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Local families heartbroken after adoption center closes

Several families in the Triangle experienced heartbreaking disappointment when Independent Adoption Center closed its doors unexpectedly.

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DURHAM, N.C. — Several families in the Triangle experienced heartbreaking disappointment when Independent Adoption Center closed its doors unexpectedly.
"We have been trying to conceive since we were first married, which was four years ago," T.J. Harris said.

After years of heartbreak, Valencia and T.J Harris said they turned to the Independent Adoption Center — A non-profit connecting couples looking to adopt with birth-parents for more than 30-years.

"Adoption, we thought, we be a secure thing in hopes of truly growing our family," Valencia Harris said.

Out of nowhere, the Harris family received an email.

"The company had gone bankrupt and essentially they were closing their doors," T.J. Harris said.

A note to clients across the country said the Independent Adoption Center was declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Officials at the center said more recently, there are few birth-parents available, and an increase in parents hoping to adopt. They said they could not sustain the agency any longer and immediate closure was the only option.

"You feel, in a sense, numb. because, just because it happened so quickly," T.J. Harris said.

Before the Independent Adoption Center closed their doors, The Harris family said they paid the group almost $16,000. They will have to work with a trustee in the bankruptcy process to get that back.

"They still have birth certificates and our marriage certificate," Valencia Harris said.

"We still want to bring home a baby, so we are fighters. We have been fighting and we will continue to fight."

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