Speaker: Laura Johnson, Director
Tell us about yourself!
Laura Johnson: Hi, my name is Laura Johnson and I'm the founder and director of Texas Adoption Home Studies. We are an adoption home study practice that covers the entire state of Texas. We've been doing adoption home studies in Texas for over 20 years. And I always say there isn't an area of Texas that we haven't been to, to help a family that needs an adoption home study. And what this also means is that we have worked with families of all kinds and of all shapes and all sizes to help them in their adoption journey, including uh relative private adoptions, uh domestic infant match and unmatched step parent and second parent adoptions. It's a practice that we've had, uh, for over two decades in helping families in the state of Texas. Uh get an adoption home study.
Why do you work in adoption?
Laura Johnson: What drew me into the adoption field was early on in my career. Over 20 years ago, I worked in the foster care system, helping foster families and foster Children find each other. Uh And thus, that led me into establishing my own adoption home study practice as an adoption of professional, something I've been doing for over 20 years. Uh My favorite part of working in adoption is helping families really from the beginning of the process of their adoption journey until the end, uh and providing them with any education and support that they need through that process as we uh help them with their adoption home study. Uh There's nothing more joyful than helping a family that's unmatched and then they have a placement and being with them through the entire post placement process. It's something that is my favorite part of the work that we do.
What's one piece of advice you have for families starting the adoption journey?
Laura Johnson: The first piece of advice I would give an adoptive family just starting out on their adoption journey is to make sure that you are working with an ethical uh adoption professional or provider. I think that is extremely important as you begin your adoption journey. In addition to adoption education, learning more about adoption, including the adoption triad, which would include uh yourself as an adoptive parent, uh the adopted child and the birth family and how the triad is connected and goes through the lifespan and how each part of that triad experiences. Adoption. I found those things to be very important as families begin their adoption journey.
What's one thing people don't know about you?
Laura Johnson: The one thing people may not know about me and my secret or special skill is that I'm a painter. I love to paint watercolor, large watercolors when I can uh using uh photographs from landscapes that I've taken when I travel, which I think leads me to what has been the most favorite place I've ever been to in the world. And I would say I had the opportunity to hike. I love being outdoors and I was able to hike in the Dolomites, which is this little corner up in Italy in the Alps full of stone mountains, cows and pastures and little huts that you can stop at when you hike. And I found that to be really one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.
