STREAMLINED PROCESS LETS ADOPTIVE FAMILIES MAKE THEIR BONDS OFFICIAL.Byline: Jin Whang Daily News Staff Writer At 54, Diane Bell Diane Bell (born 1943) is Professor of Anthropology and Director of Women’s studies at the George Washington University in Washington DC, USA Originally a teacher in Victoria, Australia,went back to school at Monash University, Victoria to concentrate on anthropology , thought it was too late for motherhood. And having waited 2-1/2 years for the paperwork to come through on her two foster children, the Lake View Terrace resident began to wonder if adoptive a·dop·tive adj. 1. a. Of or having to do with adoption. b. Characteristic of adoption. 2. Related by adoption: parenthood would elude e·lude tr.v. e·lud·ed, e·lud·ing, e·ludes 1. To evade or escape from, as by daring, cleverness, or skill: The suspect continues to elude the police. 2. her as well. But Saturday was Mother's Day for Bell, who walked into a downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles is the central business district of Los Angeles, California, located close to the geographic center of the metropolitan area. The sprawling, multi-centered megacity is such that its downtown core is often considered just another district like Hollywood or law firm to take part in an accelerated adoption program and within hours had the paperwork to adopt 11-year-old Robyn and her 9-year-old brother, James. ``I finally get to be a mom,'' said Bell while being hugged by Robyn. ``We've been waiting two years for this,'' Robyn said. Bell and her children were among almost 300 new families taking part in an innovative program for expediting the adoption of foster children. Put together by lawyers at the law firm of Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher, 60 to 70 lawyers donated their time Saturday to set up a paperwork assembly line that in a matter of hours finished work that can take several years. ``They streamline three years of work in one morning,'' said Bell, who is divorced. On Aug. 15, she will appear in children's court with her new family to confirm the adoption and receive new birth certificates for the children. ``It is such a blessing to be able to expedite the adoption. It's permanency per·ma·nen·cy n. Permanence: tourists who were in awe of the permanency of the great pyramids of Egypt. Noun 1. in a child. It's a wonderful thing,'' Bell said. By quickening quickening /quick·en·ing/ (kwik´en-ing) the first perceptible movement of the fetus in the uterus. quick·en·ing n. the paperwork necessary for adoption, the program helps put a dent in the county's backlogged foster care system - more than 70,000 children need homes. Karen Ullman, a staff attorney for Public Counsel, a nonprofit organization Nonprofit Organization An association that is given tax-free status. Donations to a non-profit organization are often tax deductible as well. Notes: Examples of non-profit organizations are charities, hospitals and schools. that provides free representation to adopting parents to finalize fi·nal·ize tr.v. fi·nal·ized, fi·nal·iz·ing, fi·nal·iz·es To put into final form; complete or conclude: "They have jointly agreed ... adoptions, said that waiting for documents to arrive in the mail is just one of several problems families face trying to adopt through the county foster care system. ``Just for this half sheet of paper, it would take months and months to come,'' she said, holding up one of the documents that parents were helped with Saturday. Most of the time, families cannot afford attorneys, Ullman said, and therefore they make mistakes completing paperwork, which gets shuffled and sent back in an already slow system. Saturday's adoption program was masterminded by Steven Meiers, a partner at Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher, who got the idea from Judge Michael Nash, presiding judge presiding judge n. 1) in both state and federal appeals court, the judge who chairs the panel of three or more judges during hearings and supervises the business of the court. in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County Dependency Court. Nash had opened up his courtroom around Christmas last year to confirm about a dozen adoptions. Meiers said that since then, Nash has initiated a referral program for difficult adoption cases to get transferred to services such as Public Counsel. Meiers said he signed up attorneys from his firm, trained them how to complete the paperwork correctly and got them to volunteer Saturday. This was the second event the group held. The first took place on a Saturday in March when 120 adoptions were processed and one month later confirmed in court. Meiers said his firm anticipates continuing Saturday adoption events throughout the year. ``This is a sensational thing that's happening. It's giving kids who have nothing something. These kids are tomorrow's homeless if we don't help them,'' Meiers said. CAPTION(S): Photo PHOTO Lawyer Wendy Hallgren, left, checks paperwork as adoptive mom Diane Bell signs final documents at Saturday's program. Terri Thuente/Daily News |
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