Putting faith in Tampa Bay adoptions

TAMPA — Kay Thompson works out of a cramped office at Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church, surrounded by charts mapping foster care trends and books full of foster children waiting for homes.

The North Tampa church is ground zero in her quest to match African-American foster children with parents across the Tampa Bay area. In fact, Thompson spends a lot of time in churches, a cornerstone of the One Church One Child of Florida program, where she asks parishioners to consider opening up their homes.

Hers is an uphill battle. Black children make up more than 30 percent of children in state foster care, yet they account for only 20 percent of Florida's population. And once in, black children remain in foster care twice as long as white children, according to a report issued by the state's Department of Children and Families.

Still, Thompson has much to be happy about. In a time when state programs are getting slashed right and left, the state has continued to fund this program, which has an annual budget of $500,000.

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Thompson, who spent three decades working for DCF, spends much of her time approaching pastors, asking for permission to give her presentation to their congregations.

She will speak during Sunday service or Bible study. Whenever they'll have her.

Thompson talks about the number of African-American children in the system and the incentives to adopt, which in many cases include a subsidy and college education for the child. She also works to dispel myths.

"You don't have to be married, you can be single if you're over the age of 21," Thompson said, ticking off some of the misconceptions people have about adoption. "You don't need to have a lot of money, you just need to have a roof over your head."

One Church One Child focuses on black churches, Thompson said, because it is the center of the community.

"You can find people more interested in making changes," she said.

Still, gaining the community's trust is not an easy feat.

"They're leery about outsiders coming in," Thompson said. "I still am state government."

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One Church One Child was started in 1988 as a DCF program after it was used successfully in Chicago and other states.

When DCF privatized in the 1990s, it became a private non-profit, with scaled back operations limited to Tallahassee.

Then, last year the Legislature — with the help of Sen. Tony Hill, D-Jacksonville — gave it $150,000 to expand. The group opened new offices in Jacksonville and Tampa.

"It was like a rebirth," Thompson said.

Beyond finding families, the program provides parent training, post-placement services and assists parents with finding community resources. The program has a staff of about eight, said Arie Sailor, executive director of One Church One Child of Florida.

The program also has moved beyond pulpits. Information about One Church One Child airs on WTMP, a radio station based in Tampa Bay.

That's where Jacquelyn Mallard heard about the program.

"I was thinking about it before but I never did go through with it," said Mallard, 47, who is in the process of adoption. "I just so happened to hear it. I decided to go ahead with it."

Since the new pilots began in Jacksonville and Tampa, 18 families are currently in the adoption process — 10 of those are in Hillsborough, said Sailor.

The funding this year will allow those offices to remain open.

"Being able to get into the community and bridge the gap, working with the local churches, being able to identify families," Sailor said. "That, I think, is making the difference."

Nicole Hutcheson can be reached at nhutcheson@sptimes.com or (727)893-8828.