Over 20 kids adopted for local National Adoption Day event

Event brings families together as adoptions became finalized and lives are changed -13 On Your Side's Luis Lopez reporting

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - Today marked a very special day for brand new families in Yuma. National Adoption Day is a day to celebrate new families being created, and children's lives changing forever.

Locally, 17 different families finalized their adoptions. The event was held over at the Yuma County Juvenile Justice Center.

One family, Jim Nolan and Nubis Maiz, finalized the adoption of a one-year-old girl. They say that they are happy to share their love with a new member of the family.

“Our family is growing. We have another child that we love just like our other children; we want just the best for our family," Nolan expressed. "We want a unified family; we want our children to feel loved and always have that feeling that they can come home, knowing it’s the same thing for her, as we have for our other children."

Saturday’s event marked the first time it's been held locally, since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nationwide, over 75,000 children have been adopted on the day since 2000.