New LSS service focuses on strengthening adoptive families

This paid piece is sponsored by LSS.

Welcoming a child home is a lengthy and emotional journey. It’s filled with patient waiting and many questions. While adoption day is a time of celebration, it’s far from the end of the process — in fact, it’s more like the beginning.

Caring for a child is immensely rewarding, but it also takes patience and flexibility. Parents must be prepared for difficult conversations and to offer unconditional love throughout their child’s life. Children who have been adopted carry unique histories and identities, regardless of how the adoption came to be.

LSS has long played a role in building and strengthening families through adoption. Now, thanks to funding from the South Dakota Department of Social Services, LSS can provide an even greater depth of ongoing support through its new Post Adoption Services.

“Post Adoption Services focus on what happens after the adoption is finalized,” said Amy Witt, LSS chief program officer. “It’s about helping families and children maintain a healthy home and ensuring they have a support system for when they’re facing challenges.”

Current LSS adoption services center on infant and international adoption. Families who adopt through LSS can call the team at any time to receive resources and support. Through the new Post Adoption Services, LSS can provide support now to any adoptive family, anywhere in the state.

“It may be resource support, where a family who is struggling can reach out and we connect them to outpatient counseling or a support group,” Witt said. “But it could also be more involved, like case management, where we meet with the family in their home and offer support or help them identify areas where they can use additional help.”

Witt and her team are still in the early stages of defining and implementing services. However, she said they intend on using a portion of the grant to expand the availability of adoption-competent mental health therapists in the state.

“We aim to provide education and awareness to professionals who provide outpatient behavioral health and other medical services to better address the challenges faced by adoptive families,” she said. “Navigating issues like identity — knowing who you are and where you came from — is different when you weren’t born into your family. Understanding that history and processing past traumas that may have occurred is crucial for the health of a child who’s been adopted.”

Post Adoption Services aim to meet youth and their families at the beginning of their journey, providing support before issues become overwhelming.

“We know there are families who are struggling and often not getting the support they need before a higher level of care becomes necessary,” Witt said. “Now, we can assist them before they have to seek more intense services, which is incredibly important.”

The goal of Post Adoption Services is to nurture the bonds among all family members, including the child, their parents and their siblings. In addition to expanding counseling options and providing case management support, LSS plans to introduce day camps, bonding workshops and support groups.

“What we hope to do is support the whole family, so they heal and grow together,” Witt said.

While the program prioritizes each family’s health and safety, its leaders envision a future centered around community. This vision involves providing opportunities for various adoptive families to share their experiences. For children, this means offering engaging activities that help them connect with other kids who have been adopted, showing them that it’s OK to express their feelings. For parents, it’s about providing avenues to build vital friendships and expand their support, reassuring them that they are not alone.

While LSS will play a role in these families’ lives, the ultimate goal of LSS Post Adoption Services, Witt said, is to establish strong community networks — empowering adoptive families to support one another naturally.

Post Adoption Services are made possible through funding from the South Dakota Department of Social Services.