EMQ FamiliesFirst and Family Finding Unites Hannah with Family in Time for the Holidays

HOLLYWOOD--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

With help from the Family Finding program, this holiday season will bring lots of family time for Hannah. Although in her early years she was isolated, at age 14, Hannah was welcomed with open arms into her extended family. Family she would never have known if it weren't for the Family Finding program http://www.emqff.org/services/family_finding.shtml at Hollygrove, an EMQ FamiliesFirst agency.

“A safe, loving family is as essential to a child as food and shelter,” said Martine Singer, executive director at Hollygrove, an EMQ FamiliesFirst agency. “Our Family Finding program, funded exclusively through grants and donations, makes a profound impact on children who would otherwise be lost to foster care.”

At birth, Hannah tested positive for drugs and was removed from her biological mother. Because she was born drug-addicted she had to suffer through withdrawal. When Hannah was only six months old, her mother died – and she was left an orphan. Thankfully, her grandmother adopted her.

Her grandmother loved her greatly but limited her connections so that Hannah's world felt isolated and lonely. She kept Hannah estranged from any other family - her grandmother would get upset when Hannah merely brought up the subject.

When she was 13, a neighbor found Hannah wandering when she should have been at school. The neighbor investigated and learned that Hannah's grandmother was sick and dying at home.

Within a few days, the grandmother passed away without any plans for Hannah. Hannah was now orphaned a second time and placed into foster care.

A Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) referred Hannah for the Family Finding program at Hollygrove. Family Finding helps reconnect children with safe, healthy family members, which speeds their recovery from emotional trauma. Using Internet search technology, the Family Finding team locates biological family members for children ‘lost' in the system. Once the team identifies family members, they work to reestablish relationships and explore ways to find a permanent family placement for the child.

Family Finding located Hannah's maternal aunt and uncle who lived out of state. They were shocked to learn that their half-sister had died and that her daughter was in foster care. They immediately expressed a desire to meet her.

Coincidentally, Hannah's aunt had been a foster parent for many years and had adopted a family member and a set of three siblings from outside the family. She wondered if it was possible to adopt Hannah.

Photos and letters were exchanged, as well as a copy of Hannah's family tree. Hannah began to feel a family connection.

Her Family Finding team worked hard to ensure that this would be a safe, nurturing situation for Hannah. Eventually, plans were set to fly the aunt, uncle and a cousin out to meet Hannah. While they were in town, a meeting was set up with a social worker to discuss the possibility of Hannah being adopted by her new-found relatives.

When it was time for her family to fly back home, Hannah had a hard time letting go, but they invited her to visit them in the future. As they all said goodbye, Hannah and her family joined in one big hug that lasted nearly five minutes.

After a great deal of work and partnering with CASA, the court gave permission for Hannah to travel out of state to visit her family, accompanied by her CASA and Family Finding team. After just two days, Hannah announced that she did indeed want to come live with this family. Hannah beamed as she said, “I'm so happy here!”

“It's extremely gratifying to find family for a kid who's had a difficult, in many cases hopeless, life,” said Linda Librizzi, program coordinator for Family Finding. “But it's nothing compared to the joy we see in a child who finally feels ‘at home' - possibly for the first time in her life.”

The family quickly completed their home study and they have learned that they can, indeed, adopt Hannah. The final step was just completed, which means Hannah is now living permanently with her new, big extended family–just in time for the holidays.

About EMQ FamiliesFirst

EMQ FamiliesFirst http://www.emqff.org/about/agency/backgrounder.shtml does whatever it takes to help children and families in crisis. The agency is recognized for innovative mental health treatment, foster care http://www.emqff.org/services/foster.shtml and social services that help families recover from trauma, abuse and addiction, and rebuild their lives. EMQ FamiliesFirst fights for sustainable change and advocates for improvements in the local, state and federal systems that serve children in need. For more information, please visit http://www.emqff.org.