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20
20

A Year of Forging
New Paths

There’s not much we can say about 2020 that you haven’t already heard. The pandemic and its effects reached every door — including our own.

But one thing we can say with certainty: you, our Gladney Family, prepared us for what we didn’t know was coming. As we move toward brighter days ahead, you sustain us for what’s next.

Gladney’s commitment to forge new paths in adoption became more critical than ever last year. We adapted our daily operations. We supported families through difficult conversations about racism. It was a year of listening, learning, and making connections — often in new and innovative ways. In the midst of it all, several of 2020’s brightest moments showed that Gladney’s mission never faltered.

Below, we invite you to discover the accomplishments, the people, and the services that defined 2020 for Gladney.

2020 At a Glance
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Children's Lives Impacted
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Birth Mothers Placed Their Children for Adoption
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Adoptive Parents, Birth Parents, and Adult Adoptees Served through Post Adoption Conversations, Guidance, and Resources
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Teenagers, Parents, Teachers, Doctors, Nurses, Social Workers, and Other Professionals across the U.S. Provided with Adoption Education
We Are Gladney

Mission

Creating Bright Futures Through Adoption

vision

For the sake of the children and those who love them, Gladney is dedicated to creating the finest adoption experience possible.

The Gladney WHy

Gladney believes every child deserves a loving and caring family.
The Gladney Team

Hear from Our Team

Moving Forward Together

"

The past year solidified that Gladney staff members are truly passionate and dedicated to our clients and our mission. Babies were still being born, expectant mothers were still making adoption plans, and adoptees, birth mothers, and adoptive parents were still needing post adoption support. I felt reassured that we were up to the task to keep our services moving. In the midst of a challenging year, we were recognized by FW Inc. as one of the 30 Best Companies to Work for in Fort Worth, which was gratifying.
Heather Beasley
VICE PRESIDENT, HUMAN RESOURCES
One Year’s Work, A Lifelong Impact
You helped us connect more children and families, as well as continue education and advocacy efforts among those closest to our cause. With your help, our mission was carried out across the United States and in other countries where we serve.

We Impacted the lives of 267 children.

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Children Adopted through Our Domestic Infant Adoption Program

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Through Our Waiting Child Programs

*Due to COVID-19, adoptive families from the U.S. were not able to travel to China for placement with their children, beginning in March 2020.

1,059

expectant mothers inquired about adoption services.

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Expectant Mothers Chose to Be Admitted to Gladney’s Adoption Program

  • 27 average age of expectant mother clients
  • 46% of expectant mother clients have other children
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Birth Mothers Placed Their Children for Adoption

We provided guidance and resources through 7,119 post adoption connections with 2,107 adoptive parents, birth parents, adult adoptees.

12,000+ teenagers, parents, teachers, doctors, nurses, social workers, and other professionals across the U.S. were provided with adoption education through:

180+ volunteers donated 24,500 hours of service,

including our Transitional Care families, who provided 579 days of care for 27 babies, and our Superkids Program volunteers, who advocated to find adoptive families for waiting children in Taiwan.

Hear from Our Team

You sustain us

"

My hope for brighter days ahead is rooted in the beautiful way I see the Gladney Family—staff, clients, donors, community partners continue to stand together as Gladney Friends, near and far.

You prepared us. As I reflect on the unexpected events, challenges, and lessons of the past year, I can clearly see how you all equipped us. Your support provides our staff with the tools they need to serve expectant mothers, adult adoptees, birth parents, adoptive parents, and family members well. From technology and training to office supplies and transportation, we have what we need—to stay connected to each other, meet our clients’ needs, and continue fulfilling our mission of Creating Bright Futures Through Adoption—because of you. You sustain us.
Lisa Schuessler
Vice President, Donor Relations

"

When I envision how this program is supposed to work, I will think of Aliya.
Heather Rogers
Gladney Home Residential Supervisor

The Gladney Home | Aliya’s Story

"

I knew I was right where I needed to be.
Joelle and Derek
Adoptive ParentS

Our family’s second adoption placement took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time of uncertainty, it was easy to feel overwhelmed. We weren’t even sure if we would both be able to be in the hospital.

J surprised everyone by coming about three weeks early. We got a call that they needed one of us there right away, so we decided I would fly out right away to be with him in the hospital.

