Program Description

The SNAP/DD Program places children for adoption who have a wide range of disabilities and impairments. The goal of the SNAP/DD Program is to provide permanency for all children, regardless of the type or of the severity of their impairments.

D.A. Blodgett Services receives referrals for this Program from Community Mental Health Service Providers (CMHSP) over the entire state of Michigan. The children become available for adoption through the voluntary release of parental rights by the birth parents. This is coordinated by the SNAP/DD Program. Potential adoptive families are recruited throughout the entire state of Michigan.

Services Provided

D.A. Blodgett for Children offers the following services through the SNAP/DD Program:

• Release counseling for birth parents.
• Coordination of the legal process, including the voluntary release of birth parents’ rights and the filing and finalization of the adoption.
• Recruitment of the potential adoptive family.
• Adoptive family assessments for families interested in adopting.
• Foster home licensing for families interested in adopting a specific child.
• Securing of available resources for the adoptive child and family.
• Support and supervision for each adoptive placement.

Requirements

The SNAP/DD Program tries to find families that can meet a specific child’s needs. Applicants can be single, married or divorced. Applicants can also live in an apartment or a home. There is no specific income requirement. The agency looks at all of the available information regarding the family (including criminal history, living arrangements, income, family relationships and general health) and will make a recommendation decision based on the individual family’s information. The SNAP/DD Program is most interested in adoptive parents who are realistic, who have a sense of humor and who are committed to establishing a “forever family” for children.

Fees

For every child that is adopted, there is a court filing fee of $160. Some of the other costs that may be involved are paying for a local police check (generally around three dollars), paying for driving records (eight dollars per person) and paying for physicals. There is also a $40 charge for every child’s new birth certificate, with additional copies costing $5 each. Generally, the court filing fee and the birth certificate cost can be refunded by the State of Michigan. However, this is not always the case.

Most of the children that are placed for adoption qualify for adoption support subsidy and adoption medical subsidy. Adoption support subsidy is a monthly payment, sent to the adoptive family, which is equal to the amount of the monthly payment that the foster parents received for the child. This subsidy is solely based on the child’s qualification, not on the parents’ income. Adoption medical subsidy is a type of insurance program, which can help defray some of the medical or counseling expenses that a family may incur throughout the life of the child.


For more information, please call or write to:

Dennis Jakubik, MSW
D.A. Blodgett for Children
805 Leonard NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
616-774-4637

Since 1992, the SNAP/DD Program has placed children with moderate to severe impairments in permanent, adoptive homes throughout Michigan.

The Agency’s track record has been outstanding: 59 placements and zero disruptions.

• The red dots indicate the locations of D.A. Blodgett SNAP/DD adoptive placements.