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WNY Agencies Seeking Adoptive and Foster Parents

By Joyce Kryszak

Buffalo, NY – Foster care and adoption agencies from across western new york banded together Thursday to find homes for some of the region's many displaced children.

Click the audio player above to hear Joyce Kryszak's full story now or use your podcasting software to download it to your computer or iPod.

About fifteen agencies set up tables at the downtown public library for the one-day adoption and foster parent fair. They supplied information and answered questions for people who wanted to know more about making the commitment.

Michael Powers is a good one for them to ask. He's a parent liaison with Adoption Support and Preservation Services at Hillside Children's Center. But Powers has a more important credentials. He and his wife are the adoptive parents of four children.

Powers said his children are all special needs kids. He and his wife started out as resource or foster parents. Powers said that's why he knows says parents require support before during and after making the decision to adopt. And he said there are plenty of free services available to help people who are willing to open their homes to a needy child.

Buffalo resident Jackie Melvin didn't expect that she might be one of them. She stopped by the library Thursday just to borrow some books. But she said the faces of the children pictured on the agencies' display boards called to her. Melvin said she is now considering becoming a foster parent because she sees that there are so many children in need.

Information and links to resources on adoption and foster care are available at More information is available at the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library web site.