While traveling alone to meet our next child, I was a mixture of nerves, excitement, and frustration that my husband and I couldn’t both go together. But he reminded me, ‘Wherever you are, I am. We are one. We are a team.’ The moment they wheeled J into my room, all of the anxiety and nerves melted away. I knew I was right where I needed to be.

Before we took placement of our children, we knew on an intellectual level that you don’t need to be biologically related to bond with a child, but it wasn’t until after we met each of our children that we felt the true meaning of that concept. The connection we felt with them appeared instantaneously, even though we had not been building a bond with them for nine months. They needed us as much as we needed them. Each of our sons filled a void in our family that we never really knew was there.

"

Women in the middle of pregnancy, whether planned or unplanned, were now facing hospital time that would look radically different from their expectations.
Macie Meadows
Birth Parent Caseworker

"

It's important to us to remain in community with those who walked the two-year journey with us to bring home our precious child.
Andrea and Matt
Adoptive Parents

As the first Gladney family to travel to Taiwan during COVID-19, we are thankful for the clear communication we received from Gladney throughout the whole process. We had easy access to Mary, our Gladney caseworker, as well as Gongzhan, the Vice President & Executive Director of Gladney’s Asia programs. Gladney checked in frequently, making sure we were making it through each step of the travel process until we arrived at our destination.

After our 15-day quarantine came to an end, we experienced so much of Taiwan’s culture, heritage, and beauty. Our experiences during that week made the extended trip, due to COVID-19 regulations, worth it. We came away from that week much more knowledgeable about our son’s birth country, and for that, we are thankful.

Through Gladney’s Facebook groups, post adoption support, and the Chinese New Year celebration, we’ve been able to stay connected to Gladney since our adoption. It’s important to us to remain in community with those who walked the two-year journey with us to bring home our precious child. We’re so thankful for the impact Gladney has had on our family.

"

We adopted Eli from foster care two weeks prior to COVID-19 restrictions, and the quality time we have had to get to know each other has been amazing.
Mandy and Ray
Adoptive Parents

My husband is a first responder, and I also have an essential job, so our time together as a family has been after work and on the weekends. We cook, bake, take long walks through our neighborhood, attend virtual church, have movie nights, and play outside together. We have learned more about each other through this time than we could have ever imagined or planned for. It has been amazing to see the world through Eli’s eyes. He is doing and experiencing so many things for the first time, and it has made us step back and reflect on the little things in life. 

Eli is caring, active, and loving. We feel proud of him and how well he has adjusted to us, his school, our family, and our friends. It feels like he has always been with us. We hope he feels loved as a child and into adulthood. We want to give him all the tools he needs to succeed in life and have a bright future ahead. We hope he knows we are here for him forever on his life journey.

From a 2020 Gladney Senior

"

From leading a student organization I started during freshman year to marching in the Rose Bowl Parade last year, I leave knowing I gave these past four years all I had to offer. I am walking away from high school knowing what it means to work hard and to persevere through hardships. I am walking away knowing the power of the connections you make with others and how those connections can lead you to do really great things.
Zhanna
Adult Adoptee

Hear from Our Team

I feel so grateful to be part of Gladney's amazing team!

"

I have loved working with birth moms and connecting with them more personally, through focus groups, interviews, and our new Birth Mothers Amplified podcast. I know I don’t fully understand the amount of strength and the emotional journey a woman goes through to make the adoption decision she feels is in the best interest of her child. My respect and admiration for these courageous women have continued to grow. I believe Gladney’s ability to share what adoption looks like today is very closely tied to our relationships with these inspiring birth moms.
Nathan Gwilliam
Vice President; Executive Director, adoption.com
Celebrations & Events
$ 0

the amount raised through special events in Fiscal Year 2020 (including $556,552 from The 2019 Gladney Cup)

Prior to the pandemic, we held three special events in 2020:

Night at the Museum in Little Rock, Arkansas

70 Moms and 86 Sons

10th Annual Dancing Hearts: A Date Night with Daddy in San Antonio, Texas

117 Dads and 145 Daughters

23rd Annual Dining and Dancing with Daddy in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

163 Dads and 207 Daughters

The traditions of our Gladney Night at Six Flags and National Adoption Month events are built on the joy of hugging old friends and making new ones.

With those things being more challenging to guarantee in 2020, Gladney paused in-person events.

