Wednesday's guest speaker was Tanya Houk, Transitional Care/New Beginnings manager for the Gladney Center for Adoption Based in Fort Worth. She is pictured, left, with this week's program chair Nancy Cameron.
 
The Gladney Center for Adoption has been in operation 138 years, providing adoption and advocacy services for pregnant women. Last year the center placed 211 children into adoptive homes. The center also provides transitional care services, placing children in foster care before going to their new adoptive home.
 
Houk said one of the most rewarding, and difficult, aspects is finding adoptive families and homes for special needs babies and children terminally ill.
 
She said there are some 32,000 foster children in Texas, and about half are placed each year. Finding more people to take in children as foster parents or adopting them is always a challenge.
 
Houk said adopting a child through the state foster system costs nothing. Also, those children have their college tuition paid for.
 
To learn more about The Gladney Center of Adoption and its services for expectant women, adoption, medical care, support and legal assistance go to https://pregnancyhotline.org.