For readers at Texas Adoption Center, could you introduce yourself and share what you do as an Executive Director in nonprofit management focused on children and social services?
My name is Janelle Basham, and I serve as the Executive Director of BraveLove, a nonprofit dedicated to changing the perception of adoption by honoring birth mothers, sharing honest stories, and providing educational resources for professionals and the public.
My connection to this work is both professional and deeply personal. I became pregnant at 16 and made an adoption plan for my daughter, who is now an adult. That experience has shaped the course of my life and fuels my commitment to supporting women and families navigating the adoption journey.
In my role at BraveLove, I help guide the organization’s strategy, partnerships, and programs focused on storytelling, education, and community. Our work centers on creating spaces where adoption can be discussed with honesty and compassion—highlighting the voices and experiences of birth mothers while equipping professionals and communities with resources that foster understanding and support.
What pivotal experiences or mentors guided you into nonprofit leadership and toward work that intersects with adoption?
My path into nonprofit leadership and adoption work really began with my own story. When I was 16, I experienced an unplanned pregnancy and moved into a maternity home while trying to figure out what my future—and my daughter’s future—might look like. During that time, there were people—my social worker, counselor, and volunteers—who showed up for me with compassion, honesty, and encouragement. They gave me space to explore all of my options and to grieve the hard realities I knew were ahead.
They didn’t make the decision for me, but they created space for me to learn, ask questions, and ultimately make a plan that I believed was best for my daughter. Watching the way they cared for women during such a vulnerable season shaped my understanding of what thoughtful leadership in this space could and should look like.
The care and dignity I experienced during that season left a lasting imprint on my life and sparked a desire to support those coming behind me in their own adoption journeys.
From your community outreach across Texas, which adoption stigmas do you see most often that organizations should prioritize addressing first?
Adoption is deeply complex, and the stigma surrounding it is often rooted in misunderstandings about the people involved—birth parents, adoptees, and adoptive families alike.
One of the most significant stigmas I see is the sense of shame that can surround adoption and the individuals connected to it. For birth parents, that shame may come from assumptions about their decision, situations, or feelings that led them to an adoption plan. For adoptees and adoptive families, it can surface through misunderstandings about identity, belonging, or family structure. Much of this stems from limited knowledge or the way adoption is sometimes discussed in communities.
Language matters. When we use thoughtful and respectful adoption language, it honors everyone involved in the story. Words have the power either to reinforce stigma or to create greater understanding and compassion.
Organizations have an important opportunity to lead in this area by being intentional about how adoption is discussed and by creating spaces where all voices within the adoption community can be heard. When we honor the experiences of everyone involved, we help ensure that the child at the center of the story can grow up feeling secure in their identity and confident that they are deeply loved.
Thinking about program development, what single outreach tactic have you implemented that clearly shifted perceptions about adoption?
One of the most impactful outreach tactics BraveLove has implemented is creating a platform for honest storytelling from those whose lives have been touched by adoption.
When people are given space to share their experiences openly—whether birth parents, adoptees, adoptive parents, or others impacted—it helps remove the shame and misunderstandings that often surround adoption. It also creates room to acknowledge both the meaningful and the difficult parts of the journey so the adoption community can continue to learn and grow.
Through stories shared in videos, writing, and conversations, we’ve seen perceptions begin to shift. Instead of viewing adoption through stereotypes or simplified narratives, people start to see the real individuals and families behind each story and gain a deeper understanding of the love, complexity, and lifelong impact involved.
Storytelling creates a bridge that moves communities from misunderstanding toward empathy and respect.
How do you train staff and volunteers to discuss birth parents, adoptive families, and open adoption in ways that reduce shame and misinformation?
When training staff and volunteers, we need to acknowledge that adoption is complex and deeply personal for everyone involved—birth parents, adoptees, and adoptive families. Because of this, the way adoption is discussed matters.
A key focus is using respectful adoption language that avoids phrases that may unintentionally reinforce shame or stereotypes. The words we choose shape how people understand adoption and can either contribute to misunderstanding or encourage greater compassion and respect.
It’s important to spend time helping people understand modern adoption practices, including open adoption. Many people still carry outdated assumptions about what adoption looks like today. Providing clear information about openness and communication helps reduce misinformation and gives people a more accurate understanding of how relationships can exist between birth families and adoptive families.
We always emphasize the importance of listening to lived experiences. Hearing directly from birth parents, adoptees, and adoptive families helps people better understand the emotional depth and lifelong impact of adoption.Ultimately, we encourage conversations about adoption that recognize the dignity of everyone involved and support a child’s ability to grow up feeling secure in their identity and story.
