A Day in the Life of a Gladney Intern

I’m going to start with a cheesy story, because those are always fun! I wholeheartedly believe God chose Gladney for me, though I had NO previous experience with adoption! Being on the brink of finishing graduate school, 27 years old, living life freely with no husband or children, I obviously made a 5-year plan for myself and it was going to happen. No one would tell me any differently, and if anybody got in my way, I’d step on them, not literally, because that’s frowned upon in today’s society. My plan was to intern with Cook Children’s Medical Center as a medical social worker. I was going to be the most awesome intern ever; so awesome that they offered me a job upon graduation (in August), and I was going to be a medical social worker and be HAPPY with life. Well, that plan didn’t last long and life punched me in the face and said, NOPE! Then Gladney happened. I was devastated. And when I say devastated, I mean I called one of my good friends, who is also in the UTA SSW program, ...

The title of this post is the perfect example of the question I was most commonly asked during my time at Gladney this summer. I consider it a blessing to have been the international intern for the past eight weeks, and I can hardly believe my time at Gladney has come to an end. Since today is my last day in the office it seemed like the perfect time to write a blog about my time here! I go to college in South Dakota so the question of how I came to Gladney is a legitimate one. My connection to Gladney starts with the same person who first shared my passion for adoption with me, my Aunt Darla. I really became interested in adoption when I was in 8th grade. Honestly, I am not sure what sparked the interest, but I knew from that point on I wanted to adopt children when I was older. My Aunt Darla and her husband adopted their daughter from China my junior year of high school, and I spent the majority of that summer living with their family and helping them the best I could...

As I mentioned in my previous post, the other interns at Gladney are so wonderful! The work they have done is amazing. We have all had wonderful experiences and learned so much! As the marketing intern, I thought it would be interesting to find out what exactly led them to Gladney and how their experiences have been so far. I asked them a few questions, and this is what I learned! To the interns: You are the sweetest girls with the biggest hearts! I wish we would have been able to spend more time together, but what time I had with y’all was so special! Good luck with the rest of your time at Gladney, as you finish school, and as you move on into your careers! God bless! 1. What made you want to be an intern at Gladney? Lindsey: As a requirement for my undergraduate degree in Human Development and Family Science at Oklahoma State, we are to do an internship within our field of study for a designated amount of time! I personally have no prior experience with the adoptio...

Where do I begin?! My summer as an intern at Gladney Center for Adoption is one that I have been looking forward to for a few years. I knew I wanted to be here and experience the behind the scenes of an organization that is so special to me. I have always been a part of the Gladney family! My birth mother made an adoption plan for me and chose the most loving, amazing parents I could have ever had. They push me to be my best and make it possible for me to fulfill my dreams. I am forever grateful that she chose life and adoption for me. The Lord has a purpose for me and I am glad that I am alive to be able to pursue it! After choosing my major in college and forming more of an interest in helping professions, I knew I needed to spend time here. It has been such a blessing! I work with such kind, professional people who strive to make their workplace friendly and encouraging. They have hearts of gold and work unimaginably hard to find forever families for sweet little ones. I h...

Hello again, Gladney! I first came to Gladney in the fall of 2012 as a volunteer. I needed to put in hours at a social work agency for my degree program. I knew I wanted a career in a field where families are the focus, so adoption seemed like a great field to look into! Gladney immediately took my interest seriously and before I knew it I was interviewing for a volunteer position. My time at Gladney as a volunteer was short but even in that short time span I realized how much more went into this process than I originally thought. Adoption is a very in depth process and it takes many people to help everyone complete their journey with adoption. Everyone I met seemed so enthusiastic and passionate about what they did there. The staff at Gladney really does take pride in bringing families together. I knew I wanted to come back again one day. When it came time to do my internship for school, I knew I wanted to go back to Gladney. I listed Gladney as my top pick and hoped for ...