Todd and Jordan Mackey Adopted Their Daughter Zora, Who Has Lived With Them Since 2022, Among 16 Children Who Found Forever Homes in a Jeffersonville, Indiana, Courtroom

Jordan Mackey called their daughter Zora “the light” of Jordan’s life and said the family is now “whole,” after a Clark County, Indiana, judge finalized the adoption on Friday, Nov. 6, according to WLKY. Zora has lived with Jordan and Todd Mackey since 2022.

The Mackeys were one of 12 families in Clark Circuit Court Four in Jeffersonville that day, where 16 children were adopted as part of a National Adoption Day ceremony.

Todd and Jordan Mackey Finalize Zora’s Adoption

Zora joined the Mackeys in 2022, and the adoption was finalized this month. Todd Mackey told WLKY the couple had wanted to adopt her from the day she came home. Once the judge ruled, Todd said, a weight lifted, because the uncertainty of the process was over.

Jordan Mackey said the adoption lets the family move forward together and said Zora will have a bright future with a family that loves and cares for her. WLKY did not report Zora’s age or how she came to live with the Mackeys.

Judge Lisa G. Reger and 16 Adoptions in Court Four

Judge Lisa G. Reger announced each adoption and gave the children a chance to take part in the ceremony, WLKY reported. The station said 16 children were adopted by 12 families but did not explain the difference, such as whether some families adopted more than one child.

Claire Lorch Hagedorn, an attorney and foster parent, told WLKY that it is “a special thing to be able to provide safety and love and security for these kids.”

Reger has presided over these days for years. A 2023 report on Yahoo News described her as a magistrate judge who earlier practiced as an attorney representing adoptive families and birth parents and who had handled hundreds of adoptions. In that report she said, “Birth parents don’t get the credit they deserve.” The report also noted that adoptions often take over a year, with paperwork and background checks for families.

The same court has done this before. A News and Tribune report from an earlier Adoption Day described 11 adoption hearings in one Friday session in Jeffersonville, where Reger gave a 9-year-old named Weston Sanders a miniature gavel and children took part in their own hearings.

Jennifer and Nelson Griffin Plan a Second Adoption

Another family in the courtroom, Jennifer and Nelson Griffin, adopted their daughter, Emersyn Nicole Griffin. They had looked forward to the day for two years, WLKY reported, and Jennifer Griffin called it “everything.”

The Griffins are already working toward adopting a second child, the station said.

A similar scene played out in Texas days earlier, when an Athens couple adopted their 19-month-old niece in a packed courtroom.

November is National Adoption Month, which raises awareness of adoption and of children in foster care who are waiting for permanent families.

How Indiana Marks Adoption Month

Clark County is not the only county that holds a ceremony. In a press release dated Nov. 25, 2025, the Indiana Department of Child Services said more than 180 Hoosier children had found permanent families so far that November, with Adoption Day celebrations in 14 counties, Clark County among them, according to the DCS release. DCS Director Krupp said, “It’s an honor and a privilege to be a part of these celebrations.” The agency worked with courts, Firefly Children and Family Alliance, court appointed special advocates and other partners.

Nationally, the day is organized by a coalition that includes the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. National Adoption Day’s website says events are held in more than 400 communities and that the day has recognized more than 95,000 children moving from foster care to permanent families. It lists Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026, as the next national date.

Where Indiana Families Can Start

For families who want to adopt from foster care, Indiana DCS says a DCS adoption is a public agency adoption, limited to children in the agency’s custody. When a child cannot be reunified with birth parents and the court ends parental rights, the child may be referred to the Indiana Adoption Program. The process starts with an orientation session and a call from an adoption consultant, and DCS encourages prospective adoptive parents to consider becoming licensed foster parents.

Once a child is placed in a home for adoption, families can use pre-permanency services to help with the transition, and subsidy eligibility must be determined before the adoption is finalized. Families who have adopted in Indiana can request post-permanency services afterward.

DCS lists two kinds of financial help. A monthly adoption assistance subsidy is available to eligible children with special needs until age 18, and up to $2,000 per child can be reimbursed for non-recurring adoption costs such as fees, court costs and attorney fees, after the adoption is finalized. Medicaid is also listed as a resource.

AdoptUSKids lists the Indiana Adoption Program’s number as 855-677-5437 in its Indiana guide. It says about 13,000 children are in foster care in the state, most of the waiting children are between 8 and 16, and many have siblings. Applicants must be licensed as a foster family or an adoption-only family, and training runs at least 10 hours for foster parents and at least 16 hours for adoptive parents.

Infant and international adoptions are typically handled by private attorneys and agencies, not the foster care program, according to the same guide.

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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.

Image: Joe Gratz – CC0/Wikimedia Commons