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You Can Adopt Without Debt: Creative Ways to Cover the Cost of Adoption
Many families want to adopt, but do not have the large amount of money it takes to complete a private domestic or international adoption. Some quickly give up the idea of adopting and are left feeling frustrated, overwhelmed, and discouraged. Those who choose to proceed often take out large loans or borrow from family and friends which adds to the financial pressure on the family. Author Julie Gumm shares proven strategies from her own experience as well as from others that include applying for grants, creative budgeting, and fundraising that prospective adoptive parents can use to prepare for and avoid those high costs associated with adoption.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 6, 2015
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77 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
August 21, 2018
This has some good advice on questions to ask and aids in understanding all the parts required for adoption - forms, fees, decisions, etc. Maybe better than other books I've read.
Unfortunately it comes from the prosperity gospel perspective, which wasn't obvious from the title or description, and even goes as far as discussion of such theological issues like if going into debt to adopt "is a sin." Well, that may not be the perspective you are coming from. It isn't mine. But I just skimmed through that stuff.
One thing I've really discovered in all of this adoption reading is that there are a subset of people who seem to be adopting because they see it as their Christian duty. So much so sometimes that there are well developed adoption agencies that are "Christian only" and also non-lgbt. This book review is probably not the time to say I take great issue with this perspective, but that's the people I think the book is most written for.
I was also a bit bothered by the amount of time spent instructing the reader on how to ask your friends and family for money, whether directly, through social media, or in creative fundraisers. I could never do that to raise money to have a child. I would always feel like I should be giving it to someone less fortunate. And please, stop encouraging people to ask their friends for money. Ugh. But fundraising advice is a solid quarter or third of the book.
Some useful tidbits, made some notes, didn't need the rest of it.
Unfortunately it comes from the prosperity gospel perspective, which wasn't obvious from the title or description, and even goes as far as discussion of such theological issues like if going into debt to adopt "is a sin." Well, that may not be the perspective you are coming from. It isn't mine. But I just skimmed through that stuff.
One thing I've really discovered in all of this adoption reading is that there are a subset of people who seem to be adopting because they see it as their Christian duty. So much so sometimes that there are well developed adoption agencies that are "Christian only" and also non-lgbt. This book review is probably not the time to say I take great issue with this perspective, but that's the people I think the book is most written for.
I was also a bit bothered by the amount of time spent instructing the reader on how to ask your friends and family for money, whether directly, through social media, or in creative fundraisers. I could never do that to raise money to have a child. I would always feel like I should be giving it to someone less fortunate. And please, stop encouraging people to ask their friends for money. Ugh. But fundraising advice is a solid quarter or third of the book.
Some useful tidbits, made some notes, didn't need the rest of it.
January 15, 2016
Got one and a half chapters in before the ridiculously irresponsible medical howlers (not like I'm here for medical birthing advice but how am I supposed to trust anything else they say?) and the intense religious focus drove me away.
edit: I gave up and skimmed more. What a profoundly unhelpful book in general. Avoid.
edit: I gave up and skimmed more. What a profoundly unhelpful book in general. Avoid.
April 28, 2024
This was published around 2014, so some of the info is outdated. (i.e. the cost of Netflix, vehicles, etc.) but still has some good ideas which will hopefully give you a good foundation to start with.
January 22, 2019
I thought this book had a ton of great ideas and resources that people could actually use. Very practical!
October 30, 2022
The title of this book is a bit of a misnomer, as it suggests a more limited focus than the book actually has. It's more like How to Adopt (without Debt). Before I get going, I should also point out that this is a Christian book written from a distinctly Christian perspective so although anyone should find it USEFUL, if that's going to offend you, you might want to find a different book.
The first chunk of this book -- probably around a third or so -- is actually about the process of adoption. It is amazingly helpful, and I highly recommend the reading of at least this portion to anyone who is considering adoption, curious about adoption, or even KNOWS someone adopting. It will answer a lot of questions. This section talks about the various adoption routes (foster care adoptions, domestic infant adoptions, and international adoptions, as well as a brief introduction to snowflake adoptions, which are not legally "adoptions").
