Micheal T.

Tara N:	Michael is 14 years old. He's been in DHS custody 
since 2013. 

[No Audio: Tara N.  Child Welfare Specialist]

He's a sweet, handsome boy. He loves music. Michael likes water. 
He likes to swim in it, bathe in it, play in it, drink it, have 
it splashed on his face. Just, really, anything to do with 
water. He just loves it. Michael loves hugs. He's a really 
strong boy, so he gives some pretty big bear hugs. He likes to 
hold hands. 

He just likes the close, physical contact with people. What 
makes Michael special is that, even though he's non-verbal and 
he can't express his feelings that way, he's able to form pretty 
strong bonds, I think, with others.

Michael needs a family who will be patient with him, who 
understands all of his needs. They'll need to be a family who 
interacts with him almost constantly. He needs that interaction 
and affection. The family just needs to accept Michael into 
their family as their own, for who he is.
	
It's important for Michael to be adopted, so that he'll have a 
family of his own. All kids deserve a family, and Michael is 
just the same. Michael would thrive best with an active family. 
A family who will take him places, maybe a family with pets or 
other animals. He really enjoys some of the therapy dogs that 
come to visit him. 

Michael has been diagnosed with Lissencephaly type II, profound 
intellectual disability, Hirschsprung's, seizure disorder, 
cortical blindness and he's deaf.

Kenneth B: It's important for our children to find homes, and 
they do need love, they need attention. They need affection. 
They need someone to let them know, "I care about you." 

[No Audio: Kenneth B.  Adoption Transition Worker]

Someone to talk to them, to speak to them, to give them an 
encouraging word, to let them know it's going to be okay. To pat 
them on their back, every once in a while. To play with them. 

Our DDS children are extremely hard to place. Some families are 
just not interested. However, our children do need homes. They 
do deserve a family. They do deserve a mom and dad, someone to 
go home to at night, someone to talk to them. I would say the 
reason why our children might be so hard to place is because a 
lot of ... It might be fear, they might just see the outside, 
they might just hear the condition, they might just see the 
picture of the child and think, "Okay, there's no way I can be 
able to take of a child with some of these issues." 

I would say, just to the families, just to be willing to give 
our children a chance, because they can survive, they can adapt, 
they can be one of your children in your home, surviving and 
doing well, and thriving.

Tara N:	Michael requires total care, so on a daily basis, 
he'll need assistance in the morning to get up, get dressed, 
feed himself, grooming, all of his hygiene. Then, assistance to 
and from school, at school. When I first met Michael, I knew he 
was a very special boy. I just feel like if a family would open 
their own to him, open their hearts to him, that he would bring 
so much joy and light to their life.
[No Audio: For more information about adopting Michael T. Please 
call 1-800-376-9729 or visit online at www.okfosters.com.  
Recorded February 1, 2017.  Special thanks to JD McCarty Center]