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23,439. Every year, more than 23,000 teens age out of foster care and are never adopted. Each of these 23,000 kids grow up moving from home to home, without having a stable support system to lift them up when they are down or praise them when they are soaring. These 23,000 kids are thrust into adulthood with no resources. No support system. No place to call home. And with more kids entering the foster care system due to the drug epidemic running rampant throughout the U.S., teens need a home now more than ever.

Kids who spend their lives in foster care are statistically proven to be less successful than those who aren’t forced into foster care or the adoption system. The Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption reports that:

• In 2012, there were 3.3 million reports of violence against children. Of those children, 251,764 kids were placed in foster care.
• And 23,439 kids in foster care aged out of the system when they turned 18.
  
  • Of these 23,439 kids, one in five will be homeless after age 18.
  • Only half will be employed by age 24.
  • Just 3 percent will earn a college degree.
  • 71 percent will be pregnant by age 21.
  • One in four will experience PTSD.

Every teen needs a family. Older youth who are adopted are more likely to finish high school, go to college and have the skills needed to succeed.

Behind every statistic, there is a child waiting to be welcomed into a home where they can feel safe. During National Adoption Month, we hope to change the hearts of the 30 waiting families who are waiting to adopt a baby and open their minds and hearts to adopting an older child. Why? Because every heart and home who opens themselves to adopting an older child means there is one less teen who ages out of foster care.

Want to learn more about National Adoption Month? Check out our other blog posts:

• Opening hearts and homes during National Adoption Month
• How the drug epidemic destroys families – including my own
• 8 Phrases about the goodness of open adoption