Meet our Team!
Bal Jagat- Children's World Inc. is licensed throughout Southern California and we have social workers in each area to work closely with families. Our Exempted Provider Social Workers are oversighted and trained by Bal Jagat Directors and are all MSW and/or LCSWs. They genuinely care about the families and build a relationship that lasts from the homestudy to child placement to progress reporting. Our social workers become like your family, and are eager to help you adopt your child.
The Agency Directors
Founder- Hemlata Momaya, MSW
Hemlata has her Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and a minor in Psychology from the University of Bombay. She also is an Alumni from the world renowned School of Social Work, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), where she earned her Master of Social Work Degree. Hemlata volunteered & worked in orphanages in India. Hemlata is the Owner/Founder/ Executive Director of Bal Jagat for almost 40 years. She has visited orphanages and opened country programs worldwide, in addition to raising her family. In 2008, she received PBS Local Hero of the Year for Asian Pacific Heritage Month.
In 2016, she was honored with Congressional Recognition as an "Angel in Adoption," and was presented the award in Washington DC. In 2020, she was awarded a Woman of Distinction by CA Assemblyman Patrick O'Donnell's office (ceremony pending Covid). Hemlata speaks six Indian languages, enjoys Bollywood films, and very close to her family.
In 2016, she was honored with Congressional Recognition as an "Angel in Adoption," and was presented the award in Washington DC. In 2020, she was awarded a Woman of Distinction by CA Assemblyman Patrick O'Donnell's office (ceremony pending Covid). Hemlata speaks six Indian languages, enjoys Bollywood films, and very close to her family.
Executive Director -Mausami Momaya, MSW, LCSW
Mausami Momaya has a Bachelor and Master of Social Work Degree from California State University, Long Beach. She also has her LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). Mausami is the Director of Social Services. She has worked in Domestic Adoption at Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). Mausami has visited orphanages worldwide as a child and as an adult. She completes the documentation for all foreign country licenses. Mausami is a Clinician, the Agency Hague Coordinator, Social Media Director, and a Notary Public.
In 2015, Mausami was awarded "Woman of Distinction," by the California State Assembly, and acknowledged by the US House of Representatives and Senate. CSULB, her alumni, honored Mausami with the 2016 Community Service Alumni Award. Mausami has worked in both domestic and international adoption for over 30 years. Mausami's hobbies include dancing, international travel, and animal causes.
Hemlata Momaya and Mausami Momaya are Directors and practicing Social Workers.
In 2015, Mausami was awarded "Woman of Distinction," by the California State Assembly, and acknowledged by the US House of Representatives and Senate. CSULB, her alumni, honored Mausami with the 2016 Community Service Alumni Award. Mausami has worked in both domestic and international adoption for over 30 years. Mausami's hobbies include dancing, international travel, and animal causes.
Hemlata Momaya and Mausami Momaya are Directors and practicing Social Workers.
Our Social Workers
Julie Bank, MSW - West Los Angeles County & Southbay & Downtown Areas
Julie Bank has worked as an Adoption Social Worker exclusively with Bal Jagat - Children’s World Inc. since 2003. She has a Masters of Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago. She has worked both professionally and as a volunteer in Social Welfare organizations such as the Chicago Urban League, Dallas CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), and the Children’s Home and Aid Society of Illinois. Julie has completed hundreds of home studies and countless progress reports for children adopted from all corners of the world. Julie is the Vice President of Social Justice at University Synagogue in West Los Angeles and on a national level, she is currently serving as the Chair of the Economic Justice Task Force on the Commission on Social Action for the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism and is a trustee-at-large on the Union for Reform Judaism North American Board. Julie Bank is married to Steven Bank, Professor of Law at the University of California, and proud mom of four kids, ages 20, 17, 11, and 8!
