We have no age restrictions, marital status restrictions or income restrictions. And once that process starts we do the assessment. We go into the homes of those who are willing to adopt through this program, and we do a full licensing process. We do a full home study process with them. And they're also trained, and they become stand-by families.
Standby families exist because of the standby guardianship law.
It allows birth parents to retain custody of their children until they feel it is appropriate to transfer that custody. LSSI was instrumental in helping pass the law in Illinois, one of the first states to make this innovative change. As an initial part of the selection process, birth parents review photo albums created by potential adoptive parents. This choice is up to them. They choose who they feel the family should be.