November is National Adoption Month, a time that celebrates adoption and highlights the need for more people to provide permanent, loving, and safe homes for children growing up in the foster care system.
Sometimes the parents who adopt don’t look like the kids they’ve chosen to love and raise, and navigating the complexities and unique dynamics of what’s known as transracial adoption can be challenging. Heritage Camps for Adoptive Families has emerged as a source of much-needed support for Colorado families. The long-running organization offers year-round support and a series of culturally-focused summer camps that help adoptees and their families build community and stay connected to their roots.
There are a total of nine different camps available, focused on children of Latin American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Indian/Nepalese and Russian/Eastern European backgrounds. Among them is also the African/Caribbean Heritage Camp, held each summer at the YMCA at Estes Park. This past summer, Colorado Matters host Chandra Thomas Whitfield presented at that camp and she said what she experienced was both eye-opening and heart-warming.
Co-director Kiran Obie of Denver said the camp serves a wide range of families. who have adopted kids of African and Caribbean heritage. “It can be kids from Ethiopia, different parts of Africa, also the Caribbean, and then a lot of domestic adoptees [who are African American] as well,” she said. Programming spans from early childhood through adulthood and focuses on cultural identity and open conversation. “We try to make sure that all our presenters and facilitators are of African/Caribbean heritage because our kids need to see mirrors of the people they can become,” she said.
For 13-year-old Sadie Bryan of Boulder, the camp offers a rare opportunity to be around families who understand her experience growing up Black with white parents. “All my experiences at Heritage Camps have been very positive, especially this year,’ she said. “I think just the community is really great. Sadie added that being surrounded by her peers at camp makes her feel connected. “For me, it's just really a place where I can be myself honestly,” she said. “Just that feeling of being around people who you can connect with so easily.”
Her father, Rich Bryan, said the camp has shaped their family for nearly a decade. “There’s lots of socializing and serious kinds of deep discussions that are pretty heavy sometimes, about racism and how our kids are going to be living in a world and experiencing the world differently than we are,” he said. He added that the sense of belonging that he and his daughter have found each summer at camp keeps them returning. “I think probably the biggest thing is the kids have formed a community and the parents as well,” he said.
Fellow longtime attendee Terry Stone of Lakewood, agreed. “We've been coming for 10 or 11 years, I've lost track,” he said. “But I think it's really incredible for our family and the kids to connect and experience other families just like ours.”
For adoptees like Miri, a 10th grader at Manuel High School in Denver who is of Ethiopian heritage, the camp’s impact is both empowering and emotional. “My experience here was very positive overall,” she said, choking back tears. Being surrounded by other African/Caribbean adoptees matters deeply to her. “It means that we're not the only people out there [navigating the ups and downs of [transracial adoption],” she said. “At camp, [there’s] so much love.”
For more information, visit HeritageCamps.org.