For all the legal adoption routes, the reader is given an overview of how the process works and what to expect. We learn about what the process entails, how long it typically takes, average costs and what they're for, and what types of paperwork you'll need to fill out. (Those of you adopting through non-foster care routes getting scornful comments from folks who adopted through the system about how adoption "doesn't really cost that much" -- show them this section. It will show where all your expenses are coming from.)
After you read about what the options are, what they involve, and how much they're likely to cost, THEN you get into how to pay for it. First the author talks about ways to cut expenses to save money from your regular budget. This section is necessarily a brief introduction to frugality, but it's good and it's specific enough to be helpful without being so overly specific that many suggestions don't apply to most people. After you've looked over your budget and made whatever cuts you can make, you can move on to the other options.
First, Gumm talks about funding sources -- grants and the like. This is very specific, listing particular grant programs to check with and suggesting other ways to find programs. It even tells you what to put in a grant letter.
The final section is comprised of fundraising ideas. Obviously this is not exhaustive, but it is pretty broad. There are ideas of things you can sell to raise money. There are auction and similar ideas. There are suggestions for methods to make tracking plain old donations fun for you and your supporters to follow. There are ideas for fundraising events. Ideas span a broad range of skill levels and time and resources required. If you don't find anything here that's a perfect fit, you will still hopefully find something that will spark and idea that IS a good fit.
Sprinkled throughout are brief testimonies of people who raised their money -- or had God miraculously provide it -- in various ways. These are not lengthy enough to detract from the information in the book, but enough to encourage you that these things really can work.
Among other things, this book would be an excellent resource for any church library to stock.
(Vine Voices review for Amazon)
The first chunk of this book -- probably around a third or so -- is actually about the process of adoption. It is amazingly helpful, and I highly recommend the reading of at least this portion to anyone who is considering adoption, curious about adoption, or even KNOWS someone adopting. It will answer a lot of questions. This section talks about the various adoption routes (foster care adoptions, domestic infant adoptions, and international adoptions, as well as a brief introduction to snowflake adoptions, which are not legally "adoptions").
For all the legal adoption routes, the reader is given an overview of how the process works and what to expect. We learn about what the process entails, how long it typically takes, average costs and what they're for, and what types of paperwork you'll need to fill out. (Those of you adopting through non-foster care routes getting scornful comments from folks who adopted through the system about how adoption "doesn't really cost that much" -- show them this section. It will show where all your expenses are coming from.)
After you read about what the options are, what they involve, and how much they're likely to cost, THEN you get into how to pay for it. First the author talks about ways to cut expenses to save money from your regular budget. This section is necessarily a brief introduction to frugality, but it's good and it's specific enough to be helpful without being so overly specific that many suggestions don't apply to most people. After you've looked over your budget and made whatever cuts you can make, you can move on to the other options.
First, Gumm talks about funding sources -- grants and the like. This is very specific, listing particular grant programs to check with and suggesting other ways to find programs. It even tells you what to put in a grant letter.
The final section is comprised of fundraising ideas. Obviously this is not exhaustive, but it is pretty broad. There are ideas of things you can sell to raise money. There are auction and similar ideas. There are suggestions for methods to make tracking plain old donations fun for you and your supporters to follow. There are ideas for fundraising events. Ideas span a broad range of skill levels and time and resources required. If you don't find anything here that's a perfect fit, you will still hopefully find something that will spark and idea that IS a good fit.
Sprinkled throughout are brief testimonies of people who raised their money -- or had God miraculously provide it -- in various ways. These are not lengthy enough to detract from the information in the book, but enough to encourage you that these things really can work.
Among other things, this book would be an excellent resource for any church library to stock.
(Vine Voices review for Amazon)
March 7, 2019
As someone who is looking to get out of debt and in the middle of adopting one teenager with possibly more on the way I loved the ideas in this book. There are some real gems in here and it helps to hear other peoples stories of success. The one, and biggest, issue I have with the book is the amount of "God". Every page mentions God... seriously every page! I'm not against an author having faith in a deity that is important to them. What I take issue with is the assumption that every reader is also a Christian. I'm an atheist, so it got to a point where I had to take a break and come back to it. Even moderate christians might find themselves feeling like they are being preached at sometimes. Great idea, just with it was written for a more secular audience.
