Adoption Transforms The Lives It Touches

DENVER (CBS4) -  As children age in the foster care system, their chances of being adopted drop significantly. 87-percent of adoptions that happen in Colorado involve children under the age of 10-years. Children between the ages of eleven and fifteen make up only 10-percent of adoptions. Older teens, between 16 and 20 years old, make up just 2-percent of adoptions. That is where The Adoption Exchange steps in. They work exclusively to find permanency for those older children in foster care.

Drew first met Kyle at an Adoption Exchange event, and the match has made a big difference in both their lives.

"Kyle and I have a very similar sense of humor. Even when things get choppy, we usually laugh about it the next day," Drew told CBS4.

The two have been a family for more than a year now. Drew went from the single life to being a single father.

"It just feels really good to help somebody, and help guide somebody, and help them be successful," Drew explained.

Kyle's journey includes 7-years in foster care, and a failed adoption that left him heart broken.

"They gave me the option of whether or not I wanted to be adopted and for a year and a half I said, 'No.' I didn't even want to try again," Kyle told CBS4.

When he opened his heart to adoption again, he found Drew, and a loving home has made all the difference for Kyle.

"I came here and within 2 or 3-months of having a good stable home, I got over most of my PTSD," Kyle explained.

"He's really grown into understanding that he can mess up and not be in trouble and he can have an opinion, and he can have control of things, but we have to work together," Drew said.

As a new parent of a teenage son, Drew says that he's relied on the supports offered by The Adoption Exchange.

"Throughout the process, we had a worker from The Adoption Exchange who's sole purpose was to help us find resources," Drew explained.

With support and love, both Drew and Kyle are growing into their new roles of father and son.

"Through my whole life up to 14, I was in a pretty terrible situation, so that was made me a lot more humble than most people in my current situation. It's made me a lot more happy with my current situation," Kyle said.

CBS4 holds A Day 4 Wednesday's Child once a year to raise money and highlight the great work of The Adoption Exchange. You can help families like Drew and Kyle by calling in a donation to 303-755-3975, text "adopt" to 91999, or go to The Adoption Exchange donation page to give online.