Gayle H. Swift

Gayle H. Swift, an adoptive mother of two now-adult children, co-founder of (Growing Intentional Families Together,) a certified coach, and a former foster parent is dedicated to supporting adoptees and the families who love them. A fifty-five-year survivor of ovarian cancer, she treasures the blessing of family relationships. Gayle has paraglided in Peru, hiked the citadel of Machu Picchu, trekked glaciers in Antarctica, and snorkeled the glacial melt between the earth's tectonic plates in Iceland. But parenting proved to be the greatest adventure of her life. She collaborated on the multi-award-winning "ABC, Adoption & Me" with her daughter Casey (an adoptee.) "ABC, & Me" has been re-illustrated and revised to reflect the latest in the professional understanding of the adoptive family's journey. Check out the new Award-winning version that recently earned acclaim from the prestigious Next Generation Indie Book Awards! "The original version of "ABC, Adoption & Me" was named a Favorite Read of 2013 by Adoptive Families Magazine and several other awards. Gayle has won seven Royal Palm Literary Awards. She blogs on adoption at GIFTfamilyservices.com and reviews children's books @ GaylehSwift.com Gayle and Casey also wrote "We're Adopted, So What?: Teens Tell It Like It Is" to reach tween and teen adoptees. It launched in 2019. Five fictional teen girls share their thoughts and feelings about being adopted, how adoption shapes their world and relationships, creates challenges, and how they strive to blend together their biological and their adoptive worlds. It also is an award-winning book and has earned acclaim from the prestigious Next Generation Indie Book Awards!" Testimonials for "We’re Adopted: So What?" "This is a treasure and will help so many families. I love this book so much. I wish I'd had it when my kids were younger.) —Lori Holden, author of The Open-hearted Way to Open Adoption "My hope is that prospective adoptive parents will buy and read this book before they become parents. Good adoptive parenting requires you to first seek to understand your child's perspective. Owning this book is a good first step." —Lynn Grubb, adoptee and kinship adoptive parent, editor, and creator of "The Adoptee Survival Guide." Gayle and her colleague Sally Ankerfelt, M. Div, co-wrote "Reimagining Adoption: What Adoptees Seek from Families and Faith" which was also published in June 2019. It won the prestigious Illuminations Book Award Silver Medal which honors "the year’s best new titles written and published with a Christian worldview." In 2019 it received a gold Royal Palm Literary Award! This ground-breaking book helps explores: How to become better Christian parents and more supportive faith communities How to answer tough questions and to anticipate who will pose them and why How to clarify Christian adoption beliefs and practices What makes adoptees the true adoption experts How to process the pain of birth parent loss How to validate adoptee grief and loss How to support family preservation Testimonials: “This book opens people of faith to a different perspective than what you would normally hear in mainstream media, your church and your community about adoption. Share it with your pastor, your congregation, and other people of faith.” – Lynn Grubb, Adoptee, Kinship Adoptive Parent “Reading a book that uses real voices, real words, and real experiences validated my own experience. This book elevated my faith. It is a rare find."  -Lolita, fosteree, child welfare professional Gayle has presented at the NACAC (North American Council on Adoptable Children) Conference and is available to speak. She believes in the power of books to inform, heal, and create community.