adoption support groups

Support Groups

two people in sweaters hugging

Children need support on the lifelong journey of adoption — and so do adults.

Connecting with other people who share your experiences helps you thrive. That’s why Pact is committed to creating safe, supportive, no-cost spaces where all members of the adoption triad can build community with peers who understand them. All our support groups are grounded in Pact’s honest, anti-racist, child-centered approach to adoption.

You can attend an adoption support group every month, or drop in occasionally. Meetings are held online via Zoom. All groups are free to Pact members. Register on our Events page.

Learn more about Pact’s ongoing support groups for:

You can also request to join Pact’s private Facebook groups for:

*What do we mean by transracial? Transracial adoptive parents are parenting children who do not share their racial identity. The majority of participants in our transracial adoption support groups are white parents who have adopted children of color. Pact is serving a growing number of BIPOC transracial adoptive parents. Depending on their needs, BIPOC parents who have adopted children of a different racial identity may choose to attend our transracial support groups and/or our support groups specifically for adoptive parents of color.

Pact Support Group Flyer (PDF) available for download.

We strive to make our programs as inclusive as possible—if you are part of a group that you feel could benefit from Pact support, please contact us.

Adult Adoptees & Former Foster Youth of Color

This longstanding monthly support group is a safe space exclusively for adoptees and former foster youth of color. You can be you in all your beautiful complexity—we get you.

Virtual meetings: First Tuesday of each month, 5:30pm Pacific Time (8:30pm Eastern). Facilitated by Katie Wynen.

Register here.

To receive notices of upcoming meetings, complete this interest form.

Facebook group: Open to all adult adoptees and former foster youth of color; request to join.

Learn more about opportunities available through Pact for adult adoptees and former foster youth of color.

Adoptive Parents of Color Collaborative

These ongoing adoption support groups are exclusively for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) adoptive and foster parents. Yes, we do adopt! These are spaces for adoptive parents of color to build community, receive support, and reflect on shared experiences.

Adoptive Parents of Color (All Ages & Stages): Fourth Tuesday of each month, 4 pm Pacific Time (7pm Eastern). Facilitated by Maya Mosley.

BIPOC Parents of Adopted Teens & Young Adults: Second Wednesday of each month, 5:30pm Pacific Time (8:30pm Eastern). Facilitated by Raquel Vivanco.

Register here.

To receive notices of upcoming meetings, complete this interest form.

Facebook group: Open to all adoptive parents of color; request to join.

First/Birth Families

This support group provides a safe, supportive community for those related by birth to a child placed in adoption or foster care. This group is for parents, grandparents, siblings, aunts and uncles by birth of children placed for adoption.

Virtual meetings: Fourth Wednesday of each month, 4pm Pacific Time (7pm Eastern). Facilitated by Susan DG Leksander.

Register here.

To receive notices of upcoming meetings, complete this interest form.

Facebook group: Open to all first/birth family members of adoptees of color; request to join.

Transracial Adoptive Parents

These adoption support groups provide “brave spaces” where parents who have adopted children of different racial identities can build community and have honest, race-conscious conversations about the joys and challenges of transracial adoption. The majority of participants are white parents who have adopted children of color. Depending on their needs, BIPOC parents who have adopted children of a different racial identity may choose to participate in these groups and/or in our support groups specifically for adoptive parents of color (see above). Pact membership required.

Transracial Adoptive Parents (All Ages & Stages): First Wednesday of each month, 4 pm Pacific Time (7pm Eastern). Facilitated by Beth Hall.

Transracial Adoptive Parents of Teens & Young Adults: Third Wednesday of each month, 4:00pm Pacific Time (7:00pm Eastern). Facilitated by Beth Hall.

Register here.

To receive notices of upcoming meetings, complete this interest form.

Facebook group: Open to all transracial adoptive parents; request to join.

Adoptive Parents of Teens & Young Adults

These support groups provide safe space where adoptive and foster parents of teens and young adults of color (usually ages 15-25) can talk about the parenting challenges. Pact membership required.

BIPOC Parents of Adopted Teens & Young Adults: Second Wednesday of each month, 5:30pm Pacific Time (8:30pm Eastern). Facilitated by Raquel Vivanco.

