Wednesday, December 4, 1991- North Shore News - 49 ~~"

Pe i ge re

Filling a special need

The Special Needs Adoption Demonstration
Project began on the N. Shore four years ago

(Part two of 2 two-part series on adoption)

JAN AND Lioyd Lutke’s 15 adopted children have re-

markable parents.

Though Jan would probably
say her children are remarkable
for thriving despite their special
needs.

Some are from minority
backgrounds — Native Indian,
Metis, East. Indian and Chinese.
Several suffer from fetal alcohol
syndrome, and are physically,
emotionally and _ intellectually
handicapped.

One child is confined to a
wheelchair. Another wears leg
braces and has severe lung disease.
Many have been physically or
sexually abused.

“Living with children with
special needs is difficult,’’ says
Jan, “‘and not for most people. It
can be devastating at times, but it
can also be wonderful.”’

A special-needs child is someone
other than a young healthy infant.

Having adopted conventionally
through the Ministry of Social

Services, Jan is now an informal .

advocate of the Special Needs
Adoption Demonstration Project
cun by North Shore Family Ser-
vices Society which originated
Nov. I, 1987.

Funded by the ministry, and
providing intensive pze-placement
and follow-up education and
counselling fer both prospective
adoptive parents and children, the
service is an “invaluable experi-

By Janice Mucalov
Contributing Writer

ence,’’ says Jan.

*‘No one shou'd adopt a
special-needs child without such
pre-placement training.

“Most families don’t make a
truly informed decision when they
adopt a special-needs child,’’ she
adds. ‘‘It’s fine to fall in love with
a picture. Or believe that if you
just rescue the child and love him,
he will be eternally grateful, and
you’ll all live happily ever after.

“But you have to know what
it’s like to live day in and day out
with a child who is off the wall,
who will divide and conquer, and
who knows how to turn a calm,
organized environment into chaos,
because that’s how he’s survived.’”

Despite her overwhelming expe-
rience, Jan says she is stiil learn-
ing. She attends every three-hour
session of the niue-week orienta-
tion programs provided by the
Special-Needs Adoption
Demonstration Project, both as a
participant and guest speaker.

The program covers such crit-
ical issues inherent in all adop-
tions as attachment, grief and
loss, predictable family adjust-
ments following placement, search
and reunion, and sexual abuse

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(American statistics report that
60% ¢to 90% of all children in
care have been sexually abused).

The aim of the orientation pro-
gram is ‘‘to help prospective
adoptive parents become informed
consumers — to help families
determine whether the realities of
adoption are compatible with their
lifestyle, and whether they have
the skills and capacities needed to
rise to the challenges,”’ says the
project’s coordinator, Judy Ar-
cher.

It is also offered with a view to
reducing the number of adoption
disruptions that tragically do oc-
cur. Archer says North American
statistics suggest that the vast ma-
jority of adoptions succeed, but
approximately iG%% to 11% of
adopted children are returned
within six months atic: the adop-
tion procedure has hs -« finalized.

In addition to ur. orientation
program, the three project adop-
tion workers work intensively with
the children that are referred to
them by the ministry.

Over a pericd of four to six
months, the workers assess each
child’s current level of functioning
and needs, and provide counsell-
ing to help them understand their
past and adjust to their new en-
vironments.

Six-year-old Chantelle
Berkowski is one child who was

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NEWS photo Mike Waketiotd

FROJECT ADOPTION worker Daphne Grant works with the
special needs adeption demonstration project in North Van-

couver.

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