“Adoption can be a lonely experience, and it really helps to have other people who are experiencing a similar path,” says adoptive parent Jocelyn Newmarch.

World Adoption Day was on Saturday November 9, and Danielle Moosajie, the director of Arise, a Kenilworth non-profit helping foster strong family relationships, says the day highlights the need for resources to help families thrive “regardless of the circumstances that bring a child into a family’s care”.

Adoption brings unique complexities related to trauma, identity, and attachment, and Arise offers workshops for those considering it, says Ms Moosajie.

“Our workshops help potential adoptive parents and adoptive families understand these aspects deeply, preparing them to support a child's emotional and mental well-being,” she says. “Through psychosocial education, we equip families to nurture stronger bonds and healthier family dynamics.”

Ms Newmarch, 44, and her husband, Peter Magni, 47, from Harfield Village, adopted their daughter, Rachel, 5, as a baby about five years ago, and the couple use Arise’s services.

“Arise has been great,” says Ms Newmarch. “We first attended their annual adoption conference while we were still in the adoption process, and it was so helpful hearing the stories and insights from other families who had adopted, as well as from adoptees themselves.”

She and her husband had to follow the adoption process of meeting with the social worker first.

“At that initial meeting, they asked about our motivations for adopting, whether we were dealing with infertility, our feelings about adopting a child from a different race, and what we could handle about a child's background story or potential special needs,” she says.

The couple also went through a screening process that included counselling sessions, house visits by social workers, medical exams, recommendation letters from family and friends, and police clearance.

“I think what's a bit different about our case is that in addition to the usual parenting challenges, we also proactively think through how race shapes our family and how we can better support our child as she forms her own identity,” says Ms Newmarch.

She and her husband are white and speak English as a first language while Rachel is black with a Xhosa background.

Ms Newmarch says she and her husband enjoy accompanying Rachel to a Xhosa playgroup.

“We also enjoy hiking, beach days, art and crafts, watching Disney movies or sometimes just singing and dancing to the Disney songs and going to the theatre,” she says.

Ms Newmarch advises anyone considering adoption to build a network that includes parents who have adopted.

“Attend courses or conferences, such as those offered by Arise, and talk to parents in your network who have adopted. I learn so much from my fellow parents, who often bring insights or tips that I would never have thought of.”

On Monday November 18, at 7.30pm, Arise will run a Zoom workshop on understanding and supporting “trauma-informed behaviours” in adoption. It’s aimed at adoptive and foster parents, caregivers, professionals working with adoptive families and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of trauma’s role in adoption, Ms Moosajie says.

“It provides tools to understand trauma's impact on behaviour and how trauma-informed care can foster healing and stability.”

Tickets are R80 or R150 per couple and can be bought through Quicket. Email info@arisefamily.org or visit arisefamily.org for more information.

Adoptive parents Peter Magni and Jocelyn Newmarch adopted their daughter Rachel over five years ago.

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Arise guides the way through adoption process