Childrens Connections Inc

We had a truly terrible experience with this agency. Our review is based on our experience with LeAnne and our treatment by her, not the outcome of our disrupted adoption. We are also still uncertain as to whether or not we have been scammed.

We were potential adoptive parents in 2022 when we heard about an expectant mother situation via Facebook. We sent in our home study and information to LeAnne , who ended up being our main point of contact at the agency. We were told we were selected by the expectant mother within 2 weeks and that the baby was due within 6 weeks. Once selected, we were told we had to send the agency $25,000 - and that this was nonrefundable. We were adamant about speaking to the expectant mother or having some way of verifying that she existed and indeed did select us. We weren't given that and moved forward on a leap of faith, as we were desperate and vulnerable. A week later we scheduled a call with the expectant mother (extremely complicated to schedule and very poor communication from the agency) and she was unwilling to chat or acknowledge that she selected us to be her baby's parents. We were told that this is normal and we moved forward in the uncertainty. Flash forward to two weeks later where we were told to fly to Texas the same day as the mother was in labor. We were able to get there within 8 hours and arrived the the hospital where we were told within an hour that the birth mother had changed her mind. The agency was in Lubbock and we were near Houston. The agency supposedly had a freelance consultant in Houston, but we never met her. All of this was a fear for us, and we knew that this could happen. Over the next 6 days, we were told daily that the mother could change her mind and that we should stay in town. Over the next few days, the attitude, behavior and communication style changed from somewhat pleasant to aggressive. We were told that our Texas background checks hadn't come in and that, if the mother changed her mind, the baby could be in foster/cradle care for months, and "don't worry, you should still be able to have visits." We were able to find the main point of contact in Texas that handles the interstate transfer of children, and she verified that this is not true. Our other Texas agency verified that this was not true. We called LeAnne to ask about this and were screamed at. I have never been spoken to that way in a work setting before. Having paid $25k already and signing a contract essentially gave us no recourse or any incentive for the agency to speak to us in an understanding or kind manor.

We feel that when potential adoptive parents are in a new place, awaiting an important life decision, and feeling highly emotional, you hope that the main point of contact at the adoption agency would guide you with compassion. We were spoken to like we were in the wrong line at the DMV, and now over a year later, we still feel like we were taken advantage of.