Instead, we pivoted to hold an online storytelling campaign during National Adoption Month in November. Adoption Rocks Your Home was a virtual celebration of how adoption rocks a home to its core — in the biggest and best ways possible. In a year full of change, it highlighted the foundation that family connections build in our lives. 

With multiple virtual events, branded merchandise, and interactive features, Adoption Rocks Your Home allowed us to innovate adoption advocacy in a new and more accessible way.

Hear from Our Team

What “Stay at Home” Looked Like for the Gladney Home

"

As with many caregivers in 2020, our staff had to transition to add ‘teacher’ to their duties. Many of the girls residing in the Gladney Home (our group foster care program for pre-teen and teen girls) struggle in school, so ensuring each girl has been able to get her educational needs met has been an ongoing challenge. Though we faced many changes, I am proud of how each of the girls has adapted.

Learning how to be flexible and re-prioritize in the moment has always been important in this role; however, this year has highlighted the importance and necessity of this even more. 

Allowing myself to laugh, be playful, and act silly with the girls, even when there are a lot of heavy things happening in the world around us, was so valuable. It led to some fun memories. Our team also got to be part of important milestones, including:

  • Watching multiple youth participate in equine therapy through Wings of Hope, a local community partner.
  • Adding weekly tutoring and academic advising through Achieve Advisors, a local community partner. This has allowed many of the girls to catch up to their grade levels academically and learn new skills.
  • Helping two young ladies take the SAT exam and apply for colleges.
  • Participating in a Zoom court hearing to watch the adoption finalization for a girl who was part of the Gladney Home program!
Heather Rogers
Gladney Home Residential Supervisor
Combined Financials

$25,846,062

Value of the endowment as of August 31, 2020

$3,499,034

Total amount contributed by donors in FY 2020

* Including Paycheck Protection Program grant; not including special events

$687,427

Total special event net revenue in FY 2020

*Including $556,552 from The 2019 Gladney Cup

2,743

Total # of gifts in FY 2020

2,050

Total # of donors in FY 2020

$11,612,100*

Total

*Including support from Endowment

Revenues

37% Adoption Programs –  $4,340,789
  • 30% Domestic Infant Adoption Program – $3,504,557
  • 5% Adoption from Foster Care Program – $551,777
  • 2% International Adoption Program – $284,455
36% Development Revenue – $4,186,461

*Including Paycheck Protection Program grant and net revenue from special events

22% Support from Endowment – $2,609,906
3% Adoption.com Website Advertising Revenue – $300,549
1% Gladney Home Residential Foster Care Program – $165,818
<1% Other – $8,577
 

Expenses

43% Adoption Programs – $4,484,102
  • 29% Domestic Infant Adoption Program – $3,060,982
  • 8% Adoption from Foster Care Program – $823,803
  • 6% International Adoption Program – $599,311
19% Communication/Outreach – $1,939,116
18% Administration – $1,831,670
8% Fundraising – $780,713
7% Gladney Home Residential Foster Care Program – $770,623
5% Post Adoption & Client Services – $573,161

$10,379,385

Total

$41,439,041

Total

Assets

63% Investments – $25,846,062
26% Property & Equipment – $10,924,645
9% Intangible Assets – $3,839,154
1% Beneficial Interest in Trust – $478,901
1% Other
  • Accounts Receivable – $127,672
  • Prepaid Expenses – $107,864
  • Cash – $104,559
  • Inventory – $9,884
  • Contributions Receivable – $300

Liabilities

78% Note Payable – $4,500,000
20% Accounts Payable and Accrued Expenses –  $1,130,264
1% Line of Credit – $75,000
1% Other Liabilities – $37,904

$5,743,168

Total

Financial Contributions

Contributions by Program

67% Unrestricted
15% Education and Outreach
5% Domestic Infant Adoption Program
4% Adoption from Foster Care Program
4% Gladney Home Residential Foster Care Program
3% Post Adoption Services
1% Campus Improvements
1% International Adoption Program and Humanitarian Aid
69% Individuals
21% Government

*Including Paycheck Protection Program grant

8% Foundations/Trusts
2% Corporations

Contributions by Constituency

Thank you

Whatever difficulties you faced this past year, please know we are so grateful for you thinking of and supporting Gladney. We are encouraged and inspired when we see people wanting to help, especially during a challenging time.

Hear from Our Team

Education Goes Virtual

"

My first thought after the stay-at-home order was, ‘There will still be a need for education, and we can do this safely and effectively by going digital.’ 

