Celebrating Birth Father’s Day and Father’s Day in an Adoption
By Ryan Yau
With Father’s Day approaching, you may be wondering if there is a celebration for birth fathers who have placed their children for adoption. Birth fathers can play a role in the adoption process alongside the birth mother. Therefore, it is important that your role can be celebrated. Though there is no national holiday for Birth Father’s Day, there are ways to independently celebrate the occasion.
The birth father is the biological father of the child being placed for adoption. Along with the birth mother, you have the responsibility of managing the adoption process.
If you need adoption help now, please call or text us at 303-670-4673 (HOPE) or visit us at Adoption Choices of Colorado.
How Can the Birth Father Remain in Their Child’s Life?
Firstly, to celebrate Birth Father’s Day, it is important to be able to contact your child. Whether you can remain in the child’s life as a birth father depends on the type of adoption. In a closed adoption, unfortunately, you will be unable to contact your child’s adoptive family. In a semi-open adoption, you receive updates about your child and can ask the adoption agency for a contact. As for open adoption, you will have the adoptive parents’ contact information.
Therefore if you plan on celebrating the birth on Father’s Day, it would be important that you choose an open adoption. With Adoption Agencies in Colorado, the process of selecting the right adoption type is made easy. You will be provided with a specialist who can make sure all your needs are addressed in an adoption plan.
Does the Birth Father Make Decisions in the Adoption Process?
How much involvement you have in making decisions about the child depends on if you are the child’s biological father. If so, you have a legal say in what to do with the baby. It is important to recognize that the decision should ultimately be the birth mother’s since she will carry the baby.
What Role Can a Birth Father Play Throughout the Adoption Process?
It is a common misconception that adoption is a process the birth mother has to go through alone. Though sometimes that is the case, the birth father can certainly remain in the picture. You can provide pivotal assistance throughout the pregnancy and adoption processes.
Of course, pregnancy can be a very difficult process. But adoption can also be hard to go through. For the birth mother to separate from a child who she has spent nine months with can be taxing. Some mothers experience birth mother grief, a form of grief from the separation of their child into adoption.
It is important that should you choose to aid in the process. You are able to help out emotionally. This can also include taking on tasks that the birth mother might be unable to do. Doing this may be the most important role of a birth father throughout the adoption process.
How Involved Should You Be in Your Child’s Life?
You may be unsure about how much of a role you should play in your child’s life. If they are already part of a loving family unit, you may not think you need to be involved necessarily. How much of a presence you want to be in your child’s life is a decision you need to make. It would be poor form to try and take over parenting of your child once they have been adopted.
However, being a regular part of their life is not a bad thing and would provide them with another role model. You could establish a good relationship with your child’s adoptive parents and even become a family friend. Or you could occasionally visit and play more of an uncle-type role in their life. There are many ways to approach being a birth father, but generally, more role models are a good thing for your child.
How Can You Start Celebrating Birth Fathers This Year?
Birth Father’s Day is not a nationally recognized holiday, but you can choose to celebrate it independently. This can even be a tradition you establish with your child. It can involve dinner or other activities, where you get to spend meaningful time with your child and maybe their adoptive family. The holiday events are up to you and your child, and you have the freedom to celebrate whatever you choose.
If you are facing an unplanned pregnancy and want to learn more about your adoption options, contact Adoption Choices of Colorado by email, phone, or text: Email Us, Text us: 720-371-1099, Call us: 303-670-4673 (HOPE). If you are hoping to adopt, please contact us here.
Stephanie joined the Adoption Choices family in 2014 as the Child Placement Supervisor. Her love for adoption began in first grade when she made friends with twins adopted from Vietnam. Her heart grew strong over the years for adopted children and ultimately led her to graduate school where she continued her focus to her dream of working in the adoption field. Stephanie earned a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver in 2001. Over the past 15 years, Stephanie has worked as a pregnancy counselor and as an adoptive parent counselor for foster care, international adoption and domestic adoption, writing hundreds of home studies for families, and helping build their forever families. Stephanie is married and has three boys ages 12, 9, and 5. Together with her family she enjoys riding bike, playing games, watching her three sons compete in their various sporting and musical activities and go on vacations.
Christy Ikeler, is our Executive Director and Birth Parent Director. Christy has been with Adoption Choices Team for 18 years, since opening the doors in 2002! Christy has a true passion for what she does and her true love is working with and helping each birth parent. Whether she is up all night on the phone talking with them, taking them to doctors appointments, out for their favorite treat, providing counseling or at the hospital during labor and delivery, Christy is very involved every step of the way. She has a contagious laugh and a spunky personality that our birth moms all can bond with and relate to. As an adoptive parent herself, adoption holds a very special place in her heart and she can relate on every level with both birth parents and adoptive parents. In her free time Christy loves spending time with her daughter, gardening, baking and taking vacations with her family. Christy is an excellent leader for our team at Adoption Choices and is truly one of a kind!! As Executive Director, Christy spends time with the staff, birth parents and adoptive families in order to ensure that the agency is running smoothly. She has placed a huge emphasis on community outreach and programs for birth parents. Christy loves the opportunity to lead the agency into a brighter future.
Ms. Mackenzie has built a successful counseling career over the past 20 years, supporting mothers and families, people of all ages and genders, students, community professionals and fellow clinicians. Liv values a diverse professional focus, including the entrepreneurial life of a sole proprietor, the evaluative process of certifying foster/adoptive homes, the insightful and mindful one-on-one one work with enthusiastic clients, and serving as an advocate for underserved populations. Liv is a Licensed Professional Counselor and holds a BA in Pre-Law and Economics from American University, an MA in Counseling from Adams University and a certificate in Human Resource Management from Villanova University. Away from work you will find Liv spending time in nature, biking to the farmer’s market and adventuring with her family.
Catherine A. Madsen, joined the Adoption Choices family as legal counsel in 2013. Catherine is responsible for providing legal guidance to the Agency, training and updating staff on developments in adoption law and legislation, and program development. Catherine
Virginia Frank is an adoption attorney accredited since 1991 with the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. Ms. Frank is a leader in the field of private adoption and has completed over 4,000 adoptions in her career. Ms. Frank has a law degree from Oklahoma City University and a BA in both Political Science and Communications from the University of Oklahoma.
Cassidie has been with Adoption Choices since 2015, she has her bachelors in Interdisciplinary Affairs with concentrations in both Sociology and Business Management. Cassidie has additional training in Victim Advocacy, foster care and has been working in women’s services for over 10 years. Cassidie has always had a heart for adoption and it was her career dream to work in adoption. She started off doing volunteer work for advocacy programs, adoption organizations and worked in High Risk Maternal Fetal Medicine through the University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Colorado. Cassidie is also blessed to have personally experienced an adoption of her own in 2012, completing her family of five! Cassidie loves what she does as a case worker from initial phone calls, meetings, doctor appointments, interaction with the adoptive families to delivery and counseling. Cassidie has a passion for those in need and strives to help make a difference in the lives of the people she meets. She is a firm believer in being kind, compassionate and open minded in all situations. “Unless you’ve walked in their shoes, there’s no place for judgment. A kind word or compliment can go a long way!” The bittersweet moments in adoption reminds Cassidie each and every time, why she loves what she does!