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Show 4A The Salt Lake Tribune 983 Sunday Golden Cradle Adoption Agency Prompted by Love, Not Profit - Golden Crodle Is EDITOR'S NOTE on adoption agency wltti a difference. Hrst, It odvertlses Second, It deals primarily with pregnant women who And its dont want their children "bobyllne" Is olwoys busy. By Michael Roddy Associated Press Writer - PHILADELPHIA Arty Elgart has put salesmanship at the service of infant adoptions The result is a busy "babyline" in the office of his multimillion-dolla- r auto accessories business This Is what you call progress," the Elgart says, answerhis attention bedivide calls that ing tween business and the network of pregnant women and childless couples who phone the Golden Cradle adoption agency housed in his e foot warehouse This is what you call bringing " things into this century Elgart advertises. He spreads his message on billboards He goes on national television programs, like ABC's Good Morning America and CBSs 60 Minutes " As Painless as Possible What he says, essentially, is that pregnant women who don't want to keep their children should consider adoption, and he will make it as painless as possible. Just because she doesnt have a ring on her finger doesnt make her anji less of a person." Elgart says. Jt may not jibe with the image people have of adoption agencies as 60.000-squar- OF formal, stiff institutions, but Elgart contends that his approach works. He placed 100 children in 1982, his second year of operation, while more established agencies in the city placed only a third that many, he says To Pass 82 Level So far this year hes placed 50, and he expects to top the 1982 level He's coming up with white infant children at a time when waiting lists for such adoptions at other agencies are years long He says he tapped into a lode of black parents ready and willing to adopt any black infants he can come up with. e A high school teacher with no degree in social work, Elgart admits his emphasis on advertising is unorthodox But he thinks his success speaks for itself. We're unique," he says Were a model agency About to Step Down Elgart is about to step down as the agency's fulltime director, turning over much of his work to a professional social worker Hell remain involved with publicity In the meantime, the phone in his office continues to ring off the hook One caller has a proposal from a caller that doesn't sit well with Elgart. Were a licensed agency We can't play games. he says sternly into the phone. A few minutes later he tries to reassure another caller who is in- one-tim- '47 quinng about the intricacies of adoption. I believe anything you say, hon," he says. Elgart says he started the agency after he and his wife suffered five years of humiliation and embarrassment trying to adopt a child Theres Just No End Theres just no end. You feel theres no child in your future," he says. They eventually adopted a son and his wife shortly afterward conceived and bore their daughter. But the adoption experience stuck in his craw. I stop and help people on the highway, so why shouldn't I help someone in a situation where they cant have children, he says Elgart started with a blind newspaper ad that said a couple was interested in adopting a child and asking women to call. The classified ad blossomed into a campaign that includes billboards, bus advertising and newspaper display ads. $8,000 a Month in Ads He rattled off the list. We spend $8,000 a month advei Using. Were m 22 telephone books, 16 newspapers. Pierce, president of the National Committee for Adoption in Washington. He has applied marketing techniques from the commercial side of the world to social service agencies If agencies can Just be in touch with the times, and realize they are competing in a noisy media world, they can do it. Adoption Community Aghast The adoption community was horrified that this guy could come In and do something they were doing, says Carolyn Johnson, executive director of the Adoption Center of Delaware Valley in Philadelphia, an agency specializing in placing older children. Hes not a professional but hes put something into it warmth and personal attention. When Golden Cradle started, it was not licensed by the state. It is legal to operate an unlicensed adoption agency in Pennsylvania, but that did not win Elgart any friends in the adoption community - Just Support Organization His fee? Elgart tells audiences that all he wants for getting a child Is for them to support his organization, pay the hospitalization and other expenses, and give him a photo- - suitable to add graph of the baby to his collection. I don't think it's asking too much, he tells his listeners. And get it framed, please. Splurge." well-meani- Shop Monday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. mm i t " t f t 4 t k MATTRESS ? i S- V" h r a y 's f V - " i, t rf a i V v - Per . 1 4 v OrthoiMK Styk" T'- ! . f. 1 ' ? v i iff 1 t f King ' i , ' v y J 'y, ,- j V , t - vv " , i , . v, -j , ''j' v ... , V ll'V , ' f ir , ' J ! ' t. ,- 4 - 5 u. i ' i 4-- i ' a ? i t'Si." f i 7 , i . y ....... ' f"'t'' ' r '7- - ,d-: - - " - ' 1 i 4 5 4 ' V y. I 5 0 - , r j S A v x - , j i C f j T V- r V7 4 - - - I ., v J. i ' - ? 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V jJi it $29900 p. - r . 1 J 1 ; Queen r' I u ) 12:00 to 6:00 PM FIRMEST 3924 Highland Drive across from Perry Bros Honda) Mon. thru Sat 9 am to 6 pm Monday, July 25th 6 HOUR SALE W Consumer Sales ftService "There are a lot of people out there, but doggone it, there are a lot of mistakes made when they do not meet the basic pro MONDAY ONLY imrpiie P HOUW TO 25Bl OPEW 1ULY ONE DAY ONLY m 78 tections set up by the state," Pierce says. Elgart says he now agrees with the critics of private adoption and endorses state licensing After operating privately for two years, Golden Cradle got a provisional license in January. What Arty's doing in terms of adoptions is new, says William six billboards, 11 sidewalk benches, 20 buses on the outside, 20 buses on the inside. In addition, he takes his message to local and national news programs, which have done much to bopst his business. Thats 50 percent of it," he says of the publicity. The other 50 percent is the person who answers the phone. They have to befriend that birthmother in the first 10 or 15 seconds or its downhill. You need somebody who speaks to her, that gal on the line, at her level. Elgart likes to have pregnant women talk with other women who are planning to give up their children for adoption through Golden Cradle. He arranges for the women to stay for months at a time with families in the Philadelphia area before the birth. - - , t Ogden City Mall 1 ' |
