As a parent of 4 young children and career education professionals working in special education - my wife and I embarked on an "adoption journey" through a number of events several years ago. In addition to reading books, talking with other adoptive parents, listening carefully to the great counsel we were receiving from trained professionals helping us become prepared to be qualified to enter into the adoption process - we also learned about an amazing network of expertise, faith, and perspective on the adoption journey that I feel is worth forwarding to you at this time.
Empowered to Connect (ETC) is an organization that my wife and I were made aware of through local adoptive parents who had, like many adoptive parents, struggled to find accessible materials that provided them with research-based materials in conjunction with a faith-based message in support of the questions we were wrestling with. With some great timing on our side, we were able to travel to Dallas, Texas for a 2 day workshop where we not only were able to receive training directly Michael and Amy Monroe, founders of ETC, but also from Dr. Karyn Purvis of TCU's Institute for Child Development - a researcher and leader in designing interventions for children from "hard places" who have experienced extreme trauma, neglect, and abuse.
The workshop sessions we attended were amazing - the information was both profound and accessible - and the event helped fuel our own growth as professionals in some amazing ways. Since we have attended that workshop several years ago, the word about both the ETC and Dr. Purvis (and Dr. David Cross) at Texas Christian's Institute for Child Development are certainly "getting out there." That said, I still run into individuals who have never heard of either ETC or Dr. Purvis's work in the area of equipping families to lovingly support the children they welcome in their home. I thought I'd forward some information to you and though one of the events mentioned has recently passed by you (Sept 12 and 13, 2014 in Washington, D.C.) there are several other upcoming conferences in California, Texas, and Minnesota.
From the Empowered to Connect website: http://empoweredtoconnect.org/
Empowered To Connect, together with Show Hope, hosts the Empowered To Connect Conference — a two-day conference designed to help adoptive and foster parents, ministry leaders and professionals better understand how to connect with “children from hard places” in order to help them heal and become all that God desires for them to be.
The conference features Dr. Karyn Purvis together with Michael & Amy Monroe, and is ideal for adoptive and foster parents, those considering adoption or foster care and those who are serving and supporting others, including social workers, agency professionals, church staff and ministry leaders, counselors, therapists and others.
The next Empowered To Connect Conference will be on September 12 & 13, 2014, in the Washington, D.C, area (at Reston Bible Church in Reston, Virginia). Click here to register. For a limited time you can also receive 1/2 off your registration fee — just use the discount code FOCUS when you register.
Visit www.etcconference.org for more details and to register online.
Dates and Locations for the 2015 Empowered To Connect Conferences:
• February 13-14, 2015 – Orange County, California
• April 10-11, 2015 — San Antonio, Texas
• September 18-19, 2015 — Minneapolis, Minnesota
(I emphasized the future dates in bold red font)
As the very name of ETC suggests, empowerment to connect with "children from hard places" is a central motivator for parents to attend one of these workshops. In my own experience, there were many other ways in which both empowerment and connection were experienced. I trust that if/as you were to access one of these opportunities you, too, would find it to be life changing.
I cannot think of a more timely "forward" or FB "like" than to your friends and connections that are on their own "adoption journey" or who work professionally with "children from hard places" and are looking for a faith-based perspective integrated with sound, evidence-based research.
Steve Dahl
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