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SALT LAKE CITY — There are hundreds of children in the Utah foster care system, but what you may not know is a lot of them are teenagers.
Utah parents who have adopted teenagers said that many of the kids want people to understand that they are not unadoptable.
"They want a family — they don't want to be left alone," said Liz Pratt.
Pratt said she understands. She was once one of those teenagers.
"She'd been through some really tough things, but her personality had said 'despite the hard things that I've gone through, I want a family,'" said Pratt's adoptive mother, Katherine Hawkins.
Rob and Kim Gerlach added two teenagers to their family in just five months time.
"We went from potty training and learning to walk to wanting to drive and dating," said Kim Gerlach.
"Actually, one of the joyful things about having them in our home is that we don't have to have it figured out from the beginning and that the process of figuring out how to work this relationship can be a source of great joy," said Rob Gerlach.
Marty Shannon adopted her daughter from foster care when Sarah was 15 years old.
"You know what would she have been like if she hadn't had a family?" Shannon said. "Would she have made it? Would she have been homeless? Would she have gone into drugs or jail or any of those things that are so scary for kids that don't have the stability of family?"
Sarah graduated with a degree in medical technology and now works for a cancer registry.
"When you adopt a teenager, you're doing it out of a dedication to the fact that kids need families," Shannon said.
Liz Pratt, now 25, is studying to be an adoption counselor. She spends volunteer time helping teens find their permanent home.
"The reward is knowing that you gave somebody a chance to make themselves who they want to be," Hawkins said.
For more information on adopting a child or teenager, click the Wednesday's Child page.
