In October 2024, A New Beginning Adoption Agency began its 21st year. As the founder, I’ve had a front-row seat to the agency’s journey from the very beginning. In this blog, I’ll be sharing adoption stories, discussing the challenges of adoption, and inviting guests to share their personal experiences with adoption.
For this first blog post, I think it’s fitting to explain why I chose the name “A New Beginning” for the agency and what our logo represents. The idea for starting an adoption agency came to me while I was working at another agency. At the time, my husband and I had recently adopted our daughter, and our experience opened my eyes to the gaps in adoption preparation. Although I was excited and hopeful, I hadn’t fully considered the lifelong sense of loss my daughter, who was 9 months old at the time, would feel. I had been focused on my own dreams of becoming a parent, having wanted to adopt internationally since I was in junior high.
At 30, my husband and I began the adoption process through China, which had an age requirement back then. When we received our daughter Jenna’s referral picture, we were in love immediately. She had adorable chubby cheeks, big brown eyes, and an intense expression. As a new mom, I assumed she was exceptionally smart because she crossed her fingers constantly. I had no idea that this was actually a sign of anxiety, something I would later learn as part of her developmental process. When they placed her in my arms at the hotel in Nanjing, she was terrified.
When we finally got home in late August, I embarked on a crash course in adoptive parenting. From attachment issues to food sensitivities, sleep disturbances, and night terrors, I learned quickly how different it was parenting a child with a trauma background compared to a biological child. We also dealt with insensitive comments in public, like, “How much did you pay for her?” and encountered misunderstandings from family members who didn’t fully grasp what it meant to parent an adopted child.
That realization led me to dream about creating an agency that would offer better support and understanding for adoptive families. I envisioned an agency that would help parents like me navigate the complexities of adoption, offering both training and emotional support.
Then, one Friday in early November 2003, the unexpected happened. I, along with two other caseworkers, was laid off due to a “restructure.” Although I was devastated—adoption had been my dream job—I soon recognized this as a sign from God that it was time to start my own agency. My husband took on a second job, I cashed out my retirement account, and I began to build A New Beginning.
When it came to choosing a name for the agency, I had two important criteria: 1) It needed to start with an “A” because, back then, being at the top of the phone book was crucial, and 2) it needed to have real meaning. Through my experience, I have come to understand that every adoption involves some form of loss. Prospective adoptive parents often grieve the loss of biological children, while children themselves experience the loss of their birth families, culture, and country. Birth parents also face the grief of not being able to raise their child. However, adoption also offers new beginnings—adoptive parents get the chance to become parents, adoptees gain new opportunities, and birth parents have the possibility of rebuilding their lives. That’s why I chose the name “A New Beginning Adoption Agency.” I wanted the agency to be a place of hope and fresh starts for everyone involved.
As for our logo, it features sheep and daisies, symbols of spring—a time of renewal and new beginnings. Spring brings the birth of baby animals, the blooming of flowers, the much-needed rain, and the sunlight that helps things grow. These symbols serve as a reminder of the hope and growth that adoption can bring.
Over the past 21 years at A New Beginning, and during the four years I spent at the previous agency, I’ve witnessed countless fresh starts and new beginnings. I’ve also seen deep pain, loss, and grief, as well as hope that was lost and sometimes regained. Adoption is a journey for everyone involved, and it’s fair to say that this journey is rarely without its challenges.
As we head into our 21st year and the start of 2025, we are filled with renewed hope. We remain committed to helping our clients find the fresh starts, dreams, and opportunities they long for. At A New Beginning, we continue to believe that our agency is truly “Where Hope Begins.”