In your public relations and fundraising campaigns, how do you craft ethical, strengths-based stories about adoption that protect privacy?
When sharing adoption stories, we begin with consent and collaboration. Individuals choose whether they want to share their story, how much they feel comfortable sharing, and how their experience will be represented. That level of transparency and partnership is essential.
We also focus on strength-based storytelling. Adoption stories are often complex and deeply personal, so our goal is to present them with honesty while highlighting resilience, love, and the thoughtful decisions people make along the way. We want stories to honor the dignity of everyone involved—birth parents, adoptees, and adoptive families—rather than oversimplify or sensationalize the experience.
Protecting privacy is also a key priority. We are careful about what details are shared and always allow individuals to review their story before it is published. In some cases, names or identifying details are changed or omitted to ensure that people feel safe and respected.
Ultimately, our goal is to share stories that educate and inspire while honoring the people behind them and protecting the relationships that continue long after the story is told.
Which partnership—such as with schools, healthcare providers, faith communities, or child welfare agencies—has been most effective for reaching audiences where stigma is strongest?
Our most meaningful impact has come through partnerships with organizations that already walk closely with individuals and families during important seasons of life—particularly adoption agencies, healthcare providers, pregnancy resource centers, and schools or universities.
These spaces often support individuals navigating complex decisions and help shape how adoption is understood within the broader community. When professionals have access to accurate information about adoption, it can reduce stigma and foster supportive conversations. Many of these partners utilize our free resources and videos to help guide those conversations and provide reliable information about modern adoption.
Partnerships like these allow us to meet people where questions and misunderstandings already exist and replace stigma with more informed conversations about adoption.
For birth parents and adoptive families navigating stigma day to day, what practical talking points or responses do you recommend?
When birth parents and adoptive families encounter stigma or difficult questions, it helps to have simple, respectful responses ready—because those questions will come, often while standing in line at the grocery store or at a school function. Many questions come from curiosity but may carry assumptions. And, as we all know, these conversations often happen when little ears are listening, making the words we choose even more important.
Birth parents may reframe a question by saying, “I didn’t give my child up—I made an adoption plan for my child.” Adoptive families can acknowledge the full story by sharing limited information, such as, “Our child has a birth family who loves them, and we are so thankful for that connection.”
It’s also important to know who to share with and how much of the story to share. Over the years, I’ve learned to assess when it’s helpful to educate someone and when it’s better to hold certain parts of my story close—especially if the person may not have the best intentions. At times, it’s also okay not to respond at all. Having a simple phrase ready—such as “That’s a personal part of our story”—can respectfully close the conversation.
Being confident in your response also sets a tone of respect. Often the goal isn’t to debate, but to model thoughtful language and set healthy boundaries. Over time, these everyday conversations can help shift how adoption is understood.
Looking ahead in Texas, what one policy or community-development initiative should nonprofits and supporters rally around to reduce adoption stigma?
One initiative I believe supporters should rally around is expanding adoption education and awareness in schools and community spaces. Many of the stigmas surrounding adoption exist because people have not been given accurate information or heard honest experiences from those whose lives have been impacted by adoption.
When young people grow up hearing honest conversations about adoption, it helps create communities where children connected to adoption feel less misunderstood and more supported. It also creates space to acknowledge that those experiences can include both love and loss, joy and grief. Families are formed in many ways—including through foster care, domestic private, international, stepparent, and kinship adoptions—and each child’s experience is unique.
By equipping educators, community leaders, and youth programs with resources and voices from the adoption community, we can help shape a generation that approaches adoption with greater care and understanding. Over time, this kind of community investment helps children connected to adoption feel respected while also helping their peers develop greater awareness and empathy when talking about adoption.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge and expertise. Is there anything else you’d like to add?
One thing I would add is that adoption conversations are evolving, and that’s a good thing. As more people feel comfortable sharing their experiences—whether they are birth parents, adoptees, or adoptive families—we have the opportunity to move toward greater honesty and understanding.Adoption is complex, and every story is unique. Some experiences include joy and connection, while others include grief or unanswered questions. Making space for the full range of experiences allows us to support children and families with greater care and compassion.
My hope is that we continue creating environments where people feel safe to share their stories, ask questions, and learn from one another. When we approach adoption with humility, respect, and a willingness to listen, we help build communities where every person connected to adoption can feel seen and valued.
