Gift of Adoption | Adoption Grants | Donations

Gift of Adoption is a nonprofit organization that provides adoption grants through fundraising and donations. After successfully adopting three times, Lucy and Gene Wyka felt compelled to help others with the financial burden of adoption.  So in 1996, they started Gift of Adoption.  Since its start, Gift of Adoption has reached over 3,808 children with the gift of family by raising over $11.2 Million in adoption assistance grants.

Struggle Shuttle has recently become a part of Gift of Adoption.

We are now on the board of Gift of Adoption-Ohio Chapter, representing Cincinnati, OH. Through fundraising events, spreading informational awareness and personal donation, Struggle Shuttle hopes to continue to add support for those families in need.  Being personally blessed through adoption ourselves, makes this organization near and dear to our hearts.  

If you already know our story then you know that I am the mother of two girls that we were fortunate enough to adopt from birth. If you do not yet know our story you can read the story of our first adoption HERE and our second one HERE.  We were lucky to be financially equip to cover all the costs of our adoptions.  However, most families that are considering adoption will not ever even apply due to the financial burden of adoption.  

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Some eye-opening, financial statistics you will find on the Gift of Adoption website:

• 80 million Americans have considered adopting – that’s about 40% of the U.S. population.

• Less than 2% of those who’ve considered adoption will ever begin the process though. And because of the high cost, just 1% of those Americans complete the process of adopting.

• The average household income of a Gift of Adoption grant recipient is $43,500 showing the means to raise a child but less so the ability to come up with the significant upfront adoption fees.

• Some adoptions run over $40,000 in expenses.

• On average, a Gift of Adoption grant applicant is looking at over $25,000 in upfront expenses to cover legal fees, home-study costs, agency and travel costs, plus so much more.

• Gift of Adoption receives more than 65 requests for financial assistance each month, on average 85% of those meet the strict application criteria. Still, the organization only has resources to fund 34 of the qualified requests each month.

• International adoptions are far more costly than domestic adoptions – documents frequently need to be translated into another language and a parent may need to stay many weeks or months in a foreign country before the adoption is finalized.

Even more unsettling are some of the statistics on children waiting to be adopted (also found on the Gift of Adoption site):

• 140 million children worldwide are orphaned and in desperate need of a family to call their own. That is equal to half the population of the United States – and they are all under the age of 18.

• 500,000 children in the U.S. foster care system await adoption; 10% of those children have been waiting to be adopted for over 3 years.

• Once in foster care, on average, a child waits 5 years to be adopted.

• For every month in an orphanage, a child can loose as much as 3 months of normal developmental advancement.

• Children left languishing in orphanages are often malnourished and can be neglected or abused. They have slow or halted brain growth and do not develop appropriate ‘emotional’ brain centers.

• Research shows – moving a child from foster care or an orphanage into a loving home permanently improves the child’s prospects for the future.

• Each year 20,000 young adults in foster care are forced to leave the system because they turn 18, never realizing their dream for a permanent, loving family.

• About 9 out of 10 children in foster care will experience mental illness. Almost 4 of 10 will commit crimes and 30% will ultimately become homeless.

• Just 2% of children who age out of the foster care system go on to get a college education.

So what does Gift of Adoption do?? Here are the statistics that are provided on their page:

• 79% of Gift of Adoption expenses go directly toward the adoption grants program.

• The average Gift of Adoption grant is $3,781; the maximum grant is $15,000.

• Foster care costs average $27,000 per child, per year. Last year Gift of Adoption grants helped keep more than 37 children from entering the system – saving states more than $1 million over the average foster care stay

• Last year, about 25% of Gift of Adoption grants helped keep biological siblings together in one caring and loving home.

• In 2020, 33% of Gift of Adoption grants went to children with critical medical conditions, giving them a chance to be adopted and receive the care they need.

• An evaluation of informational standards provided by Gift of Adoption Fund to the BBB Wise Giving Alliance shows that the organization meets all of the Standards for Charity Accountability. Unlike other charity monitoring groups that focus solely on a review of charity finances, the BBB Wise Giving Alliance completes comprehensive, in-depth evaluations of the charity’s governance, fundraising practices, solicitations and informational materials, as well as how it spends its money.

• The Gift of Adoption Fund does not consider an applicant’s marital status, gender, race, creed, national origin, religion, age, or sexual orientation when reviewing applications for adoption grants.

• Last year, about 15% of Gift of Adoption grants helped parents in the U.S. military complete their adoptions of children in need. Many grants also help parents employed as clergy, teachers, police and firefighters, and other civil servant positions.

• Gift of Adoption Fund is a national 501(c)3 non-profit charitable organization.

• The Gift of Adoption Fund does not match children with families but makes the adoption possible through its Adoption Assistance Grants.

• More than 500 volunteers are an integral part of Gift of Adoption’s success.

What can you do to help be a part of someone’s adoption success story??

When you donate to Gift of Adoption, 100% of your tax-deductible gift will go directly toward a adoption grants assisting a child in-need. Check out some of the success stories HERE.

**PRO TIP: Check to see if your employer will match your donation!

About the Struggle Shuttle Giving Circle:

Struggle Shuttle has started it’s first giving circle for Gift of Adoption in hopes of helping to bring families together through your generous donations. To help us with this cause there are a few different ways to contribute:

1. Text StruggleShuttle to 71777 (Msg & data rates may apply)
2. Click HERE then click “Make a Donation”. Choose between a one-time or reoccurring donation and fill in personal donation information.
3. Get engaged! Click HERE and then click “Become a Fundraiser” to become a board member/start a chapter in your city/state.

Hoping to adopt?? Need a little financial assistance??

Apply for a grant through Gift of Adoption by clicking HERE. Once approved Struggle Shuttle wants to help! Please send the name of your fund application to briana@struggleshuttle.com so we can start raising money for you are your future family!

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Thank you so much for your support! If you landed on this page intending to donate money, thoughts, prayers or hope, I want to thank you sincerely for your contribution. And if you landed here to apply for a grant, I want to wish you all the best on your adoption journey!

We are all in this together!