If you’re like me and other parents, you’re gonna wish you’d had a time machine to go back and know earlier what you didn’t know then about parenting, That’s the whole premise of my podcast, to take the long view. With adoptive parenting, that wish can be even stronger, because a lot of we “know” about the adoption part of parenting doesn’t actually turn out to be as true and as well-functioning as we think. Much of the conventional wisdom about adoption turns out not great – for adoptees. By the time we parents figure that out – often through crisis – the moments of opportunity to be on a healthier trajectory may have passed.
Hearing adoptees tell us what works well for them, and not so well for them is a gift to adoptive parents.
With us this month is Greg Gentry, an adoptee who has reflected on his own journey of adoptedness, and who hears stories of other adoptees through his connection with Fireside Adoptees, an online group to help adoptees thrive. Greg interviewed me on Fireside last year as a means of helping adoptees get a glimpse into why their adoptive parents might be the way they are. Now I have the pleasure of interviewing Greg here, to give adoptive parents the experience of entering a time machine, of consulting a sort of crystal ball orienting on the future, to lend insights to what helps and what can hurt adoptees — before it’s too late.
About Greg Gentry
Greg Gentry is a domestic baby scoop era adoptee (if you want to know more about that term, check out ep302), born in California in 1969. He spent the first 6 weeks of his life in foster care before going to live with his adoptive family. Greg has gone through the ups-and-downs of reunion with his maternal side since 2006.
In 2021, a fellow adoptee helped him locate his paternal family. He has been in reunion with members of his late father’s side since early 2022, and continues to cultivate those relationships. Since coming out of the fog (we cover what this means), Greg has been an active member of the online and in-person adoptee communities.
Greg is a facilitator and interviewer for Fireside Adoptees. Additionally, Greg hosts in-person meetings for Adoptees Connect out of Derry, New Hampshire.
Show Notes: Ep 407 with Greg Gentry
- Ep106: Coming out of the Fog with Sara Easterly
- Ep302: Two Baby Scoop Era Adoptee Playwrights
- Ep403: Two Late-Discovery Adoptees
- Book: You Should Be Grateful by Angela Tucker (mentioned)
- Fireside Adoptees on YouTube and Instagram
- Fireside Adoptees on Facebook
- Adoptees Connect on Facebook and website
- Greg on Instagram: @greggentry22
- Transcript of Ep 407
How to Tune In Regularly
You can find us on Adopting.com, and on these and other platforms.
- Spotify
- Apple Podcasts
- Amazon Podcasts
- Castbox
- Search for “Adoption Long View” on your preferred podcast platform.
A new episode comes out the first Friday of the month. Thank you for sharing, subscribing, and rating this episode!
Lori Holden, mom of a young adult daughter and a young adult son, writes from Denver. She was honored as an Angel in Adoption® by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.
Her first book, The Open-Hearted Way to Open Adoption: Helping Your Child Grow Up Whole, makes a thoughtful anytime gift for the adoptive families in your life. Her second book, Standing Room Only: How to Be THAT Yoga Teacher is now available in paperback, and her third book, Adoption Unfiltered, is now available through your favorite bookseller!
Find Lori’s books on her Amazon Author page and catch episodes of Adoption: The Long View wherever you get your podcasts.
