Annotation: Children Awaiting Parents (CAP) is a national, not-for-profit organization that recruits foster and adoptive families for special needs children who have been waiting the longest for permanent families. CAP serves older and minority children who may have mental, physical and/or emotional disabilities. Photos and narratives of waiting children are posted on the Web site and also provided in The CAP Book, a printed, national photolisting of adoptable children with special needs. The organization also provides a CAP Book CD, featuring national and state contact information, home study procedures, and adoption success stories. The Web site provides pre- and post-adoptive information for prospective parents, as well as registration and other placement assistance for caseworkers. CAP has initiated a program called Faith in Children, a special adoption recruitment campaign to reach out to the community through faith-based organizations and also served as a founding board member of Voice for Adoption, a coalition of 78 special needs adoption organizations, professionals and child welfare advocates addressing the needs of waiting children throughout the United States. In addition, CAP coordinates the Foster/Adoption Network-FAN, which recruits New York State foster and adoptive parents for children with special needs and is comprised of 18 public and private agencies in upstate New York.
Keywords: Information sources, Adoption, Adoptive parents, Affective disorders, Children with special health care needs, Family centered services, Foster care, Foster parents, Psychological needs, Recruitment
