OUR STORY
January 1980:
Hey world! Samantha Coleman was born at the “Ultra-Chicago,” Cook County Hospital.
March 1980:
Created for a time such as this! Sandria Washington* was born in Chicago, IL at Cabrini Hospital. (*not original birth name)
December 2001:
Samantha graduates from University of Illinois at Chicago with a B.A. in Psychology, beginning her career as a mental health professional on the West Side of Chicago
May 2002:
Sandria graduates from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a B.S. in Advertising, beginning a career a publishing, media and communications
Circa 2005:
Samantha and Sandria become friends during the Myspace era.
May 2005:
Samantha receives her Masters Degree in Community Counseling from Concordia River Forest and sits for her licensure exam, completely unaware of how her educational path has been aligned to her adoption story.
October 2006:
Samantha’s mother discloses that Samantha is adopted.
May 2010:
On May 21, 2010, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill into law providing adopted adults greater access to their birth certificates—without having to get a court order.
April 2011:
Samantha gives birth to a baby girl - her first known blood-related relative.
December 2011:
Sandria’s mother, Alexandria Washington, passes suddenly from Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) at age 65.
May 2012:
Samantha receives her original birth certificate (OBC), one of the first disbursements of certificates post-2010 bill signed by Governor Pat Quinn. Her search and reunion process begins.
July 2016:
Samantha graduates with her PhD in Organizational Leadership from the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, shortly after delivering her son in January 2016.
October 2016:
Samantha discloses her adoption story to Sandria and other close friends.
November 2016:
On Thanksgiving, Samantha meets her biological parents and siblings for the first time.
November 2017:
On Thanksgiving, Sandria learns about her adoption for the first time via an Instagram DM from a relative.
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April 2018:
On April 2 (her “REbirth Day”), Sandria receives confirmation from an aunt that she is adopted. She begins to share her adoptee status with friends and receives her OBC.
April 2018:
The hashtag #BlackAndAdopted had only been used publicly on Instagram 2 times. The 3rd use, by Sandria, was the first made by a Black and adopted person.
May 2018:
Sandria meets her first biological relative, a younger sister, who lives in Pittsburgh.
July 2019:
Samantha and Sandria meet at Mesler (inside The Sophy Hotel) and create Black to the Beginning, LLC
October 2019:
Samantha and Sandria travel to Los Angeles to attend Werk It: A Women’s Podcast Festival and left feeling overwhelmed and thinking podcasting might not be for them.
December 2019:
Sandria meets two more biological sisters, her birth mother and birth father - separately - all in the same week!
May 2020:
Black to the Beginning goes “public” with its first Instagram page!
September 2020:
Black to the Beginning meets with award-winning filmmaker Asia Taylor (TaylorLane Creative) to review interview transcripts, the beginnings of their untitled Black Adoption documentary.
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November 2020:
Black to the Beginning launches The Black Adoption Podcast with S1E1 featuring Evanston, IL-based adoption agency, The Cradle.
November 2020:
Black to the Beginning receives its first national media coverage, Fox Soul’s “Book of Sean”
July 2022 & August 2022:
Dr. Sam and Sandria speak at Pact Camp East and Pact Camp West and host workshops for adoptive parents of color.
September 2022:
Sandria and her four sisters are all together for the first time!
November 2022:
Sandria and Dr. Sam appear on WGN’s “Daytime Chicago” for National Adoption Month.
November 2022:
Black to the Beginning celebrates 2 year anniversary of The Black Adoption Podcast with their first public event, in partnership with Black Metropolis Research Consortium (BMRC) and Northeastern Illinois University Carruthers Center for Inner City Studies (CCICS)
March 2023:
Season 4 of The Black Adoption Podcast launches with Episode 44!
June 2023:
The Black Adoption Podcast celebrates its 50th episode!
October 2023:
“Dr. Samantha Coleman and Sandria Washington co-author “The Joy of Owning Your Voice” within the book “A Year of Black Joy,” for World Adoption Day