Luisa Barajas, MSW, LCSW - North Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, & Kern Counties
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Luisa Barajas, has worked as an Adoption Social Worker with BJCW Inc. since 1995. Her current full-time position is as the Clinical Coordinator at Friends of the Family in North Hills where she supervises Master of Social Work interns from many different university programs across the country, including CSUN, USC, UCLA, Boston University Online, and Simmons University Online. The interns conduct individual and family counseling, groups (for women’s empowerment, sexual offenders), Early Learning Lab, and parenting and anger management classes. She is also the Primary Facilitator and Coordinator for the Parent and Teem Communication Program. Luisa is bilingual, English-Spanish and has worked in the field of human services for many years -with migrant farm workers, recent immigrants, severely emotionally disturbed children and adolescents in residential treatment facilities, with foster children and parents, in a Wraparound program for at-risk children and teens, in prevention programs for at risk families, and also taught parent-child classes for LAUSD Adult Education for several years. Her special interest is in caring for children and families affected by early childhood trauma, a desire she developed through raising her much-loved, adult daughter, adopted from Romania. Luisa is married, and besides her husband, daughter, and son-in-law, shares her home with her adorable 6-year old, grandson, Ayden-the-Awesome, whom she is co-facilitating homeschooling alongside her daughter. |
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Therese Franklin, MSW- Orange County, San Bernardino, and Surrounding Areas
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Karla Roberts, MSW- Orange County
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Karla has a Master of Social Work Degree from UCLA. She has worked with children, youth, and families for over 20 years in various therapeutic settings. She has experience in the foster care system and domestic adoptions. Adoption has touched several friends and therefore, she has observed through a personal lens, the rewards and challenges of adoption. Karla is bicultural (Mexico) and bilingual in Spanish. Karla stays active with her three children; because each of them have their own interests and one has a disability. There is never a dull moment! Karla's interests include music, hiking, travelling and making motherhood fun. |
Nancy Lam, MSW- Long Beach, Orange County, and Surrounding Areas
Nancy Lam has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from UC Berkeley and a Master of Social Welfare Degree from UCLA. For more than a decade, she has worked with children, youth, and families in various settings, such as school, hospital, community mental health clinics, and the public child welfare system as a Clinician and an Advocate. She specialized in crisis intervention, trauma-informed clinical case management, and foster care and has previous experience in domestic adoption, guardianship, and home assessment. She is passionate about bringing families together and supporting their growth and wellbeing. Nancy loves the outdoors and enjoys cooking and discovering new coffee shops. She is bilingual in Chinese Mandarin.
Nancy Lam has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from UC Berkeley and a Master of Social Welfare Degree from UCLA. For more than a decade, she has worked with children, youth, and families in various settings, such as school, hospital, community mental health clinics, and the public child welfare system as a Clinician and an Advocate. She specialized in crisis intervention, trauma-informed clinical case management, and foster care and has previous experience in domestic adoption, guardianship, and home assessment. She is passionate about bringing families together and supporting their growth and wellbeing. Nancy loves the outdoors and enjoys cooking and discovering new coffee shops. She is bilingual in Chinese Mandarin.
Maggie Effinger, MSW- Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside & San Diego Counties
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Maggie Effinger received both her Bachelor and Masters Degree of Social Work from Arizona State University. She has served diverse communities in both inpatient and outpatient medical and psychiatric settings as well as volunteered her time to providing companionship to hospice patients and providing victim advocacy for abused, neglected, and at-risk children. She has experience providing behavioral therapy for children and young adults with developmental disabilities and currently serves in a full-time role as a Hospice Social Worker offering counseling, education and resources to hospice patients and their families. In her spare time, Maggie enjoys quality time with her husband and young children with a coffee in-hand. Maggie is passionate about ensuring every person who crosses her path feels supported and heard.
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Board of Directors
Douglas Yeoman, President (& family)
Douglas Yeoman, who has served as our Board President for a number of years, is the proud father of 2 beautiful daughters he and his wife Linda adopted from China. Doug is the Managing Partner at Parker & Covert LLP, whose law firm specializes in the representation of school districts, community college districts and other public entities throughout California. In addition to his passion of assisting and advocating for both his own children and those attending the school districts his firm represents, Doug is an organist who has played for various churches since age 12, and is an avid runner who has run more than 80 marathons and half marathons.
Douglas Yeoman, who has served as our Board President for a number of years, is the proud father of 2 beautiful daughters he and his wife Linda adopted from China. Doug is the Managing Partner at Parker & Covert LLP, whose law firm specializes in the representation of school districts, community college districts and other public entities throughout California. In addition to his passion of assisting and advocating for both his own children and those attending the school districts his firm represents, Doug is an organist who has played for various churches since age 12, and is an avid runner who has run more than 80 marathons and half marathons.
Yogesh Patel, Board Secretary (and family)
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Yogesh Patel, who has served as our Board Secretary for three years, is the proud father of a beautiful daughter that he and his wife Mina adopted from India. Yogesh is a Senior Electronics Engineer working for the Department of Defense. In his spare time Yogesh enjoys exercising, reading, traveling, and watching sports.
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Dean Holmes, Board Treasurer (and family)
Dean Holmes is our Board Treasurer and has been so for several years and is also a 30 yr practicing financial planning professional currently with VALIC Financial Advisors. In addition to spending time with his family, Dean enjoys boating, golf and many other outdoor activities. Dean is actively involved with his Church and both he and his wife Lisa are members of many of their church's support groups aimed at helping others through community service projects and activities aimed at uplifting the community.
