Buddy the Elf forges forever families in 'North Pole' court

Under the giddy guise of Buddy the Elf from the beloved Christmas movie, Jefferson County 287th District Court Judge Randy Shelton bounded merrily into a room brimming with elated moms- and dads-to-be, before finalizing the adoptions of 15 children in celebration of National Adoption Day 2022  on Nov. 18.

For the past two decades, family court staff has transformed the second floor of the Jefferson County Courthouse from an art-deco amalgam of earth tones into vibrant scenes from popular movies. This year, staff toiled to transport attendees to the North Pole – a feat incomplete without Judge Larry Thorne appearing as Santa Claus merely more than a month before leaving the bench.

The annual Adoption Day event is cobbled together in its entirety by volunteers – Buddy’s fellow elves in this year’s case. There’s no mandate or law saying courts have to open outside of their regular hours to swiftly finalize as many adoptions as possible. The judges, lawyers, case workers and everyone involved in the paperwork and decorations does so without receiving a dime.

Harrison homecoming

Speaking to The Examiner moments after completing the adoption of her second child, a two-year-old boy named Jah’karie Amir, Kirsten Harrison wore an ear-to-ear smile when answering questions about her inspiration for opening up her home and heart to children in need.

“I always wanted to be a mom; I always wanted to help children,” explained Harrison. “Throughout my whole entire life, my mom raised 30-something children.”

For Harrison, adoption has always been on her heart after watching her mom bless droves of children with her parentage. Explaining the story of how her second adoption manifested, Harrison said, “I received a call from Mrs. Sholanda (Hendrix-Smith); they say they had a seven-month-old little boy and asked if I would take him.”

Without skipping a beat or pausing to think of herself, Harrison immediately told Smith to “bring him.”

“And she’ll be adopting again in a couple of months,” offered Hendrix-Smith, executive director of Faith 2 Faith Foster Care and Adoption Agency. Smith’s company helped Harrison adopt Jah’karie as its 11th adoption this year, with the director telling The Examiner the mom of two was also in the process of adopting a pair of siblings.

“It’s two siblings that are in her home already,” she continued. “And her mother had adopted five siblings.”

Speaking with self-claimed pride, Smith explained the story of how Harrison and Jah’karie were ‘meant’ to be mother and son, saying, “He actually left (Harrison) to go with a relative, but that placement only lasted two months. So, they called back and asked if she would accept him again.

“He was always meant to be her son.”

Smith, along with her husband Richard, have been working in the local foster care and adoption field for the past three years, but the woman actually has 12 years of experience under her belt.

Like so many others who work in the system, or those who’ve seen the positive impact it can have on families, Smith and her husband were inspired to become adoptive parents themselves after watching someone close to them do so.

“My husband and I have three adopted kids total,” she said, explaining that her mother, too, was the inspiration behind her altruistic endeavor to offer motherhood to those who have been deprived.   

“My parents also adopted three sons, so this is something I always wanted to do. My oldest adopted son is 22. My husband and I adopted two years ago; we have 10-year-old twins. We believe that family is not determined by blood.

“It just makes our hearts happy to make forever families.”

“We stepped out on faith,” added Richard Smith, explaining the inspiration behind the married couple’s company. “We love kids so much that this is something we wanted to do to bless kids, and it’s a big blessing to be able to help these kids.”

Texas needs parents

Department of Family Protective Services (DFPS) Media Specialist Shari Pulliam said parents adopted more than 5,000 abused or neglected Texas children from state care last year – but the need has not diminished for more families willing to provide safe, loving homes. Every day, more children enter foster care in Texas. Some won’t be able to go home again and will need adoptive families to start new lives that are free from abuse or neglect.

“Children never outgrow the need for parents,” says Pulliam in her common refrain, adding, “Children are never too old to want and need a family of their own. Even grown children seek the comfort and wisdom of their parents. Becoming a young adult is difficult for most youth, and it’s even harder for youth without a permanent family. Teenagers need parents as role models for becoming productive citizens.”

While the number of children adopted from state care in Texas grew over the last decade, there is a critical need for adoptive parents for children of all ages. There is even a greater need for families willing to adopt children with special needs and older children and teens who tend to linger in foster care longer than other children.

“This is the end of a very long journey,” said Pulliam, explaining that Adoption Day is actually the culmination of months, if not years, of uncertainty filled with piles of paperwork, intermittent tears and countless hours engaged in this “labor of love” by volunteers from CPS, the court system, foster parents and adoptive parents.

That feel-good tingling which washes over Good Samaritans in action never goes away, according to Hendrix-Smith. From the first adoption they facilitated all the way to No. 30 – an honor Jah’karie Harrison now holds – the adoption agency founder said the elation is inescapable.

“I’m so excited, I can’t even explain how happy I am right now,” she said. “I’m just so happy we were a part of National Adoption Day, because this makes what we do worth it.”