'Home for Halloween': 29 Children Adopted in Duval County, Including a Nurse's New Son Who Needs Round-the-Clock Care

Twenty-nine children are celebrating Halloween with their new families after Family Support Services' annual 'Home for Halloween' adoption day at the Duval County Courthouse on Friday. For one 13-year-old boy, the adoption means he will not be moving hundreds of miles away to a nursing home: Daniel has level five cerebral palsy and needs care around the clock, and his new mother, Scotesha Terry, is a pediatric nurse.

Daniel weighed just 29 pounds when he was entrusted to the care of Wolfson Children's Hospital, where he spent more than a year recovering. Terry came to adoption through a conversation with an adoption recruiter who knew she was the right fit; his case manager told the court Terry arrived at their first meeting with three pages of questions about his medical history. Terry, now a mother of four, says she is still advocating for him every day — a few weeks ago, she said, insurance almost cut his nursing hours to 16, and she pushed back until his 24-hour care was approved again.

According to Family Support Services, 335 children in Duval and Nassau counties are still waiting to be adopted, and more than 100 of them are teenagers. Jacksonville City Council Member Chris Miller was also in the courtroom Friday, as the City of Jacksonville officially recognized November as National Adoption Month. Terry's message to anyone considering adoption, as reported from the event, was to look at the child, not the diagnosis — because every child deserves a home.