March 9, 2021
This was by far the most helpful adoption book I've read yet. There are dozens of fundraising ideas and suggestions on how to generate additional income. There are many very specific ideas and examples shared, rather than just broad suggestions.
While the author personally has experience with international adoption, and talks most about this type of adoption, it does not ever feel as if they are suggesting this is the best or only method in this book. Her fundraising ideas are applied to all kinds of adoption.
While the author personally has experience with international adoption, and talks most about this type of adoption, it does not ever feel as if they are suggesting this is the best or only method in this book. Her fundraising ideas are applied to all kinds of adoption.
March 1, 2019
This book does not just cover the financial aspect of adoption, although it does that thoroughly. It walks the average individual through the terms, lingo, and process from start to finish. She does a great job walking you through their adoption journey. The pages are filled with ideas to assist you financially, but she reminds you that each person and situation is different. Not every tip works for every family.
If you’re considering adoption, I highly recommend this book.
If you’re considering adoption, I highly recommend this book.
January 22, 2020
There is some good advice in here if you can locate it amongst the sacrifice you’re entire lifestyle and trust in Jesus parts which dominate the book. While I have no issue with Christianity or their approach to situations, there is no indication in information on the book that it is SO Jesus driven. If I got $10 for every time gods plan was mentioned in one way or another, I’d have had a successful fundraiser for my adoption journey.
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July 21, 2019Really enjoyed this read. Very informative. I learned so much. Very inspiring and motivational.
December 31, 2021
Really enjoyed this book! Lots of great information for anyone praying about or in the midst of an adoption.
May 2, 2015
Publication Date: January 6, 2015 Title: You Can Adopt Without Debt – Julie Gumm –– 239 Pages –Abingdon Press – 978-1426793004– Electronic ARC –5 Stars
Adoption is a difficult process, especially when you don’t know where to start. In addition, many don’t know the resources that are available to them. When I initially ordered this book, I had no idea it would have so much information. I was looking for something more along the lines of the legal aspects of adoption. With this book, I received so much more.
This guide covers everything from legalities to adoption agencies to finances, including clipping coupons. I had no idea that there were so many adoption resources available. I knew adoption was expensive, but one could pay several thousand dollars, nearly $50,000, by the time the process is over. This book gives tips on how to save money and things adopters can do curb some of those expenses.
Publication Date: January 6, 2015 Title: You Can Adopt Without Debt – Julie Gumm –– 239 Pages –Abingdon Press – 978-1426793004– Electronic ARC –5 Stars
Adoption is a difficult process, especially when you don’t know where to start. In addition, many don’t know the resources that are available to them. When I initially ordered this book, I had no idea it would have so much information. I was looking for something more along the lines of the legal aspects of adoption. With this book, I received so much more.
This guide covers everything from legalities to adoption agencies to finances, including clipping coupons. I had no idea that there were so many adoption resources available. I knew adoption was expensive, but one could pay several thousand dollars, nearly $50,000, by the time the process is over. This book gives tips on how to save money and things adopters can do curb some of those expenses.
Of the most expensive of the fees are legal fees. There are other involved fees such as application, home-study, birth mother, and advertising fees. This book includes grant information along with adoption agencies and fundraising resources. There are also tax credits for adoption.
The author uses her experience of adoption children from Ethiopia. Keep that in mind, and the fact that results may vary.
Adoption is a difficult process, especially when you don’t know where to start. In addition, many don’t know the resources that are available to them. When I initially ordered this book, I had no idea it would have so much information. I was looking for something more along the lines of the legal aspects of adoption. With this book, I received so much more.
This guide covers everything from legalities to adoption agencies to finances, including clipping coupons. I had no idea that there were so many adoption resources available. I knew adoption was expensive, but one could pay several thousand dollars, nearly $50,000, by the time the process is over. This book gives tips on how to save money and things adopters can do curb some of those expenses.
Publication Date: January 6, 2015 Title: You Can Adopt Without Debt – Julie Gumm –– 239 Pages –Abingdon Press – 978-1426793004– Electronic ARC –5 Stars
Adoption is a difficult process, especially when you don’t know where to start. In addition, many don’t know the resources that are available to them. When I initially ordered this book, I had no idea it would have so much information. I was looking for something more along the lines of the legal aspects of adoption. With this book, I received so much more.
