“Thanks”giving from the Adoption STAR Staff

Michele Fried, BS

CEO and Founder

I am grateful that there is a time every year when we can reflect on what makes us thankful. I hope it can serve as a reminder that we should look for silver linings each day and remember to be grateful for even the small things. For me, this month of Thanksgiving is always a time filled with unbelievable gratefulness. I am grateful that there was a young woman who found the strength to ask for help, to make a plan, to select a family, to meet that family and to allow that couple to become parents. Because of her greatest gift, I became a mother just before Thanksgiving ~ a very long time ago. To be able to celebrate National Adoption Month, Thanksgiving and Parenthood all together is so very special to me. I am grateful for my large and beautiful family ~ both my personal family and my Adoption STAR family. I am grateful for the amazing clients I have met along the way. Not a day goes by without me realizing how grateful I am to be touched by adoption.

Michael Hill, MS

Agency Associate Director, IAATP Project Lead

I am grateful our new office space. I love how friendly and inviting the building feels, I love the adorable pictures of Adoption STAR babies that adorn the office walls, and I love the fact that we have the space to run multiple events simultaneously under one roof. It’s an incredible gift to work within a physical space like this!

Sue Shaw, BS

Birth Parent Department Supervisor

I am grateful for all the Birth Parents i have worked with this year. They are the strongest and most selfless people i have ever met.

Susan Reardon

Adoptive Parent Mentor & Coach

I am grateful that, after many years, my passion and profession have collided! I am fortunate to work for an agency I believe in, doing work that I am passionate about and for families that I truly care for.

Stephanie Velez, MSW

MSW Intern

This thanksgiving as I look back at all of the events that have happened through the year, I remember being interviewed over the summer for a MSW intern position. Although I spent most of my time at UB playing D1 soccer, this job opportunity gave me a whole different type of adrenaline. Working with staff, adoptive parents and expectant parents has been a gift that really does keep on giving. I have been blessed to be able to work with driven individuals in the office but even more grateful to be a small part of peoples’ adoption journeys. As I continue to work at Adoption STAR for the remainder of this year and beginning of next year, I will continue to see the growth and progress of so many loving families. Thank you for the opportunity to be able to call myself part of the Adoption STAR team as it is one that I hope to be a part of for many years to come.

Senovia Cuevas

Administrative Assistant

I am grateful to work with such an amazing staff! The people at Adoption STAR truly love their work. It is a pleasure to come into the office everyday knowing it will be filled with excitement and people who are happy to be here! I am very thankful to be a part of the Adoption STAR staff!

Zack Fried

Client Relationship Manager & Adult Adoptee Support Group Leader

There are so many ways that all members of the adoption triad are able to remain involved for years and years. Through our annual events, social gatherings, classes/workshops, support groups, and online, we are all able to stay connected no matter how far the physical distance between us. I’m grateful for the incredible Adoption STAR family, throughout the country! Thank you everyone, for being part of making this family so special!

Lisa Geiger, MS

Client Support

It has been a privilege working with such amazing people here at Adoption STAR. I am grateful for the wisdom and experience I’ve been able to draw from each and every one of you. You are my friends, mentors and guides. Thank you!

Angela Laman, MA, LSW

Ohio Program Director

I am grateful for the Ohio office space as well as the awesome co-workers I work with from a distance. Despite the geographical distance, I feel connected! I am also grateful for the birth moms I have had the awesome pleasure of working with and those who still stay in contact with me. I am also grateful for the wonderful families I speak to regularly who can’t wait to open their homes to a child in need.

Lesa Quale Ferguson

New Media Specialist

I am grateful for my new job. I will always be deeply grateful to Adoption STAR for finding and helping us adopt our son Cal. I had no idea that grateful would beget grateful. For most of my life, I believed it was written in my stars that I would be a “struggling artist”; I earned money doing something other than my creative pursuits. Little did I know that the job I am suited to do had not yet been invented. At Adoption STAR, I get to write, take pictures, photoshop, code, and enthusiastically learn about and extoll the gifts of adoption. Thank you, Michele and Michael, for taking a chance on me.

Rachael Metz, LMSW

Adoptive Parent Social Worker and Family Advocate

I am thankful for being welcomed into the Adoption STAR family and working with an incredible staff. I am thankful for all the support and encouragement that takes place in our office everyday. And I am most thankful for all of the Adoptive, Expectant and Birth Families who have the strength, courage, determination and love to walk the path of adoption.

Alecia A. Zimmerman, MSW

Expectant Parent Social Worker

I’m thankful for the strength and experience of my coworkers. It’s through their experience and knowledge that I am able to learn and grow. I wouldn’t be able to do my job without them!

Shannon Boeheim, MSW

Adoptive Parent Social Worker and Family Advocate

I am thankful for all the amazing families I get to work with each day! Being able to help these families through the excitement and nervousness of the adoption process and seeing them bring home their beautiful new baby is something I will always be grateful for!

Megan Montgomery, LCSW

International Adoption Coordinator

I am grateful to everyone around the world who work to establish and maintain ethical international adoption programs so that children who would otherwise spend their life without a family, don’t have to. To be able to play a role in bringing these children and families together – it is an amazing privilege.

Lori Craig, BS

Executive Assistant

I am grateful each day to be surrounded by such a remarkable and kind group of co-workers. Through shared accomplishments, excitement, laughter, challenges, and sometimes even tears, your dedication to the work of Adoption STAR and your support of one another, including me, adds much joy to my work days. You are all extended family to me!!