Congratulations to the 2023 Holt Adoptee Scholarship Winners — Dibora Holland, Maren (Mimi) Albano and Olivia Naser.

In 2023, we asked adoptees to submit a creative work responding to the prompt, "Dear Birth Family..." This topic was chosen by adoptee professionals who work in post-adoption services, and approved by social workers within the department. They chose this prompt in order to offer adoptees creative freedom in a safe environment to tell their story and describe their adoption journey. What these adoptees came up with is remarkable!

Dibora was adopted from Ethiopia. See her poem, entitled "Dear Birth Parents," below!

Dear Birth Parents,  

You gave me the gift of life 

But that doesn’t make me love you 

I am thankful for your difficult decision  

But how does one give their child away out of the blue 

I feel resentful and confused 

I question how you give a helpless 3 year old away 

I try to work up the courage to text you 

But I have nothing to say 

Anger floods my body each year when I see the birthday messages 

You don’t get to celebrate the absence of your daughter 

You made your decision fifteen years ago 

All the anger that fills my heart is like an overflowing cup of water 

As hard as the decision may have been 

I am grateful for the outcome 

I have a family that is perfect for me 

I’m proud of the person I have become 

You gave me the gift of life  

But that doesn’t make me love you 

You gave me the gift of being adopted  

And that is what makes me love you 

Sincerely, 

Dibora