Parent to Parent: Adoption costs

It was road that began with infertility treatments.

Becky Fawcett, mom
"We did IVF treatments 5 times, I got pregnant 3 of the 5 times, and had 3 miscarriages and we spent nearly $100,000 of our savings. And together we arrived at the decision that adoption was how we were going to build our family."

The decision to adopt brought even more financial pressure.

Becky Fawcett, mom
"The bill for that was going to be an additional $40,000."

Becky and her husband Kipp were lucky to have the money. They drained their savings and brought Jake into their lives. But the expense is something many people can't afford.

The domestic adoption of an infant can cost about $15,000 to $35,000 or more.

Adam Pertman, adoption expert
"One of the problems with the rising cost of adoption is that it locks so many people out. It's expensive and I don't think anybody would think that that's fair, that money controls who can have a family."

The issue of cost bothered Becky so much that she founded Helpusadopt.org. The site is a national non-profit that provides financial assistance to qualified couples and individuals trying to adopt.

Becky Fawcett, mom
"It's not that they can't afford on a day-to-day basis to give a child a lovely home full of love and everything they need. They can't afford this lump sum that's associated with adoption."

Becky hopes her fundraising efforts will help more and more couples experience parenthood.

Becky Fawcett, mom
"I had never considered adoption before. It was not something that was a part of my life, and now I count my blessings every day that it's a part of my life because my son was meant to be ours. He was meant to be ours."

(Copyright 2008 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)