Heritage is licensed in Alaska!!
 
We are so excited to announce that after 15 years of working with families in Alaska, Heritage is now fully licensed and accredited as a non-profit child placement agency in Alaska!!
 
We applied for licensure in Alaska in spring of 2007 and were very happy to successfully achieve licensing following our review in Palmer in August of 2007.  We are excited to now be able to provide the full range of services for families and children; domestic and international adoptions and home study and post placement/post adoption services!
 
HERITAGE STAFF IN ALASKA
 
We now have a local administrator based in Palmer and a number of home study writers living within the state. These home study writers will work closely with the main office of Heritage to assist you throughout the adoption process.  Two of our home study writer social workers are retired special educators with many years experience in working with families throughout Alaska.  As long term residents of Alaska, they bring familiarity with families and travel in all areas of Alaska.  Carolyn has been doing home studies in Alaska since 1993 and Lynne since 2004. We have worked with families living on sailboats, in logging camps, in Dutch Harbor, in Mat-Su and the Anchorage bowl as well as on the Yukon and the Kuskokwim. 

HERITAGE FAMILIES IN ALASKA

There are Heritage families in Southeastern from Sitka to Ketchikan.  Many of these families stay in contact with each other and with Heritage to provide continuing support as they raise their children.  We appreciate the opportunity to work with those who live in a variety of Alaskan life styles and family constellations who are interested in expanding their family through adoption.  There are programs for single people, people with biological kids, people over 40, people who have previously adopted, and people with no children.  We enjoy helping you decide what kind of adoption is best for you.  We can also refer you to Heritage families throughout Alaska who are happily parenting adopted children.

 
HERITAGE PROGRAMS
We have been working to place children born in the US, Guatemala, and China since the early 1990s.  Our founder, Deborah Aronson, MSW, is our Executive Director and brings an enormous amount of wisdom to our programs and staff.  Since Heritage’s early years, the agency has grown to have excellent programs in China, (including our renowned Waiting Child aka: Special Needs Program), Guatemala, Haiti and Kazakhstan in addition to domestic programs.  We love our Alaska families and hope that our licensure means we can help many more children to find wonderful families in Alaska.
More information about each of Heritage’s programs, including requirements, a description of the process, and much more, can be found by following these links:
 
Want more information?
Call 907-745-0258 or 503-233-1099, also e-mail:

JUST NEED A HOME STUDY OR POST ADOPTION REPORT?

If you’re working with another out-of-state placement agency, we’re happy to complete your home study and post placement/post adoption supervision and reporting, as required by Alaska, your placement agency, and the country from which you are adopting.
 
Home studies are reports required for almost all adoptions. They include lots of information about your family’s background and preparation for adoption (which can be ongoing) and give a recommendation for the type of child who would be appropriate for your family (and which you would like to adopt). Most adoption programs require that follow up reports be completed as well – called post placement or post adoption reports, usually within the first year or so after you are home with your new child. Different states and countries have different requirements for both home studies and post placement reports. We are very familiar with the home study requirements of Alaska as well as for many other countries which allow international adoption.

If you are adopting with another agency, or independently, Heritage can provide home study, post placement, post adoption, updates, and addendums, as needed. For a home study, you will need to complete a set of paperwork we call the interagency/independent home study packet, which can be found below under “Forms!”. We will usually assign a home study writer once ALL required paperwork and payment are submitted (please mail paperwork to our office in Portland).

Our fee for most home studies in Alaska is $1200 and for most post placement reports is $350, although occasionally this amount may be adjusted for the work required. Families should plan to cover the costs of bringing a social worker to their home at least one time. Heritage will always assign the social worker closest to the family’s home. In the Anchorage, Kenai Peninsula, or Fairbanks areas, transportation costs are mileage at the federal mileage rate (currently $.485/mile) and $20/hour travel time from the social worker’s office to the family’s home. Travel expenses should be paid to the social worker at the time of the home visit when the worker drives.

