Our Team
Dedicated Professionals Who Share Your Commitment to Ethical Adoption
Sarah Chen, LCSW – Director of Adoptions and Clinical Services
Sarah Chen is the heart of our clinical team, bringing over fifteen years of experience as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker specializing in complex family dynamics, grief counseling, and attachment therapy within the adoption triad. Her educational foundation includes a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of Kansas, and she has completed advanced certifications in Trust-Based Relational Intervention (TBRI), which heavily informs our post-placement support programs. Sarah’s passion for adoption stems from her own family’s experience, providing her with a unique blend of clinical knowledge and deep personal empathy. She personally oversees all birth parent counseling, ensuring that individuals making the courageous decision to place a child receive compassionate, non-judgmental support, confidentiality, and long-term access to resources. Her rigorous professional standards ensure that all home studies are thorough, ethical, and focused squarely on the child’s best interest, and she works tirelessly to educate hopeful parents on the nuanced emotional aspects of raising an adopted child, setting up every family for sustained emotional health and success long into the future.
David Miller, J.D. – Legal Affairs and Program Coordinator
David Miller holds a Juris Doctor degree and a certification in Family Law, bringing an essential layer of meticulous legal expertise and diligence to our adoption process. Before joining SHAPE OF MY HEART ADOPTIONS, David spent several years practicing family law, specializing in child welfare and dependency cases, which provided him with an intricate understanding of the statutes and regulations governing both interstate (ICPC) and intrastate adoptions. His primary role is to ensure absolute legal compliance at every stage, from preparing initial paperwork and coordinating with state and judicial entities to finalizing the adoption decrees. David takes pride in demystifying the often confusing legal framework for our families, providing clear, concise communication about timelines, risks, and requirements, ensuring that there are no surprises during this sensitive process. His attention to detail and proactive approach to legal coordination allows our adoptive families to move through the process with confidence, secure in the knowledge that all legal bases are covered expertly and ethically, allowing them to focus fully on the upcoming joys of parenthood.
Maria Rodriguez – Birth Parent Outreach and Support Specialist
Maria Rodriguez is our dedicated advocate for birth parents, a role she fulfills with genuine empathy and profound respect, drawing from her Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology and her professional background in crisis intervention. She manages all initial inquiries and provides immediate, confidential support and resources to expectant mothers exploring their options, offering a non-pressured environment for decision-making. Maria is available around the clock, offering emotional support and practical assistance, including connecting birth parents with medical care, housing, and independent legal representation, ensuring they are empowered throughout the process. Her bio reflects her commitment to honoring the birth parent’s agency and choices, and she facilitates all communication regarding open adoption agreements, serving as a trusted, neutral liaison. Maria’s personal touch and unwavering commitment to dignity and respect are fundamental to the ethical core of our agency, ensuring that the decision of placement is always made thoughtfully and with full access to essential support resources for long-term emotional well-being.
Marcus Green – Community Engagement and Family Support Specialist
Marcus Green focuses on expanding our post-placement support and building the robust community network that SHAPE OF MY HEART ADOPTIONS is known for. With a background in organizational development and a passion for facilitating positive group dynamics, Marcus organizes our monthly adoptive family gatherings, coordinates our peer-to-peer mentoring program, and facilitates specialized support groups for adopted youth and adoptive fathers. He earned his degree in Human Services and previously worked for a non-profit organization focused on family advocacy, giving him excellent skills in resource mobilization and volunteer coordination. Marcus believes that sustained relationships are the key to long-term adoption success, and his commitment is to ensuring that our families feel connected, understood, and never isolated as they navigate the complexities of life post-finalization. His role is vital in maintaining the vibrant, supportive culture of our agency, transforming individual placements into a collective, nurturing community where advice, celebration, and empathy are readily available.
You Are Not Alone: Joining a Network of Shared Experience
Family involvement is not just encouraged at SHAPE OF MY HEART ADOPTIONS; it is a core component of our post-placement support model, ensuring that our adoptive families are deeply integrated into a reliable network of peers who truly understand the unique aspects of their journey. We facilitate a robust Peer Mentoring Program that pairs newly approved adoptive parents with experienced agency families, providing confidential, real-world advice and emotional sustenance throughout the waiting and adjustment periods. This peer-to-peer connection normalizes the challenges of the process, celebrates the triumphs, and provides a powerful, accessible layer of support beyond what our professional staff provides. We strongly believe that the shared wisdom of those who have successfully navigated this path is an invaluable resource, helping to mitigate the feelings of isolation that can sometimes accompany the adoption process and replacing them with a sense of camaraderie and collective strength that lasts a lifetime.
Tailored Options and Comprehensive Training for Your Family’s Unique Needs
SHAPE OF MY HEART ADOPTIONS primarily facilitates domestic infant adoptions, which typically involve the placement of newborns or children under the age of one. We offer detailed guidance on both fully open adoptions, where communication and contact between the adoptive and birth families are frequent and direct, and semi-open adoptions, which utilize our agency as a secure intermediary for communication. While our focus remains domestic infant placement, we also offer specialized resources for Older Child Adoption, working closely with partner organizations and state agencies to prepare families for the unique rewards and challenges of parenting school-age children and adolescents who are legally free for adoption, often through the foster care system. Our dedicated team assists in assessing which age group and pathway aligns best with your family’s capacity, resources, and heart, ensuring a mindful and well-suited match is made that honors the needs of the child first and foremost, providing a full continuum of supportive care for every stage of childhood.
