Catholic Social Services is committed to ensuring the safety of all the children we place for adoption. We conduct extensive background checks on each prospective adoptive parent, including child abuse clearances, criminal history checks, FBI fingerprinting, home safety assessments, medical background checks, financial income assessments, verified references including a pastor’s reference where applicable, and more investigation if necessary. In addition, after the child is initially placed in the home, we continue to supervise his/her placement with the adoptive parents for 6 months, leading up to finalization of the adoption.

Catholic Social Services is committed to respecting your concerns, decisions and need for confidentiality as a birth parent. The process can be conducted in a manner that is as sensitive to your needs for privacy as you wish. We will only collect the information that you are ready and willing to provide to us, and your personal identity as well as any other information about you may remain entirely sealed if you prefer this approach, which is referred to as a “closed adoption.” The level of openness regarding the sharing of that personal information with prospective adoptive parents is completely controlled by birth parents throughout.

For birth parent(s) there are absolutely no costs associated with placing your child for adoption with Catholic Social Services. We are pleased to be able to serve you free of any charge whatsoever, as a means of honoring your concern for the welfare of your unborn child. Doing so is possible because of the charitable support we receive in support of our longstanding mission to support the choice for life and to promote the health, safety and happiness of every child.

Contact between the birth parent(s) and the adoptive family is not required leading up to giving birth, nor after your child is born. If you wish, our social worker can accompany birth parent(s) to the hospital to support you during the delivery, and will then work closely with hospital staff to ensure a smooth transition from your care into the welcoming arms of the adoptive family that you have personally chosen.

Birthfathers have legal rights too, just like birthmothers. We encourage birthfathers to be involved in the process as well, to whatever degree he wishes and is able to participate. If the birthfather is not known, our attorneys will take the necessary steps to ensure that his parental rights are properly and legally terminated. If the birthfather is not interested in any involvement, he can voluntarily consent to terminate his rights.

At any time before legal consent(s) are signed by birthparents, they are free to change their mind and keep their child, and that decision will be fully honored and supported by Catholic Social Services. We understand that making this decision is not easy, and that ultimately you have the right to decide what is best for the good of your child. After legal consent(s) are signed by the birthparent(s), they have 30 days to revoke their consent, which must be done in writing.

After the child is placed with an adoptive family, our social worker will remain available to you for as long as you may need our assistance. We can continue to be in contact with you for follow-up counseling if and when you need it, and we also can refer you to support groups where you can share your experiences and feelings with other birthparents who have taken the same journey.

Yes, the choice of the kind of family setting, and ultimately the specific adoptive parent / family is made by the birth parent(s), with the guidance and support of our trained social worker. Birth parent(s) will be invited to view several different adoptive family profiles based on the matching parameters and characteristics that the birth parents have expressed as their preferences.