About Our Birth MothersBoys & Girls Aid

Boys & Girls Aid provides all-options counseling to women experiencing an unplanned pregnancy. Women who choose to place their babies with an adoptive family receive services and support from a Boys & Girls Aid adoption clinician who works with the birth parents from the beginning of their adoption planning through three months following placement. Where She Is FromThe majority of our birth mothers are from Oregon.

Greater Oregon Portland Metro area Washington State

Her EducationMost of our birth mothers have secured some high school education.

Her AgeMost of our birth mothers are in their twenties.

13-19 years old 20-29 years old 30-39 years old Over 40

Her IncomeOur birth mothers have very little income. 34% rely on Medicaid or Oregon Health Plan, and in 2011, 91% of birth mothers reported making less than $13,000 a year.

Her RaceReflective of the local population, a majority of our birth mothers are Caucasian.

Caucasian African American Hispanic, Native American, Asian/Pacific Islander,

or bi-racial

FY11 Data | Pregnancy Counseling & Adoption Services

The Adoption Choice: IN 2011, We SeRved 44 BIRTH MOTHeRS. 68% CHOSe TO MAke AN AdOPTIve PlACeMeNT WITH BOyS & GIRlS AId.

Risk Factors Affecting our Birth mothers With any pregnancy, there are risks. The four most common risk factors our birth mothers experience are: insecure housing, alcohol and/or drug abuse, involvement with dHS and mental illness.

30%

65%5%

86% 2% 12%

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

25%

47%

23%

5%

age 13-19 20-29 30-39 over 40

Supporting Women Facing Difficult ChoicesHeather was eight weeks pregnant when she first called Boys & Girls Aid. She was experiencing a range of emotions and thoughts when she began her consultation with a Boys & Girls Aid birth parent clinician. Heather knew some about the adoption process from a family member’s experience, but she still had negative attachments to adoption in her mind. The clinician walked her through the services Boys & Girls Aid would provide her during her pregnancy and what an adoption plan could look like. As she learned more about her options, Heather came to realize either parenting or adoption were the best options for her and the baby. After the first counseling session, Boys & Girls Aid didn’t hear back from Heather for a couple of weeks. When she did call back, Heather had thought deeply about all of her choices and decided she wanted to proceed with an adoption plan. Heather moved forward with the adoption plan, feeling good about the thoughtful decision she had made.

A Selfless Act of LoveMary was already the mother of four when she found out she was having a baby. At the age of 42, being pregnant was the last thing she expected in her life. Mary’s life circumstances made her question whether bringing another child into their family was the best option. Mary and her husband, Troy, only had part-time jobs; their four children were all above the age of ten; and Mary had just started attending classes to become a dental assistant. This is when she reached out to Boys & Girls Aid. Mary and Troy consulted with a Boys & Girls Aid clinician and decided an open adoption would be best for their entire family. While their children were a little disappointed that there wouldn’t be another baby in the house, they were old enough to understand their parents’ decision. After meeting kate and Tim, an adoptive family working with Boys & Girls Aid, Mary and Troy knew they had found the two people who should parent their unborn child. This was only further confirmed, coincidentally, when kate and Tim and Mary and Troy selected the exact same first and middle name for the baby girl- lilley Marie.

0412 BGAID0115DEV Photos in this document are for illustrative purposes and do not depict actual clients.

A sampling of stories from Boys & Girls Aid birth parents. . .