Adoption Agency to Hold Orientation

Residents who are contemplating adoption as a way to build a family or add to an existing one are invited to attend a free orientation next month in Thousand Oaks.

Holy Family Services, a state-licensed, nonprofit adoption and foster care agency, will hold a two-hour orientation Sept. 24. The agency also holds orientations that focus on the adoption of older foster children.

The group, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, has maintained an office at 80 E. Hillcrest Ave. for three years. Agency employees have aided birth parents with free counseling and financial and medical assistance.

According to Dianne Kleppinger, a spokeswoman for Holy Family Services, professional counseling of birth parents is important for the parents to make healthy adoption choices.

For those considering adopting a child, the agency provides complete adoption services, including information on international and interstate adoptions. The agency also provides opportunities for adoptive families to interact with one another at picnics and holiday parties.

Reservations are required to attend the September orientation, which will be held at the Goebel Senior Adult Center at 1385 E. Janss Road.

For more information, call 374-6797.