While most Tennessee judges are enjoying a day away from work on Saturday, Nov. 22, Chancellor Thomas (Skip) Frierson is opening his Morristown courtroom doors. In honor of National Adoption Day, Frierson will be at the Hamblen County Courthouse at 10 a.m. to finalize the adoptions of children.
“If anyone is interested in having their children’s adoptions finalized, I’d love to do them,” he said.
Frierson, the father of two adopted children, said he has been spreading the word among attorneys who handle adoptions that he will be available for families who want to take the final step in the legal process. His own children, 9-year-old daughter Reagan and 5-year-old son Parker, are the inspiration for his decision to conduct the Saturday adoption ceremonies.
“Handling adoptions is very special,” he said. “It’s comforting to know that children are being placed in loving, safe and secure homes. It’s nice on those days when everybody’s happy. My wife Jane and I have been so blessed and we’re thankful to have had an opportunity to become parents in this way.”
The Frierson family includes children adopted in the United States and from a Russian orphanage.
“We started the process the first time around in 1993,” Frierson said. “We went through Holston United Methodist Home for Children in Greeneville. “In August of 1994, we got a phone call and were told they had a little girl who was six weeks old. We were ecstatic. They called on Tuesday and were on our doorstep with our new daughter on Friday morning.”
The Friersons took custody of the baby immediately and started the legal proceedings for adoption. Then, in 1998, the family decided it was time to add a new member – a sibling for Reagan. But, they learned it could take up to five years to adopt a baby domestically, so they contacted Catholic Social Services to find out about the possibility of a foreign adoption. After completing the background checks and paperwork, the couple waited for a call telling them they would be going to Russia to bring home the baby son they had seen only in a video and a few snapshots.
“We were in Russia for 18 days,” Frierson said. “Parker, who was 10 months old, was in an orphanage in Podolsk. He had dysentery, but when we got back home he proved to be very healthy. He gained six pounds in the first five weeks.”
The family celebrates their adoptions every year at a picnic in Asheville, N.C., with other families who have adopted children – an event Frierson described as “a special fun time.” The two Frierson children know they were adopted and Parker knows he was born in Russia.
“We do hope one day we can go to Russia and he can see where he was born. If they wish to pursue gaining information about their birth parents, we will assist them with that,” Frierson said. “We get calls now from prospective adoptive parents who want to learn about the process. We are so pleased with both of our experiences that we really recommend adopting children”
National Adoption Day was designed to facilitate the adoption of foster children and bring attention to their plight. Across the nation, attorneys, judges, foster care professionals and child advocates join forces to encourage the adoptions of children needing permanent homes.
“Last year, 1,350 children were adopted as a result of Adoption Day events in 34 cities nationwide,” Frierson said. “Approximately 542,000 children currently reside in foster care environments in this country, including 10,000 in Tennessee. Of those, approximately 126,000 nationwide and 1,000 in Tennessee are available for adoption.”
He said in some cases, parents have voluntarily given up their children, but many others have had their parental rights terminated by the courts because of child abuse or neglect. Only about 25 percent of foster children eligible for adoption will wind up in permanent homes, he said.
“In recent years, Tennessee courts have experienced an increase in adoption filings and finalizations,” the chancellor said. “In fiscal year 1997-98, chancery and circuit courts statewide disposed of about 2,300 adoptions. Last fiscal year nearly 2,900 adoptions were granted by the courts. And, during 2002, 965 children in foster care were adopted in Tennessee.