"I spoke with Hemlata and Mausami several times. They are heart-warming, happy people who truly believe in what they do. They are the professionals of international adoption. Bal Jagat will give the best service for parents and kids. Thorough and knowledgeable, they will walk you through the process hands in hands. They are angels." - A-mei, Community member
"Hello! It has been quite a while since we last spoke. Our son Ben is doing incredibly well. He is in his third year of college at - University and plays tight end for the football team. He is 6'4 and athletically talented. His grades are good and he has found love with an amazing girl who attends - as an engineering student. He is funny and very well- liked by everyone who knows him. He is a bit shy and doesn't like to be the center of attention. Nevertheless, he has established lasting friendships with great kids from his high school who have also gone on to play college sports.
I created a video of his adoption and his first 13 years. I wanted him to feel known and celebrated.
I hope you enjoy the video! Thank you for helping make all of this possible! We send our very best wishes for health and happiness to you and your family."- CeCe A. Adoptive Mother of child from Romania.
"Thank you all! Many thanks to Mausami and Bal Jagat for giving us so much guidance and wisdom throughout the homestudy process (and helping us move quickly). We are especially grateful to have gotten to meet and work with Julie Bank - who is so wonderful, patient, and thorough. We know it is just one step in the journey but we are happy to be here and move toward the path ahead." - K and R adoptive parents in process to adopt a child from India.
"We chose Bal Jagat as our homestudy provider based on positive reviews and their best in class reputation. I am so grateful we did. Everything about our experience with Bal Jagat was outstanding. Hemlata and Mausami exceeded our expectations for support and were extremely responsive anytime we needed anything. They are knowledgeable experts on all aspects of international adoption, and helped us navigate the confusing paperwork and complex requirements. Our social worker, Luisa was also incredible - prompt, professional and clearly committed to helping us finish our homestudy with lightening speed! In fact, our placement agency even commented to us that Bal Jagat was the best California agency partner they had worked with. If we adopt again in the future, we will always choose Bal Jagat." - N and J adoptive parents in process to adopt a child from Bulgaria.
"There is an obvious love for what they do here. It is family-centered: from the agency itself to the pictures of decades of happy adopted children and families. Bal Jagat makes sure that the children are the focus of the adoption journey and that they are well-matched to their forever families. They have been recognized locally and nationally in providing such caring service to both child and parent. They are a compassionate and trustworthy team that families can rely on."- Karen C. Community Member and Pharmacist (Posted on Google)
"Dear Hemlata & Mausami. Thank you for all the & cares that you have given all these years to those children at orphanages around the world. May the Lord Almighty repay your kindness for all the good things you have done. May you be richly rewarded by HIM. He has seen all the good deeds you have done! Thank you also for always be(ing) there for me and being patient. I appreciate all of your help and support. May God richly bless you always in every aspect of your life."- Susan S. Adoptive Mother waiting for a child from China.
"We had a wonderful experience with Bal Jagat. From the beginning, Mausami and Hemlata Momaya made sure we understood the adoption process in depth. They spent time meeting with us virtually and in person at their office and went through everything in detail. They also made us feel enthusiastic and excited about adoption- this is important at the start, given that the paperwork and logistics can make it seem overwhelming. Their positive energy made us feel we could make it through this journey with their support. They were extremely reassuring and shared with us the success stories they had been a part of, over many years. At the same time, Bal Jagat paid close attention to our home study process and made sure we completed all of our paperwork exactly as needed. They are meticulous and look at everything closely. I know Bal Jagat was also in close contact with our social worker and would provide feedback on questions and open issues along the way. The attention to detail- so our homestudy would be detailed and complete- was very appreciated because we are also operating on a timeline to begin our CARA approval. We then had the great fortune of being partnered with Julie Bank as our social worker. She is truly wonderful- she spent a lot of time- getting to know us through interviews, home visits, and informal discussions when we dropped off paperwork. She and Bal Jagat were both highly responsive and collaborative with us at every step. I felt she had a very strong understanding of us as a family and as parents, and as parents, and the reasons we wanted to adopt. We consider ourselves extremely lucky to have worked with Bal Jagat and Julie Bank on this homestudy process and would absolutely recommend them to anyone pursuing international adoption. They will give you the comfort you need to succeed while also making sure everything is done according to the highest possible standards."- K and R, Prospective Adoptive Parents for a child from India.
"AMAZING, these ladies will give you the best services... these ladies were there for me and answered so many questions. This was my first experience with international adoption and I had so many questions. They responded quickly and very thoroughly every time. I only started the process and they were such good help without me even signing anything. You can tell when someone loves their job and are willing to do anything to help and that is the case in Bal Jagat.
If we do another adoption I wouldn't even hesitate on working with them again. I loved their dynamic and how they were always on top of things. Hemlata and Mausami are fantastic and I'm sure these two ladies are going straight to heaven with all the service they have provided to so many families. Hope this review helps another person looking for help in their adoption process, I wish I would've found them since the beginning. They are fantastic!"- Dascia E.
