Hartland Area Woman to Appear on MTV's 'Teen Mom' as Expert

When Hartland area resident Jennifer Joyce Pedley received a call from MTV in 2009, she hesitated to answer it.

“The caller ID said MTV New York. That's not something I expected, so I wasn't sure how to react,” Pedley said.

After recovering from the initial shock, she answered, and now the social worker and adoption expert will be on Teen Mom for the second time 10 p.m. Tuesday.

“This is my life's work, and I've been doing it for awhile. But I didn't realize this whole Teen Mom things was going to be so popular,” said Pedley, who placed her own son in an open adoption following his birth in 1990 and has since written a book, Secrets to Your Successful Domestic Adoption, with tips on the process

Pedley's participation is because Catelynn Lowell, who has been both on the channel's 16 and Pregnant and Teen Mom, had signed up for a retreat with On Your Feet Foundation (OYFF), a nonprofit organization Pedley helped found that aims to aid birth parents who have chosen adoption for their child.

Catelynn, who is from the Port Huron area, and her boyfriend, Tyler Baltierra, gave up their daughter, Carly, in an open adoption in 2009 and the series has chronicled that story and the couple ever since.

“I don't watch a lot of adoption shows because they tend to be unrealistic an negative,” Pedley said. “But I watched the episode of 16 and Pregnant where Catelynn and Tyler make an adoption plan to find out who the women on the message board were talking about, and I thought it was really well done.”

Women who already participated in retreats also knew of Catelynn's story and also were wanting to help. So, Pedley contacted Lowell's case worker and invited her to the retreat. Lowell accepted, and MTV followed.

“OYFF maintains a message board for women who have attended retreats. After seeing Catelynn on 16 and Pregnant, the women went crazy,” Pedley said. “They were very protective of her. They contacted me and said, 'You have to find her. She's going to need us.'”

MTV filmed Lowell's experience at the OYFF retreat in October 2009, and Pedley appeared alongside Lowell in “A Little Help,” episode 5 of season 1 of Teen Mom, in January 2010.

Pedley has since maintained a relationship with Lowell, who attended another OYFF retreat in October 2010. Again, MTV's cameras followed.

Providing support she didn't have

Helping others affected by adoptions is important to Pedley's own experience as a birth mother has fueled her drive to help others.

“There was a lot of shame and secrecy surrounding me, but I felt I made the best choice. And I've never felt any different,” said Pedley, who was attending Hope College in Holland at the time.

But she said she still wished she had had more support.

“A lot of times, birth mothers don't even get counseling,” she said. “And I'm not sure adoption agencies are the best providers of support. Many women don't want to go back to the place where they sign the papers to release their baby.”

Recognizing a need for support, Pedley moved to Chicago in 1995 to pursue a master's degree in Child Law at Loyola Law School. She aimed to make adoption her professional focus. After earning her degree, Pedley worked with several agencies in the Chicago area.

In 2001, she was asked to help found OYFF. In addition to retreats, the organization provides financial and emotional support to birth parents.

“When a woman chooses adoption for their child, it's usually because their life isn't in order. When they're not any closer to their goals after birth, they end up frustrated, confused, sad. That's where OYFF comes in,” Pedley said.

OYFF has held retreats all over the country, and they currently offer three retreats in the Midwest each year.

Pedley moved to Highland Township, just over the Hartland Township border in 2005. Milford is her husband's hometown. They are parenting two sons — an 11-year-old and a 9-year-old.

Pedley's book, Secrets to Your Successful Domestic Adoption, was published in November 2010 by HCI Books Inc. A how-to guide, it approaches adoption from the perspective of a birthparent.

In addition to her ongoing involvement with OYFF, Pedley speaks at conferences all over the country. Her son, who is now 20, sometimes joins her.

“Adoption isn't anybody's first decision, but it's the least bad choice,” Pedley said.