Our AdoptED program was already planning to scale the program for virtual learning, so we just propelled our timeline forward and started offering teachers options for virtual programs.  As a result, AdoptED has been able to reach so many more states than we ever could have by only offering in-person lessons.  It’s fun to see the program grow in such an innovative way, and students really enjoy the interactive nature of the program and all the ways we can use technology, such as discussion groups and virtual quizzes. We have been humbled by the teachers, counselors, parents, doctors, nurses, social workers, and communities that continue to want to learn and grow through our AdoptED and Gladney University programs — even during the pandemic.
Jennifer Lanter
VICE PRESIDENT, COMMUNICATIONS
Leadership

Gladney Center Board of Directors

Outgoing Members:

Incoming Members:

Gladney Fund Board of Directors

Executive Team

Outgoing Member:

Incoming Member:

You are Essential to Gladney

This year, we’re moving forward with new determination. We hope you continue to sustain our mission by turning your compassion into action. Below, discover new ways you can support Gladney in 2021:

Become a Gladney Ambassador to advocate for adoption in your community.

Send a note of encouragement to Gladney caseworkers, couples in the midst of the adoption process, or girls in foster care in the Gladney Home.

Give to the programs that inspire you.

Encourage your friends and family to give; purchase items needed by girls in foster care in the Gladney Home and by expectant mothers.

Lessons Learned and New Implementations:

Within 24 hours of Texas’ governor’s order to stay at home, Gladney was able to ensure that 95% of our employees who could work remotely were set up to do so in their homes. Microsoft Teams (which Gladney had had in place for over a year, though not used consistently) and other platforms, such as Zoom, quickly became commonplace and allowed us to maintain connection with our staff and teams somewhat seamlessly during the stay-at-home order. Gladney has had a business continuity plan on the shelf for some time, but this was the first real test of how it worked in practice.

What we have learned is that a need exists for a few of our operational systems to move toward a web-based platform to allow for seamless, remote continuity, should we have the need in the future. We minimized the number of staff on campus during this time to those who were truly essential for their departments and Gladney to continue to operate. This consisted of Gladney Home staff, maintenance, reception, and a few individuals in Development and Accounting. We were able to track hours and pay employees seamlessly, as well as utilize Teams/Zoom to continue the recruitment processes and training for clients, staff, and interns. However, there are still some questions on how to best onboard both staff and interns in a remote environment, and we will continue to look at processes around that.

Pretty quickly, we understood that communication was going to be critical during this time of uncertainty and developed a schedule to check-in with staff every few weeks as a large group to provide updates. These efforts have continued during this time, which has helped us all stay on track with goals, maintained connections, and provided an open forum for questions and concerns. Supervisors have continued regular check-ins with their teams and individual staff members to address any issues or concerns that may arise.

Gladney began a slow reopen in June 2020 with several protocols in place to minimize risk of working on-site. As COVID-19 numbers began to rise in Texas, we chose to re-close the campus and only allow staff to operate there on an as needed basis. Staff and scheduled visitors on campus have followed very specific protocols to ensure safety and mitigation of spread, should a staff member test positive for COVID-19. We implemented a virtual school environment at the beginning of the school year in 2020, in order to allow Gladney staff to bring their children with them on campus to have their virtual schooling done onsite. A large event space on campus was reconfigured to allow for social distancing, and a teacher was onsite to help children log into their classroom video calls, as well as assist with lessons. The teacher also conducted P.E. activities and science/art projects with the kids.

Overall, I think we are pleased with how we have operated during the pandemic, given the relatively short period of time we had to ensure business continued. Our IT team will be developing a strategy, including a timeline and cost analysis, for equipping the majority of Gladney with laptops to allow for even easier remote work, should the need arise again.

Pre-adoption trainings for families adopting children internationally and from state foster care and orientations for families adopting infants domestically transitioned to a virtual environment and have proven effective, though not ideal. Our Gladney University ongoing educational sessions moved to an all web-based training format, and we have seen an increase in the number of participants. Unfortunately, our AdoptED program had to stop temporarily when schools closed their buildings. However, through a new digital platform put in place, we have since been able to launch a Virtual Classroom for teachers and students to access the AdoptED lessons in a self-paced format.

The Gladney Home

Aliya’s Story

A Caseworker's Perspective

Pregnancy & Adoption during COVID-19

Testimonials

Gladney Adoption Day