In outlying areas where transportation is by plane, the family will be asked to provide a ticket for the social worker to fly to their home. Home studies for China and some other countries require additional visits, so in outlying areas the social worker will need to stay overnight and visit with family again the next day. In these cases, the family will need to provide meals and accommodations for the worker.
 
Forms for Alaskans!
 
Domestic programs: application and other forms, please call 503-233-1099
 
International Application Packet
 
International Interagency/Independent Home Study Packet
    * Call us for region specific instructions & forms for obtaining criminal history clearances

CONTACT INFORMATION FOR HERITAGE

Families in Alaska will work directly with program coordinators in our main office in Portland Oregon, and have a home study writer who lives and works in Alaska.  It is best to contact our Portland office for more information about any of our programs.  Portland office: 503-233-1099

Here’s the address:
Heritage Adoption Services
10011 SE Division St., Ste 314
Portland, OR 97266
(503) 233-1099
 
Here’s our address in Palmer (please send application and dossier materials to Portland)
412 East Gold Key Lane
Palmer, AK 99645
 
LOCAL RESOURCES FOR ADOPTIVE FAMILIES IN ALASKA
Alaska Attachment & Bonding Associates (AABA)
AABA’s mission is to support healthy family attachments and bonds through education, training, and advocacy.
PO Box 872188
Wasilla, AK 99687-2188
Phone: 907-376-0366
 
Alaska Center for Resource Families (ACRF) and Alaska Adoption Support Center (AASC)
Contact: Betsy Woodin, Trainer/Adoption Support: 907-376-4678
Staff in Juneau, Anchorage, and Fairbanks, and telephone consultations and referrals available throughout the state. AASC services area available free of charge to families involved in state, tribal, relative, private, & international adoptions, as well as guardianships.  Providing assessments, case management, and resource access including online courses.
 
Anchorage Adoptive Parents Association
9321 Flintlock Street
Anchorage, AK 99507
 
Alaska Families with Kids from Korea
Contact: Sandy Camery 907-345-9309
 
Families with Children from China: Alaska
Contact: Marsha Callaway 907-349-4907
Anchorage Contact: Robin Taylor 907-276-1466 or Sam Penney 907-563-0474
 
Rhein Neckar Adoption Support Group
MES
Unit 29938
APO, AK 09086

RAVEN Respite (Mat-Su valley)

Resources for parents raising traumatized children including a support group, resource library, parent hot line, online group, & workshops; Contact Melissa 907-376-0506 for more information

Anchorage Support Groups

  • AYFN Support Group, 2nd and 4th Friday of each month at Gateway Learning Center, 801 Karluk.  Call Alaska Youth and Family Network for more information

  • FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders) Play Days – call Stone Soup Group at 561*3701 or email Cheri at cheris@stonesoupgroup.org for more information

  • No Empty Nest (NEN) – run by Volunteers of America at 1675 C. Street, Ste 201, Anchorage, for grandparents raising grandchildren. Call Tami at 522-9866 for more information

  • Adoptive Parent Embracing Sanity (APES) for parents who adopted children as toddlers or older – contact Joe or Mary at moonshine@gci.inet or 243-6561

  • NAMI Alaska meetings for families and children with emotional, behavioral, and psychiatric disorders, call Tracy at 277-1300 or 277-2245 for more information

  • Autism & Asperger Support Group – email ayfn@yafn.org or call 770-4979

Mat-Su Support Groups

  • Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Groups in Palmer (third Thursday every month from 12noon – 1pm in Palmer Senior Center boardroom) & Wasilla (first Thursday of every month from 6:30 – 8pm at Wasilla Senior Center)

  • Mom 2 Mom, A Project of Alaska Attachment and Bonding Associates; Contact Melissa 907-376-0506 for more information

Juneau Groups

  • FASD Family Support Group at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church.  Call 463-5161 or 209-4988 for more information

Do you know of a resource we should add to this list?  Please let us know: info@heritageadoption.org or 503-233-1099

 
Want more information?
Call 907-745-0258 or 503-233-1099, also e-mail:

Information Request