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UW-Green Bay, CL 815
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E-mail: matzken@uwgb.edu

Rev. February 27, 2008

 


Family Business:
Adoption is passion
for UW-Green Bay grad

Kim Garner '96
Major: Social Change and Development
Occupation: President, Community Action Center
Hometown: Green Bay

Kim Garner and her family are a walking, talking promotion for the joy of adoption… and for her own business.
      Garner is president of Community Adoption Center Inc. With offices in Green Bay, Janesville and Madison, it’s one of the largest adoption agencies in the state, assisting with nearly 150 placements per year.
      Kim and her husband, Wes, bought the agency in January 2007. They knew it well, having used its services to extend their own young family.
      Lely, now age 7, came from Vietnam in 2001. Born that same year was a biological son, Max, age 6. Daughter Ela, 4, was adopted in the United States and is of Indian-Irish heritage, and 3-year-old Solomon is from Ethiopia.
      “People tell us all the time that we look like the United Nations,” Garner says. “They’re very interested in all the different cultures coming together in one family, and that’s great.”
      To Garner, adoption is both family and mission. “I have always had a desire to adopt ever since I was young, when I saw stories about orphans in other parts of the world, and that only grew stronger with my studies at UWGB,” she says, describing her motivation.
      “This line of work is not about profit or fast pace, but rather about making a family, which is priceless,” she says. “I know some adoption agency owners start as social workers who find their hearts intertwined with adoption. For me, it has always been a deep part of who I am.”
      She counsels prospective adoptive parents to be open. Open to the country or race of their prospective children. Open to the idea of a domestic adoption in which the family maintains contact with the birth mother.
      “Your heart goes out to children who deserve to have a loving family,” Garner says. “I could not imagine a more important role than being a parent. It’s fulfilling to be a part of making that happen for others, and helping children.”
Her role with Community Adoption Center
Social workers do the home studies and requisite paperwork. As owner and president, Garner is more involved as a manager for her agency, and advocate and ambassador for adoption in general. She also cultivates international connections; she returned last month from a two-week, fact-finding trip to Ethiopia. Kim runs the adoption business; Wes is president of Great Lakes Calcium, a port of Green Bay supplier that processes limestone and calcium carbonate for the construction industry.
What prospective parents should consider
Garner would be delighted if more couples realized adoption can be one of their early choices when deciding to have a family. (Most clients, she says, “turn to” adoption because of fertility issues.) She notes that blended families such as hers, with both adopted and biological children, are increasingly common. “Whether you want to start a family, or want to see your family grow, adoption is a tremendous option that many people don’t even consider,” she says. “There is also a lot of support available for couples who decide to adopt. They aren’t in it alone.”

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