Adoption program expanding to find kids forever homes

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI) The Wendy's Wonderful Kids program works to find children and teens a permanent family. It's funded by the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. Now, the program is expanding by way of a partnership with the Department of Child Services (DCS) and the Villages of Indiana. So far the program has found homes for 160 kids in Indiana.

There are currently only three adoption recruiters in the program. The expansion will allow for more recruiters to be hired so the adoption process can be sped up. The number of recruiters will increase to thirty. Families who are looking to adopt and kids in need of a family will all benefit from the expansion. The Director of Foster Care and Adoption Service for the Villages of Indiana, Nicole Schultz, shares the impact the increase in recruiters will have on local families.

"But obviously with three recruiters, they're spread thin. But, if we can expand that to thirty we can be in the thousands for adoptions in Indiana" says Schultz.

Melissa Crace and her husband Ryan adopted their son Shane in 2019. They went through the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program to adopt their son. Crace says the process was made simple thanks to the support and guidance from a recruiter. Crace faced fertility issues and turned to adoption to make her dream of becoming a mother a reality.

"Shane's only been in our family for four years, but it feels like he's always been there. And even on the hard days because of autism and just life in general, I don't know where our lives would be without him" says Crace.

Crace is thankful for the program and recommends it to anyone looking to adopt.

"I don't know what I'd do without Shane. I'm so thankful for him and for God placing him in our lives.

To find the link to the Wendy's Wonderful Kids program click here.