[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 214 (Friday, November 4, 2011)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 68613-68614]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-28839]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 76 , No. 214 / Friday, November 4, 2011 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 68613]]


                Proclamation 8744 of November 1, 2011

                
National Adoption Month, 2011

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                As a Nation, one of our highest responsibilities is to 
                ensure the health and well-being of our children. With 
                generous hearts and open minds, we strive to make sure 
                all children grow up knowing they have a family that 
                shares with them the warmth, security, and 
                unconditional love that will help them succeed. And 
                yet, more than 100,000 children in America await this 
                most basic support, and still more children abroad live 
                without families. During National Adoption Month, we 
                celebrate the acts of compassion and love that unite 
                children with adoptive families, and we rededicate 
                ourselves to the essential task of providing all 
                children with the comfort and safety of a permanent 
                home.

                The decision to adopt a child has brought profound joy 
                and meaning into the lives of Americans across our 
                country. Parents are moved to adopt for reasons as 
                unique and varied as the children they embrace, but 
                they are unified by the remarkable grace of their acts. 
                Adoptive families come in all forms. With so many 
                children waiting for loving homes, it is important to 
                ensure that all qualified caregivers are given the 
                opportunity to serve as adoptive parents, regardless of 
                race, religion, sexual orientation, or marital status.

                My Administration remains steadfast in our support of 
                adoptive families and children in need of homes. 
                Earlier this year, I signed the Child and Family 
                Services Improvement and Innovation Act, which 
                reauthorizes child welfare programs and makes new 
                provisions to help reduce the amount of time young 
                children are without permanent families. I also signed 
                the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act to provide balanced, 
                nutritious meals to all children in the foster care 
                system. Last year, during National Adoption Month, I 
                signed the International Adoption Simplification Act, 
                which removed unnecessary regulations and barriers to 
                international adoption. These efforts come in addition 
                to the Adoption Tax Credit, which was extended and 
                expanded as part of the Affordable Care Act to make 
                adoption more accessible to American families. Through 
                these key pieces of legislation, my Administration is 
                moving forward with our commitment to stand with youth 
                in foster care and find new ways to encourage adoption.

                Adoption has become a part of many Americans' lives and 
                has contributed to the character of our Nation. As 
                parents and as family members, it is our task to do all 
                we can to give our children the very best. In caring 
                for our youth and putting them before ourselves, we 
                make a lasting investment not only in their future, but 
                also in the prosperity and strength of our Nation in 
                the years to come. This month and throughout the year, 
                let us recommit to ensuring every child is given the 
                sustaining love of family, the assurance of a permanent 
                home, and the supportive upbringing they deserve.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the 
                United States, do hereby proclaim November 2011 as 
                National Adoption Month. I encourage all Americans to 
                observe this month by answering the call to find homes 
                for every child in America

[[Page 68614]]

                in need of a permanent and caring family, and to 
                support the families who care for them.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                first day of November, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand eleven, and of the Independence of the United 
                States of America the two hundred and thirty-sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2011-28839
Filed 11-3-11; 11:15 am]
Billing code 3295-F2-P