision Impaired, Anorexia/Bulimia, Hoarding, Overeating, Academically behind due to poor attendance, Cognitive Delay - Mild, Expulsion(s), Mild Learning Disabilities, Suspension(s), One/Both Parents Diagnosed with Depression, One/Both Parents Have Alcohol Addiction, Exposed to Domestic Violence, Child in Residential Treatment, Child has had a disrupted adoption, Multiple Placements, Residential Treatment History, Parents Willing to Seek Guardianship, Child on Probation / Parole, ADHD, Arthritis, Diabetes, Hemophilia, Missing Limbs: May Require Prosthesis, Depression, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Requires Counseling/Therapy, Runaway - Occasionally, Runaway - Past, Willing to Maintain Contact via Mail with Bio Family, Willing to Maintain Contact with Past Foster Parents, Willing to Maintain Contact with Bio Grandparents & Other Relatives, Willing to Maintain Contact with Bio Siblings, Child Identifies as LGBT, History of Sexually Acting Out, Sexually Active, Alcohol Use, Marijuana, Smokes Cigarettes

Environment

State: South Dakota
Neighborhood: Country/Rural
Residency: Single Family Home
Years Together: 15
Children in the Home: 4
Pet(s): Cat(s)

Work

Melissa

Occupation: Physical therapist assistant

Adam

Occupation: Meat cutter

Adoption Agency

Agency: DSS Watertown SD
Worker: Kristi Koll
Worker: kristi.koll@state.sd.us
City: Watertown
State: South Dakota
Zip: 57201

Family Description

We would like to adopt a child between the ages of 3 and 13 inclusive. We are open to boys or girls. We feel we can accommodate a sibling group of up to 2 kids. We prefer to adopt a child of Caucasian, African American,Hispanic, Biracial or Mixed ethnic background. We are open to children with many, many special needs.We would happily include into our extended family relatives or former caregivers who are important in our child's life provided it continued to be a healthy relationship. We live in the State of South Dakota. Our home is a single family home. We live in a Country/Rural neighborhood. We are friends with our neighbors. We have one or more cats , the occasional dust bunny and a few chickens with the recent addition of a pot bellied pig named Ralph. Nothing beats a good day boating at the lake! We have some of the best glacial and prairie lakes just a few miles from home and we enjoy going boating, fishing, and tubing. Camping also makes the top of the list. There's no better breakfast than one cooked over a campfire!We play at the park and have BBQs at the baseball field just a block over from our house. We have tons of kids in the neighborhood that make for some pretty interesting games! We go sledding and snow shoeing in the winter and enjoy going to movies at the theater. We also try to find activities to do in areas around us. There are great learning centers a short drive away, like the Children's Museum, and the Washington Pavilion. We have a local frontier days put on by relatives of ours that allow kids to actively participate in the operation of a family farm and many interesting historical and natural places to visit such as Fort Sisseton and Sica Hollow. These offer kids an opportunity to see how people lived years ago, and how beautiful nature is and the opportunities the outdoors can provide. Our school offers a multitude of team team sports including basketball, football ,track,and volleyball. They can be in the school band, chorus, debate, oral interp, and the school play. Our kids are active members in most extracurricular activities and it is strongly encouraged. We also have dirt biking, summer baseball for younger kids, and 4-H. There is also an accelerated reading program at the library in the summer and swimming lessons at the pool in the neighboring town. There is also plenty of opportunities for hunting which is one of our favorite family traditions. It's a multigenerational affair in spring and fall with the opening of turkey and deer season! Preparing for the hunt in the chill of the morning listening to stories from the older generations of hunts past make for some great bonding time! Our town has only one school, which has the elementary, middle, and high school in the same school building. With a smaller population, kids have a better opportunity to learn without being overlooked. Smaller classes with diverse ethnic backgrounds allow for an easier transition for kids of different backgrounds. There are also more opportunities for kids to take part in school activities, because the activities are not overpopulated and reduced through tryouts. Here, anyone can take part.

Preference Description

We feel that it would be too difficult currently to adopt children who have serious medical needs. Also, with young girls already in our house, we would not be able to have children with sexual abuse histories into our home.

The Jorgenson Family Profile

We would like to adopt a child between the ages of 3 and 13 inclusive. We are open to boys or girls. We feel we can accommodate a sibling group of up to 2 kids. We prefer to adopt a child of Caucasian, African American,Hispanic, Biracial or Mixed ethnic background. We are open to children with many, many special needs.We would happily include into our extended family relatives or former caregivers who are important in our child's life provided it continued to be a healthy relationship.

Introduction

We live in the State of South Dakota. Our home is a single family home. We live in a Country/Rural neighborhood. We are friends with our neighbors. We have one or more cats , the occasional dust bunny and a few chickens with the recent addition of a pot bellied pig named Ralph.

