Proclamation 5746 --
National Adoption Week, 1987
By
the President of the
A
Proclamation
Theodore
Roosevelt captured a vital truth years ago when he said, ``We
cannot as a Nation get along at all if we haven't the right kind of home
life.'' ``The right kind of home life'' is exactly what adoption is all about;
during National Adoption Week we do well to remember that and to encourage this
loving, proud, and beautiful way to create or enlarge families.
The
family is something all of us need. Wholesome family life is not only the basis
for stable communities and a strong country but also the best way ever devised
to nurture, raise, and love children and to instill in them confidence, compassion,
and understanding of right and wrong. Family life is a precious gift, and it is
something adoption affords both children and parents in a truly special way.
In
recent years many Americans have been discovering adoption and all its
blessings, but for many it remains an untapped opportunity. Thanks to the
efforts of devoted citizens, though, much progress has taken place in finding
permanent homes for thousands of children, including some of the more than
30,000 youngsters with special needs across our country who
await adoptive families. These children are older, or have emotional,
physical, or mental disabilities, or are of minority heritage, or are sibling
groups who cannot be separated. These wonderful children have a great deal of
love to offer their adoptive families.
What
is required of people considering adoption is the ability to love and the
desire to help children. Adoption of children by their relatives or their
step-parents has always been common, but in recent years we have begun to see
the benefits of adoption by single, foster, and handicapped parents, as well as
by parents with biological children. Members of the military have also shown
great interest in adoption.
Many
single women have realized that adoption is the best solution to crisis
pregnancy. Often under the most difficult circumstances, they have rejected
abortion and given their babies the gifts of life and of a loving adoptive
home. Many dedicated Americans help these expectant mothers during and after
pregnancy, but all of us, as individuals and as a Nation, need to do much more
to support and encourage the brave women who heroically choose life.
During
National Adoption Week and throughout the year we should do all we can to make
adoption a true national concern. There is much that each of us can do to
foster awareness of adoption -- in schools, churches, businesses, communities,
and government. The new report by the Interagency Task Force on Adoption will
help us find innovative ways to encourage adoption and eliminate barriers to
it, and that is good news for everyone.
The
Congress, by Senate Joint Resolution 97, has designated the week of November 22
through
Now,
Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the
In
Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 19th day of November, in the
year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-seven, and of the
Ronald
Reagan
[Filed with the Office
of the Federal Register,