Casey Family Receives National Adoption Award

The Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute honors one person or family from each state who has helped to support the adoption of foster youth with its annual Angels in Adoption award. In 2003, Casey Family Services and Senator Christopher Dodd nominated Jacquelyn and Anthony Barrows to receive the award for the state of Connecticut.

Casey Family Services Executive Director Raymond Torres, and Hartford Division Team Leader Steven Hoffler, accompanied the Barrows family to the awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. "It was an overwhelming and exciting experience," says Jacquelyn. "It was very enlightening to meet so many other families who have been involved in adoption, and such an honor to represent Connecticut."

The Barrows have been working with Casey Family Services for more than eight years, first as respite care providers and foster parents, then as leaders of a post-adoption support group and mentors in the life skills classes for foster youth in transition. To the retired couple from Coventry who had already raised two children and a grandchild, it seemed the natural way to give back to their community.

"We have a large home and it was feeling too big for us," explains Jacquelyn. "We were going to move, but then we decided to become foster parents instead." In 1998, they opened their home to a nine-year-old foster boy, Coady. Jacquelyn had spent years working as a paraprofessional for the Hartford special education system, and quickly recognized Coady's need for an alternative school program. She and a Casey Family Services social worker tirelessly advocated for his needs with teachers and school administrators, finally commissioning an independent evaluation from the University of Connecticut which resulted in Coady's placement in a private school in West Hartford. Now 14, Coady is thriving and preparing to enter a technical high school next fall.

"We have had so many wonderful experiences with the Casey social workers who have been assigned to our family," Jacquelyn says. "For them, this is not a 9 to 5 job. They've been at my house in the evenings, on weekends, whenever we needed them. I'm familiar with a lot of foster care agencies, and Casey is at the top of the list as far as providing support - not just financial aid, but in the ways the staff gets involved in the family's life, making a difficult job as easy as possible."

In 2001, the Barrows adopted Coady, saying it felt as if he always belonged there. "He was a perfect match for our family," Jacquelyn says. "Adopting is something that you dedicate yourself to, and put your heart and soul into. It can be difficult, and it takes a lot of patience, but in the long run it is very rewarding."