Dozens of Louisville families grow ahead of National Adoption Day

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - 34 children completed the final phase of the adoption process in Louisville Friday.

The event at the Jefferson County Judicial Center is one they do every year, but it never really gets old.

Hundreds of kids are adopted in Jefferson County every year and almost all of them are from Louisville. This celebration of National Adoption Day is the biggest adoption day of the year in Jefferson County by far.

Family Court Judge Bryan Gatewood is an adoptive father of three children. When a majority of cases deal with divorce, custody, neglect or abuse, this reminds him why he does what he does.

“We have a lot of days where this job is really tough,” Gatewood said, “but today is the day we do what is most joyous and what is most important in family court, and that’s building families and giving children their forever homes.”

Gatewood says there are around 900 adoptions every year, and he’s always got time for more.

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