No one ever sat with me and said, “filling the crib is not going to cure your infertility, it’s not going to fill the hole in your heart.”
I thought that if I just filled the crib, if I became a mom, I wouldn’t have any more grief and loss.
And now I often tell others: If you’re adopting that child to heal your heart, that’s a pretty dang big job to put on a baby.
— Rebecca Vahle, adoptive mom, Angel in Adoption®, hospital-based adoption liaison (the first in the country), and champion of HR3690 —
Walking with Hundreds & Talking with Thousands
In this new podcast episode of Adoption: The Long View, Rebecca Vahle shares stories of adoption and parenting from multiple — and I mean MULTIPLE — perspectives. She has an uncommon experience both deep and wide, as she’s walked and talked these difficult paths with hundreds of patients and thousands of healthcare professionals. Rebecca is now actively involved in a bipartisan bill, now working its way through Congress. It’s a pro-education bill that can improve adoption in so many ways and for so many affected. She explains how this new bill would bring standardization and a focus on ethics while housing it in the realm of healthcare.
Day 1 centered on the Capitol and Day 2 featured a White House meeting. Day 3 includes talking about adoption reform with lawmakers. Plus dropping in on a House Committee meeting and getting gussied up for a gala.
How to Advocate
CCAI (Congressional Coalition of Adoption Institute), started our morning with a legislative seminar. We got tips on how to talk with legislators about what we think should happen with the state of Adoption. We then broke into small groups, each one led by a CCAI representative.
With Chuck Johnson of NCFA (top), and Leesa and Mike Worley of Colorado Springs.
Mine was Chuck Johnson, President and CEO of the National Council for Adoption. We headed first to the office of the Senator who nominated me for the Angels in Adoption® award.
Following Monday’s events, the story of Tuesday has four parts: the pinning, a meeting with White House staff, seeing my fairy blogmother, and being a guest in the home of a former Senator.
Pinning Ceremony
Angels nominated by a Senator were recognized at a breakfast ceremony in the Russell Senate building. (Angels nominated by a Representative had a lunch ceremony over on the House side.) My friends and colleagues Dixie Weber, Janelle Ison, and Rebecca Vahle accompanied me.
