Grassley Praises Clive Resident as an "Angel in Adoption"
Jerry Foxhoven to be Recognized for his Adoption Advocacy
WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley today said that Jerry Foxhoven of Clive will be recognized as 2004 Congressional Angel in Adoption this week for his work to promote child welfare and adoption. Grassley nominated Foxhoven for the award, which is presented by the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute.
"Adoption gives a child a loving home and creates a family full of lives changed for the better," Grassley said. "Jerry Foxhoven has spent more than two decades helping make new families and deserves this honor."
The Angels in Adoption Program is the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute's signature public awareness program. It raises awareness about the thousands of foster children in this country, and the millions of children around the world, in need of permanent homes by providing an opportunity to members of Congress to recognize and honor the good work of their constituents who have enriched the lives of children through adoption.
Grassley selected Foxhoven because of his more than 20 years serving Iowa in the areas of adoption and foster care on both a professional and voluntary basis.
Foxhoven is currently serving as the administrator of the Iowa Child Advocacy Board, operating the foster care review and CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) program. As an attorney, he has represented many prospective parents in adoption proceedings, most on a pro bono basis. He has served on various committees and groups in Iowa which seek to increase adoption awareness and to increase the number of adoptions. From 2003-2004, he served as a Senior Fellow at the Center for Adoption Research at the University of Massachusetts, working to create innovative ways to increase successful adoptions.
Foxhoven will be recognized at the Angels in Adoption awards celebration, which is scheduled for this Thursday, September 23, in Washington, D.C.
"Angels in Adoption gives us a chance to recognize the unsung heroes of adoption," Grassley said. "Jerry Foxhoven has helped change the lives of innumerable children for the better."
Grassley has long worked to promote adoption and was a lead sponsor of the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, which created cash rewards for states that increased the number of adoptions of children in foster care. States received an additional benefit for placing children with special needs. Iowa received $524,000 last year because of its success in finding children in foster care permanent homes.
Last year, Grassley sponsored and helped pass legislation that extended the successful Adoption and Safe Families Act and expanded the program to provide additional incentive for states to increase the number of older children, particularly children over the age of nine, adopted out of foster care.
Grassley has also worked to substantially increase the federal incentives available through the federal tax code to encourage more adoptions. Grassley worked for a new adoption tax credit that doubled from $5,000 to $10,000 per child the amount of money adoptive parents may credit on their federal taxes.
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