This guide covers everything from legalities to adoption agencies to finances, including clipping coupons. I had no idea that there were so many adoption resources available. I knew adoption was expensive, but one could pay several thousand dollars, nearly $50,000, by the time the process is over. This book gives tips on how to save money and things adopters can do curb some of those expenses.
Of the most expensive of the fees are legal fees. There are other involved fees such as application, home-study, birth mother, and advertising fees. This book includes grant information along with adoption agencies and fundraising resources. There are also tax credits for adoption.
The author uses her experience of adoption children from Ethiopia. Keep that in mind, and the fact that results may vary.
March 4, 2021
Had some pretty useful ideas, but nothing super groundbreaking. Most of it is pretty common-sense stuff and typical fundraiser ideas. Others are a bit more grandiose and seem very specific to your interests and abilities, like creating a 5k Fun Run to raise money. Still, we'll keep the book around to help us plan out some additional ideas for when we do start the process.
April 3, 2016
I loved reading this book! It's informative and is a great resource to being able to adopt without having to go into debt. I honestly was expecting the information to solely be about fundraising ideas and grants available to apply for, but it had so much more! Julie Gumm included her own adoption story, and how it affected their family, in addition to how they adopted without having any debt from the adoption. Gumm used many examples from her own story, as well as those of our families. In addition, she had a section outlining the potential cost of adopting from U.S. foster care, domestic infant adoption, and international adoption. I would recommend this book to anyone who is considering adoption, and those that are in the process. Even if you're curious about adoption, this is still a fantastic resource because it can give you great information about adoption. Who knows, maybe you can help a friend who is considering adoption with the knowledge from this book.
October 30, 2016
I'm so disappointed. I've been wanting to read this since attending the same breakout session that Gumm mentions in this book. I thought for sure there would be multiple gems I hadn't heard of before. And since this book is extremely hard to find at public libraries you would ultimately have to buy it if you wanted these gems.
There was a single nugget, consisting of 3 sentences. Everything else offered in this book is what you can find literally EVERYWHERE. Pinterest and a quick Google search of adoption blogs or fundraising ideas have provided all of this information plus a lot more. For free.
Save your money and just look online. You'll get a lot more resources, up to date information, and inspiration for out of the box ideas than you will reading this.
There was a single nugget, consisting of 3 sentences. Everything else offered in this book is what you can find literally EVERYWHERE. Pinterest and a quick Google search of adoption blogs or fundraising ideas have provided all of this information plus a lot more. For free.
Save your money and just look online. You'll get a lot more resources, up to date information, and inspiration for out of the box ideas than you will reading this.
September 4, 2015
If you are looking into adopting or know someone who is thinking about it, this would be a great book for you. I found the ideas to be simply explained and very easy to understand. I did find about 10 percent of it tedious and not helpful but overall a lot of helpful information. I did enjoy the authors writing style but do not think I would read this book again. That said, I would recommend this for any one having difficulty with the financial issues that go along with adopting.
I would like to thank the publisher for the copy of this book I enjoyed reading. I gave an honest review based on my opinion of what I read.
I would like to thank the publisher for the copy of this book I enjoyed reading. I gave an honest review based on my opinion of what I read.
April 11, 2017
If you are looking to adopt this is a great book to have on your bookshelf. Many great ideas on how to cover adoption cost as well as wonderful advice on the adoption process, fundraisers, budgeting and spiritual guidance.
November 10, 2015
Some useful information in an easy to read format. Things that didn't pertain were easy to skim over and the information was organized well. Definitely a useful book for anyone considering adoption.
January 19, 2016
really good resource. lots of great,detailed, information mixed with personal stories and experiences.
December 24, 2015
Excellent book I would recommend to anyone who is considering adopting. We are wanting to adopt, and we don't want the debt, so I will certainly be using some of the ideas in this book!
May 30, 2021
Full of great ideas about raising money for adoptions.
August 12, 2018
Inspiring and practical. Great resource compilation if you are looking for ways to fund your adoption.
December 4, 2015
A wealth of good ideas, resources, stories, and encouragement.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews