Agape Adoption Agency of Arizona, Inc.

Agape is a Christian service organization with a passion to empower positive outcomes for children and families. Our approach is unique in its collaboration with birth parents, adoptive and foster families, government agencies and community service providers throughout the journey of life, love and healing.

Agape has actively served children and families in Arizona since 2005 by providing services intended to restore hope, love and safety.

Agape's foster care program serves foster families who range in age from early twenties to early seventies. Some of them are caring for grandchildren, nieces and nephews, while others are caring for children with whom they have no pre-existing relationships. Agape's foster and fost-adopt families are currently caring for approximately 150 children (some homes are fostering five children while some are temporarily empty of foster children). The average age of the children in Agape's home is six (6). The youngest child is the care of an Agape foster home is younger than one (1) month old. The oldest child in the care of an Agape foster home is seventeen (17).

Agape's domestic private adoption program matches families experiencing crisis pregnancies with waiting adoptive families who are assessed and trained through the agency's best-practice home study program. Private adoption birth parents and adopting families are located throughout the state and receive services that include adoption matches, adoption counseling, pre- and post-adoption home study services, and step-parent/kinship adoption for children of all ages. Agape also serves adoptive families who live in other states and are interested in adopting children who were born in Arizona by providing services to birth parents and facilitating the interstate adoption process.

Agape provides family development services through its Agape Family Services (AFS) program. The agency's Parent Aide and Supervised Visitation services help families who are working to be reunified, after their children are temporarily removed and placed in foster care.

Testimonials

We want to tell you the story of little *Noah and his forever family, Brian, Jennifer, and their kids.

Brian and Jennifer have four biological children, two of whom are adults, and two teens still at home. For many years, Jennifer had felt a calling in her heart that their family should be a fostering family, however, Brian did not necessarily agree on that vision but was still supportive of Jennifer's heart.

About two years ago, though, he came to Jennifer and said, "Are you still thinking about fostering? I think it's time for us to talk about this again." They attended one of Agape's informational presentations and began the process of becoming licensed foster parents.

Unbeknownst to her, Jennifer's sister and her husband had also gone through the licensing process to become a foster family. They welcomed 4-year-old Noah into temporary placement in their home, but things were not going well.

Noah exhibited some very troubling behaviors, like swearing, spitting, biting, hitting, and throwing and breaking objects. He was even kicked out of preschool on his first day for breaking the teacher's computer. Jennifer's sister was unsure if her family would be able to care for Noah, given these issues. That's when Brian and Jennifer offered to foster Noah in their home, temporarily.

Noah's violent and defiant behavior continued, but Brian and Jennifer offered him patience and grace. Jennifer saw through the acts themselves and realized that he was trying to communicate in the only way he knew how. You see, Jennifer's sister's home was actually Noah's 6th foster placement. He told stories of past neglect, emotional, and even sexual abuse from previous foster families.

Jennifer decided early on that she did not ever want to have an attitude of fixing Noah's behavior, but simply to help his broken heart. "I didn't want to correct him, I just wanted to love him." She would greet him every morning with joy and excitement at his presence in their home. Their family would also show him appropriate affection, something Noah was not used to. They also brought him to church and Sunday school each week.

Although not nearly overnight, Noah's whole being began to change. He even started to affirm Jennifer. "Mom, I love your face!... Mom, I love your cooking!" He even shared very honestly that although all those terrible things had happened to him, that "God is healing my heart."

Brian and Jennifer adopted Noah on November 23rd, 2019.