Transracial Adoptive Parents of Teens & Young Adults: Third Wednesday of each month, 4:00pm Pacific Time (7:00pm Eastern). Facilitated by Beth Hall.

Register here.

To receive notices of upcoming meetings, complete this interest form.

LGBTQ+ Adoptive Parents

This support group provides a safe space for LGBTQ+ parents to find community and talk about the joys and challenges of adoptive and foster parenting children of color, intersections with our own queer identities, and helpful strategies. Pact membership required.

Virtual meetings: second Thursday of each month, 4:00pm Pacific Time (7:00pm Eastern). Facilitated by Michael Ginther.

Register here.

To receive notices of upcoming meetings, complete this interest form.

Facebook group: open to all LGBTQ+ adoptive and foster parents of children of color. Request to join.

Support Group Facilitators

Michael Ginther

Michael Ginther

LGBTQ+ Adoptive Parents

Michael Ginther (he/him) and his husband Jim (he/him) are white cisgendered gay men who are the adoptive parents of two young adults, one who is Lakota (Native American) and identifies as non-binary (they/them), and one who is African American and identifies as cisgendered and straight (she/her). Their family has been involved with Pact since the children were little. Before quitting to become an at-home parent, Michael worked as a lawyer and law professor.

Beth Hall

Beth Hall

Co-Founder & Executive Director

Beth Hall (she/her) is the white adoptive mother of a Latina daughter and an African American son, both now adults, and grew up with an adopted sister. She co-founded Pact in 1991 to combat the discrimination she witnessed against adopted children of color and their birth families. She is the co-author, with Gail Steinberg, of the book Inside Transracial Adoption (Perspectives Press, 2000, 2nd edition, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2013), as well as numerous articles on adoption and race. She is a nationally known advocate for adopted children of color who regularly lectures and leads workshops on ethical, child-centered, anti-racist adoption.

 

Susan Dusza Guerra Leksander

Susan Dusza Guerra Leksander

Agency & Clinical Director, First/Birth Family Advocate

Susan Dusza Guerra Leksander (she/her), LMFT, is a Latina first mother, transracial domestic adoptee, and licensed psychotherapist who specializes in the adoption and foster care triads, providing treatment and consultations since 2009. When Pact became a licensed full-service adoption agency in 2017, Susan was appointed its founding Agency & Clinical Director, launching Pact’s Center for Race and Adoption Focused Therapy in 2021. She is on the ongoing complex journey of reunion with her first families and the daughter she placed for adoption.

Maya Mosley

Maya Mosley

Adoptive Parents of Color (all ages)

Maya Mosley (she/they) is a Black foster-adopt parent residing in Oakland, CA, where she was born and predominantly raised, and is a long-time member of Pact’s Adoptive Parents of Color Collaborative. As a parent, Maya strives to support her teen-aged child and grow in her understanding of the intersectionality of racial, cultural, gender, neurodivergent and adoptee identities. As a California charter school teacher, Maya has been supporting and guiding homeschoolers for over 20 years.

Raquel Vivanco

Raquel Vivanco

Adoptive Parents of Color Collaborative Director, Parent Program Manager

Raquel Vivanco (she/her) is the adoptive mother to two Latin@ persons. Prior to joining the Pact staff, Raquel worked for the Tides Center & Foundation as a project manager and human resources manager, and launched two successful small businesses in Latin America. She has a BA in International Relations from Stanford. Raquel has been an active member of the Pact community for over fifteen years and is deeply dedicated to ethical adoption reform.

Katie Wynen

Katie Wynen

Adoption Social Worker, LGBTQ Advocate

Katie Wynen (she/her), MSW, is a transracial, international Colombian adoptee, with a Masters in Social Work. Katie has worked with members of the adoption triad since 2006. She studied under Dr. Joyce Maguire Pavao in Boston before moving to Oakland and joining the Pact staff in 2012. Katie works in adoption placement, leads the adult adoptee support groups, and provides adoption education nationwide. Katie is an Angels in Adoption 2019 Recipient from the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.

To meet additional Pact team members, see individual program pages.