Child Advocacy Network

Working together, we can help more children find permanent loving families!

Every day, the RainbowKids Waiting Child Area features thousands of children in need of a family of their own.  Many of these children are toddler–age or older, some are part of a sibling group, and others may have a medical special need.

Over the last 20 years, RainbowKids has helped more than 40,000 children find their permanent families!

How Does the the Child Advocacy Network (CAN) Work?

CAN connects advocacy groups for specific medical needs with vulnerable  children waiting to be adopted that have the same special need.  

To better understand the process, focus on a child being added to RainbowKids who was born with Hemophilia:

Example 1: LA Kelley, an organization specializing in educating families about Hemophilia has no affiliation with adoption. However, they do have a strong connection to families who are currently parenting a child with hemophilia.  As a member of the Child Advocacy Network, LA Kelley now receives an email instantly when a child with Hemophilia is added to the RainbowKids website.  This email contains a short profile and link to the child's listing that LA Kelley then shares with their network of families through their website, social media and e-newsletter.  

Example 2: A dedicated adoptive mom of a child born with Hemophilia runs or is an active part of a Facebook group that advocates for children with this disorder.  She is dependent upon adoption agencies finding her group or other families informing her of children who need her advocacy.  As a member of CAN, she will now instantly receive a "child advocacy alert" email whenever a new child  with Hemophilia is added to Rainbowkids.

Example 3: Some organizations, such as Little People of America, have an established adoption advocacy program (and they are a wonderful group!)  As a CAN partner, LPA has instant notification of children with Dwarfism that become available for adoption, and are put into contact with the adoption service providers that are representing that child.  We've built an inclusive system that gives every child the greatest opportunity to find their forever family.

Because nearly every Intercountry Adoption Agency in the USA uses RainbowKids to list their waiting children, the Child Advocacy Network is uniquely positioned to act as a central location to connect children needing families with organizations and individuals willing to advocate and help find families!

CAN is all about making new connections to benefit children waiting for families. It also brings attention and promotion to the organizations who partner with us.

Every day new children are uploaded to RainbowKids.com by adoption agencies across the USA.  

How Organizations, Individuals, and Social Media Advocates can Help Children Find Families:

If you have a heart for children in need of adoption, consider partnering with us in the Child Advocacy Network (CAN)!

Over 4,000 children are currently available for adoption on RainbowKids and more are being added everyday.  When you join CAN, you are committing to advocating for children with a specific special need. 

To learn more, please contact Julie Barclay with the subject line CAN Advocacy. Please include the following information:

•  Network/Organization Name (FB group, website, etc.)
•  Link to group or homepage
•  Description of your current advocacy for children
•  Best contract information to be reached

If you are an organization without an adoption advocacy program, we would love to share information with you on how to feature children needing families!