When You Wish Upon A Star: An Adoption Story

Copyright 2001, 2002, by David N. Kruchkow

 
Chapter Two:

The Libertos Chose Adoption Choice

We met the Libertos in person along with their daughter Gabby on March 7, 1999, thanks to my urgings and the help of Christina Leonard (who has since entered private practice) and Linda Moody of the New York State Attorney General's Office. In a case where it is not always clear who are the good guys and who are the bad guys, these women from the New York State Attorney General's office stand out as true heroines. Neither Gabby's birthmother nor we could ask for a nicer adoptive couple and family for this child. I include us in this comment because Gabby was originally supposed to become our daughter. We found out later that Gabby wasn't the only child involved in the intertwining of the Libertos story with ours.

Rosalie and John Liberto were married at the tender ages of 21 and 22, respectively on May 15, 1966. In 1978 they adopted their oldest daughter from Columbia using the services of an adoption agency on Long Island. The process was smooth and relatively easy in those days and so they repeated the process with the same agency with the adoption of a second girl from Columbia in 1982. They wanted more children but decided to wait until their financial and housing situation would make it affordable as they were in a small retail business, which always carries a degree of financial uncertainty. By the summer of 1996, they decided that it was "now or never," as far as adopting another child or two, as they were now in their early 50's.

When they attempted to contact the agency they used to adopt their two daughters, they discovered that it was gone. Rosalie decided to call directory assistance and checked the local paper, The Yankee Trader. Both sources led her to International Adoption Consultants and Arlene Lieberman and Arlene Reingold. When contacted, the Arlenes informed the Libertos that they were the local contacts for and consultants to Adoption Choice in Milwaukee, WI. In short order, the different Latin American programs were described and the Libertos needs and wants were determined. Because of their age, they expressed a preference for an older child, post toddler, and would even consider two children, preferably siblings. This led the Arlenes, Adoption Choice and the Libertos to agree that Mexico and Mario Reyes would be the best source for them.

The Libertos had previous experience with international adoptions and had no problems with their agency. They had no reason to question anything Melinda Randa, Jill Gerlach, the Arlenes or Mario Reyes would tell them and every reason to trust in their professional experience. They did not even know that some of the rules and requirements for international adoptions had changed since they adopted their older girls. They certainly did not know that the adoption professionals they hired and contracted were criminals who would lie to them, cheat them, steal their money, defraud them, break their hearts and cause them untold emotional pain and suffering as they would to us and many other families. Neither the Libertos nor we knew that the State of New York forbade the Arlenes to act as an adoption agency and that is why they were represented and set up as consultants to Adoption Choice.

Thus began the Libertos paper chase and wait for a referral. As it turned out, their wait for their first referral would be short compared to ours.

Next, click here for Chapter Three.