We are honored to be presenting at the Tapestry conference again this year. We have been asked to talk about the importance of birth families to foster and adoptive kids.

Here is the summary of our session:

Adopted and foster children share a deeply personal connection with their birth families regardless of the circumstances of their removal, relinquishment, or abandonment. Yet adoptive and foster parents often struggle to fully understand this reality and to know how to respond. As both adoptive and foster parents, Ryan and Kayla have walked this journey with their children and the varying degrees of contact they have with their birth families. In this session they will talk openly and honestly about the blessings and challenges of navigating a child’s connection to birth family, and how to help your child develop an accurate understanding of their past and a healthy identity, while also honoring everyone involved.

You can click on these links to read more about the sessions and speakers. You read more about the conference and register on the Tapestry Conference website.

The 2013 conference will feature unique content across two plus days — and you are invited to attend any or all of the events. Our theme for this year’s conference is “Big Questions. Honest Answers. Real Hope.”

 

On Friday, October 25th, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, Tapestry will host a workshop focused on the topic of attachment, led by Deborah Gray, author of Attaching in Adoption and Nurturing Adoptions, and Dr. Karyn Purvis, author of The Connected Childand Created to Connect: A Christian’s Guide to The Connected Child. This workshop will be helpful to parents and professionals alike, and CEUs for counselors and social workers will be offered.

On Friday evening, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm, Tapestry will host a free, interactive event entitled My Story. Your Story. Our Story. It is a storytelling event that will both inspire and equip you. This event will feature three storytellers — Carissa Woodwyk, Scott McClellan, and Greg & Tracey Fields. Click here for more details about the pre-conference events.

On Saturday, October 26th, from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, Tapestry will host the 2013 Tapestry Adoption & Foster Care Conference, with Deborah Gray and Carissa Woodwyk, author of Before Your Were Mine, as the general session speakers. The 2013 Tapestry Conference features 20 breakout sessions covering a wide range of topics relevant to adoptive and foster parents, those considering adoption, adopted persons, professionals, and ministry leaders.