Nothing beats a good day boating at the lake! We have some of the best glacial and prairie lakes just a few miles from home and we enjoy going boating, fishing, and tubing. Camping also makes the top of the list. There's no better breakfast than one cooked over a campfire!We play at the park and have BBQs at the baseball field just a block over from our house. We have tons of kids in the neighborhood that make for some pretty interesting games! We go sledding and snow shoeing in the winter and enjoy going to movies at the theater. We also try to find activities to do in areas around us. There are great learning centers a short drive away, like the Children's Museum, and the Washington Pavilion. We have a local frontier days put on by relatives of ours that allow kids to actively participate in the operation of a family farm and many interesting historical and natural places to visit such as Fort Sisseton and Sica Hollow. These offer kids an opportunity to see how people lived years ago, and how beautiful nature is and the opportunities the outdoors can provide. Our school offers a multitude of team team sports including basketball, football ,track,and volleyball. They can be in the school band, chorus, debate, oral interp, and the school play. Our kids are active members in most extracurricular activities and it is strongly encouraged. We also have dirt biking, summer baseball for younger kids, and 4-H. There is also an accelerated reading program at the library in the summer and swimming lessons at the pool in the neighboring town. There is also plenty of opportunities for hunting which is one of our favorite family traditions. It's a multigenerational affair in spring and fall with the opening of turkey and deer season! Preparing for the hunt in the chill of the morning listening to stories from the older generations of hunts past make for some great bonding time! Our town has only one school, which has the elementary, middle, and high school in the same school building. With a smaller population, kids have a better opportunity to learn without being overlooked. Smaller classes with diverse ethnic backgrounds allow for an easier transition for kids of different backgrounds. There are also more opportunities for kids to take part in school activities, because the activities are not overpopulated and reduced through tryouts. Here, anyone can take part.

Home and Community

We are parents to 4 children ages 5 to 16. With each one, we have had different personality traits to learn about and customize our parenting skills to. We have dealt with behavior changes that come with growing up And some that come from life experiences. We have worked to build self confidence, responsibility, and a sense of worth in each of them. We have a democratic approach to parenting and feel it works better than any other style because even though it doesn't give the child absolute power ,they do have the power to make some choices thus eliminating a lot of power struggles.We provide choices whenever we can and clear explanations of everything so they can make decisions for themselves and be totally aware of consequences . This rule can be made to fit any age range and does wonders for confidence . One of our most important strengths is a strong marriage and great communication skills. We make a conscious effort to keep each other happy so we can continue to be a solid foundation for our family . We are great at talking things through esp if we disagree and can always reach a compromise both in our marriage and as parents. It's helped them to become a little more straightforward and honest and also gives them the reassurance of stability at home. Our second best strength is our sense of humor. We don't sweat the small stuff and everything can be used as a learning experience even if you just learned how " not to do" something. We will just handle them together like everything else. We are expecting that it will be different than parenting the 4 we have that have always had a steady ,loving home. The best weapon we have to combat the issues I'm sure will arise is knowledge . Knowing what resources you have at your disposal and a network of people you can count on for support. We have been parents for over 16 years, have taken PRIDE classes and have read books to learn about special issues we may need to deal with that are somewhat common in children with disrupted childhoods. One of the best tools for parenting ANY child is just good common sense. We have completed our PRIDE training for foster care and adoption. It was a very thorough class that covers many things that can come with children placed in your home & how to best handle them. It also provides a large resource list for help with problems the children face. We have also read several books about foster care and adoption & what families need to know about helping the children coming into your home.I was also a Boys and Girls club coordinator for a few years and worked first hand with children who have histories of domestic violence, family drug and alcohol abuse and abandonment.

Parenting Experience

We have a large network of supportive family and friends in the immediate area. Grandparents,aunts ,uncles cousins and extendeded family who have lived here for generations since both of our families immigrated from Scandinavian countries.we have a small but close knit community and know personally everyone of our neighbors . There are several counseling offices near by that handle a wide range of issues in child trauma and development. Other foster and adoptive parents are also a great resource. Several family members also are educated or have degrees in early childhood development and are special education teachers. We also have the support and resources available through our church community.

Support

Adoption has always been of great interest and importance to us and a great way to grow a family. After years of discussion and education we feel now is the best time to grow our family again and foster care is our first choice.We have raised four beautiful children who are turning into exceptional people.We know it can be difficult, but nothing worth having comes easy. We know, though, that we can provide a loving home for someone who desperately needs one. We have read the books. We have taken the classes. We know what to expect, and that we may find things we did not expect. A strong family is the single most important thing in your life. It will get you through any life situation knowing that you have people to belong to that will see you through anything life situation . We are lucky enough to have that and can't wait to share it again.

Motivation to Adopt