News & Updates
May | 2021

A Message from Astrid
We the Experts: Adoptee Speaker Series
Conscious Adoption: Adoptive parent education
In Community - Teen adoptee group
Film screenings and discussions
A MESSAGE FROM ASTRID
Director & Founder of Adoption Mosaic
Spring has begun here in Portland encouraging lots of new growth. The same can be said here at Adoption Mosaic! We are launching three new six-session parent courses in our Conscious Adoption: Adoptive Parent Education Series. 

In addition, we have a great We the Experts panel coming up that focuses on adoptees and names and we cannot wait to begin our first teen adoptee group - In Community. 

Don’t forget you can become a six or twelve month We the Experts subscriber and be automatically registered each month for this wonderful series. 

We are so excited to see Adoption Mosaic continue to grow and we couldn’t do that without your dedication and support. Thank you to all of you, our incredible community!
Astrid Castro
Director & Founder
WE THE EXPERTS: ADOPTEE SPEAKER SERIES
Adoptees & Names
We the Expert: Adoptee Speaker Series
When:
Saturday, May 8, 2021 10:00 am-12:00 pm PST
(1:00 pm-3:00 pm EST)
Where:
Online in ZOOM
A name is one of the first things a person receives. Names are used to connect us to culture and family. Most adoptees have experienced life with more than one name. Join us in a conversation about adoptees and the names that have been given to them at birth, given to them at adoption, and that they have chosen for themselves. We will explore questions such as:
 
  • How do our names impact our identity? 
  • What is it like to change our names? 
  • Who has the right to decide our names? 
CONSCIOUS ADOPTION SERIES
Wednesdays - May 5, 12, 19, 26 and June 2, 9
4:00 pm-5:30 pm PST on Zoom
Who should take this course?

  • Adoptive parents with children of any age
  • Person(s) interested in adopting
  • Adoption professionals

What is special about this course?

  • An interactive course that provides history and context

  • Gives participants a chance to practice engaging with others in talking about race

  • Allows you to hear directly from adult transracial adoptees.

  • Created and implemented by adult adoptees of color.



Tuesdays - May 18, 25 and June 1, 8, 15, 22
4:00 pm-5:30 pm on Zoom
Who should take this course?

  • Adoptive parents
  • Person(s) interested in adopting


What is special about this course?

  • Go beyond the surface and learn to craft a rich, nuanced story about your path to adoption

  • Discuss and understand the legacy of adoption in your family

  • Build community with other adoptive families

  • Created through an adult adoptee and adoptive parent collaboration.


NEW! FOR TEEN ADOPTEES
Who can join this group?

  • People ages 12-18 years old

What makes this group special?

  • Helps explore shared experiences through guided discussions

  • Adult adoptees model how to talk about adoption

  • Viewing and discussion of two adoption-related documentary films
When does this group meet?

  • Thursdays: May 6, 13, 20, 27 & June 3, 10 

  • 4:00-5:30 pm PST via ZOOM 
FILM SCREENINGS WITH Q & A SESSIONS
Produced and directed by Drew Nicholas
Featuring Sandy White Hawk

Thursday, May 20, 2021
4:00-6:00 pm PST
Sandy White Hawk (Sicangu Lakota) walks the 'road of her past' - Rosebud, South Dakota / Drew Nicholas
Battles over blood quantum and 'best interests' resurface the untold history of America's Indian Adoption Era - a time when nearly one-third of children were removed from tribal communities nationwide. As public scrutiny over Indian child welfare increases, an adoption survivor helps others find their way home through song and ceremony.

Official Selection: BIG SKY Doc Fest, Minneapolis Saint Paul International Film Festival, Black Hills Film Fest, Duluth Superior Film Festival, RISE Reconciliation Film Festival.

This event is FREE thanks to the generosity of Sandy White Hawk and Drew Nicholas.
Produced and directed by David Quint


Thursday, June 3, 2021
4:00-6:30 pm PST
Post screening audience conversation with Urban and David Quint
Haunted by the story of an abandoned boy, a man sets out with his estranged father on a high-stakes trip to an orphanage in Switzerland. While unlocking secrets surrounding the child’s missing father, the men uncover a stunning truth that transforms their lives.

This uplifting true story was recorded as it happened, capturing all the gripping twists and turns with immediacy and emotion. Honest, heartfelt, and real, FATHER UNKNOWN is an unforgettable front-row experience.

The fee to attend this event is $15/person.


Adoption Mosaic offers individual consultations with Astrid Castro. Consultations are not therapeutic services. However, these one-on-one sessions with Astrid offer:

  • Empathetic, experience, and education based listening
  • Time to talk about you/your family’s challenges and successes
  • Individualized advice based on you/your family’s situation
  • One-on-one time with a caring, knowledgeable, open-minded adoption professional