Thank all of you so much for your kindness and support at the time of my Mom's death.
She always liked carnations, and she appreciated the flowers at the hospital. It helped to
know that you were all thinking of us and praying for us during her illness. I so much
appreciated your e-mails, cards, phone calls, and just knowing you all were there for me
at the time of her death. She died quietly and peacefully, and she had no pain.
Life continues, even while we cherish our memories. So I was back searching and glad to
feel that I could help you. Thanks to members who fielded e-mails and phone calls from
searchers while I could not, and thank you to the new searchers for your understanding.
Our meeting on March 30 was great, with several new people there. Welcome to Dyan, Kellie,
Tony, and Michelle. Please, everyone, also remember Marge, a birthmother who passed away
last Wednesday (March 29).
I hope to see many regulars and new searchers at the Support Group Meeting this coming
Monday evening (April 3) at Sandy's home.
Our next General Meeting will be on Thursday, April 28 at the Bear Library, and
the May Support Group Meeting will be on Monday, May 1 at Sandy's.
Meanwhile, we have another problem with the laws being drafted in Delaware. This time,
it's a legalized infant abandonment law. Senator Nancy Wagner (R-Dover) is initiating this
effort to permit mothers to drop off their newborns at a hospital, no questions asked,
without legal consequences. Senator Myrna Bair (R-Foulk Woods) and Representative Pamela
Maier (R-Drummond Hill) are also working on another "baby dump" bill that would
require the mother to provide personal and medical information when she leaves her baby
off.
Diane wrote me that she felt we were off the track in opposing these bills. She felt
that she would rather be alive and safe, even if she never knew who her birth parents
were. I agree. My son Kit agrees. He was a foundling, left at a drop-off place in Korea.
But this is not the issue. The issue is that these "baby dump" laws do not work.
They are "quick-fix" bills that give the public the impression that the
legislators are doing something to save babies' lives, when in fact they are not.
In fact, they may be making things worse all around.
In Texas, which has had a legalized abandonment bill for nearly a year, not one mother
has taken advantage of this legal opportunity to leave her baby in a safe place. Three
mothers did abandon their babies during the first three months that the law was in place,
but they did so in very unsafe places. That's because these bills do not address the real
problem. I ask you all to read an article on
In Georgia, a similar bill failed. Senator Mike Egan of Georgia gave his reason for
voting against the bill saying, "When something gets so bad, to legalize it is not an
answer."
In Colorado, although a "baby dump" bill is still being considered, several
legislators have expressed concern. Rep. Mark Paschall (R) said the legislature "is
going to elevate abandonment into a new fundamental right." Rep. Don Lee (R) said,
"This bill just takes us in the wrong direction. It will create moral
confusion." Rep. Gloria Leyba (D) supported the bill, but stated, "We are
creating circumstances that might require a public service campaign, and I don't want to
spend one nickel or one minute teaching people how to abandon a baby." Other
Representatives, unnamed in the Denver Post article where these comments appeared,
declared that the Legislature is endorsing " something horrific."
I hope you all will call or write your state senator and representative. If you don't
know who that person is, call the League of Women Voters at (302) 571-8948. They will tell
you the names, addressses and phone numbers. Finders Keepers has the e-mails for all of
them, so if you'd prefer to do that, send us an e-mail and we will send you the list.
No matter what happens, Finders Keepers will keep on helping people who are searching,
as well as those who need a soft shoulder and a safe place to talk about their feelings on
adoption, relinquishment, adoptive parenting, and all the other issues that triads have. I
do worry, though, about the adoptees and foster "kids" who are coming up now. We
all will have to answer to the foundlings, and I hope we and they can live with those
answers.
Well, to other things. We have two new pages at our site, in case you haven't noticed.
One is our F.Y.I. Page on open records, and the other is our Who We Are Page. The Who We Are Page is for your stories and poems. We
can now also publish photos and artwork because our web page designer got a scanner! (She
bought it through the amazon.com link at our Finders Keepers Books Page, which
means (I hope!) that Finders Keepers will get a percentage of the sale. So, if you have a
photo you'd like us to publish, or artwork no larger than 8 1/2" x 11" that you
are willing to share, please bring it to a meeting or send it to Finders Keepers, Inc. at
P. O. Box 748, Bear, DE 19701-0748. We will take care of it and be sure to return it to
you promptly.
That's about it for now, except to say once again, thank you to all of you for your
support and caring and prayers. It means more than I can ever say.