"Adoption is a gift of life." Hemlata Momaya, MSW, Founder
2016 Congressional "Angels in Adoption" Award Recipient
"Hello! It has been quite a while since we last spoke. Our son Ben is doing incredibly well. He is in his third year of college at - University and plays tight end for the football team. He is 6'4 and athletically talented. His grades are good and he has found love with an amazing girl who attends - as an engineering student. He is funny and very well- liked by everyone who knows him. He is a bit shy and doesn't like to be the center of attention. Nevertheless, he has established lasting friendships with great kids from his high school who have also gone on to play college sports.
I created a video of his adoption and his first 13 years. I wanted him to feel known and celebrated.
I hope you enjoy the video! Thank you for helping make all of this possible! We send our very best wishes for health and happiness to you and your family."- CeCe A. Adoptive Mother of child from Romania.
"Thank you all! Many thanks to Mausami and Bal Jagat for giving us so much guidance and wisdom throughout the homestudy process (and helping us move quickly). We are especially grateful to have gotten to meet and work with Julie Bank - who is so wonderful, patient, and thorough. We know it is just one step in the journey but we are happy to be here and move toward the path ahead." - K and R adoptive parents in process to adopt a child from India.
"We chose Bal Jagat as our homestudy provider based on positive reviews and their best in class reputation. I am so grateful we did. Everything about our experience with Bal Jagat was outstanding. Hemlata and Mausami exceeded our expectations for support and were extremely responsive anytime we needed anything. They are knowledgeable experts on all aspects of international adoption, and helped us navigate the confusing paperwork and complex requirements. Our social worker, Luisa was also incredible - prompt, professional and clearly committed to helping us finish our homestudy with lightening speed! In fact, our placement agency even commented to us that Bal Jagat was the best California agency partner they had worked with. If we adopt again in the future, we will always choose Bal Jagat." - N and J adoptive parents in process to adopt a child from Bulgaria.
"There is an obvious love for what they do here. It is family-centered: from the agency itself to the pictures of decades of happy adopted children and families. Bal Jagat makes sure that the children are the focus of the adoption journey and that they are well-matched to their forever families. They have been recognized locally and nationally in providing such caring service to both child and parent. They are a compassionate and trustworthy team that families can rely on."- Karen C. Community Member and Pharmacist (Posted on Google)
"Dear Hemlata & Mausami. Thank you for all the & cares that you have given all these years to those children at orphanages around the world. May the Lord Almighty repay your kindness for all the good things you have done. May you be richly rewarded by HIM. He has seen all the good deeds you have done! Thank you also for always be(ing) there for me and being patient. I appreciate all of your help and support. May God richly bless you always in every aspect of your life."- Susan S. Adoptive Mother waiting for a child from China.
"We had a wonderful experience with Bal Jagat. From the beginning, Mausami and Hemlata Momaya made sure we understood the adoption process in depth. They spent time meeting with us virtually and in person at their office and went through everything in detail. They also made us feel enthusiastic and excited about adoption- this is important at the start, given that the paperwork and logistics can make it seem overwhelming. Their positive energy made us feel we could make it through this journey with their support. They were extremely reassuring and shared with us the success stories they had been a part of, over many years. At the same time, Bal Jagat paid close attention to our home study process and made sure we completed all of our paperwork exactly as needed. They are meticulous and look at everything closely. I know Bal Jagat was also in close contact with our social worker and would provide feedback on questions and open issues along the way. The attention to detail- so our homestudy would be detailed and complete- was very appreciated because we are also operating on a timeline to begin our CARA approval. We then had the great fortune of being partnered with Julie Bank as our social worker. She is truly wonderful- she spent a lot of time- getting to know us through interviews, home visits, and informal discussions when we dropped off paperwork. She and Bal Jagat were both highly responsive and collaborative with us at every step. I felt she had a very strong understanding of us as a family and as parents, and as parents, and the reasons we wanted to adopt. We consider ourselves extremely lucky to have worked with Bal Jagat and Julie Bank on this homestudy process and would absolutely recommend them to anyone pursuing international adoption. They will give you the comfort you need to succeed while also making sure everything is done according to the highest possible standards."- K and R, Prospective Adoptive Parents for a child from India.
"AMAZING, these ladies will give you the best services... these ladies were there for me and answered so many questions. This was my first experience with international adoption and I had so many questions. They responded quickly and very thoroughly every time. I only started the process and they were such good help without me even signing anything. You can tell when someone loves their job and are willing to do anything to help and that is the case in Bal Jagat.
If we do another adoption I wouldn't even hesitate on working with them again. I loved their dynamic and how they were always on top of things. Hemlata and Mausami are fantastic and I'm sure these two ladies are going straight to heaven with all the service they have provided to so many families. Hope this review helps another person looking for help in their adoption process, I wish I would've found them since the beginning. They are fantastic!"- Dascia E.
"Adoption is a gift of life." Hemlata Momaya, MSW, Founder
2016 Congressional "Angels in Adoption" Award Recipient