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Imagine being a 10-year old girl living in shame
and fear of your mother’s boyfriend who visits
your room each night, forcing you to have sex with
him. Or a 9-year old boy thrown into the role of
parenting, feeding and providing for your four younger
siblings because your mother has a drug addiction
that keeps her physically and emotionally absent.
Now, imagine being six years old and given five
minutes and a brown grocery sack in which to collect
your belongings before you’re taken by a CPS
worker—a stranger to you—from the only
home you’ve ever known. Thousands of children
in our community have lived through scenarios just
like these. Select a child’s name to hear
his or her story.
Destiny and Dominique
19-month old Destiny and newborn
Dominique were removed from their home because
of their mother's drug-use, prostitution and
inability to escape an abusive relationship.
The girls were temporarily placed with an
aunt, although CPS was not confident that
their mother would complete the required services
for reunification with the girls.
The
volunteer, Sylvia, spent countless hours at
CPS
meeting with the caseworker and supervisor,
talking to the mother's attorney and attending
numerous hearings in court. Sylvia's testimony
regarding the mother's progress - she
completed in-patient and intensive out-patient
drug treatment, parenting classes, individual
therapy, maintained a job and permanent residence
- ultimately led the judge
to order Family Reunification services.
Months of hard work and determination by the
mothert, coupled with Sylvia's unwavering
support, resulted in the girls' safe return
home.
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William
Seven-month-old
William was brought to the hospital with what
his 15-year-old mother called a "hurt leg."
Doctors were shocked to discover that his "hurt
leg" was actually a compound fracture. And
it was accompanied by 14 other breaks and fractures
in his arms, legs and skull-all in various stages
of healing.
Nick,
the Child Advocates volunteer assigned to
the case, located relatives in California
willing to take William for the long-term.
He also secured witnesses for the trial to
terminate the mother's parental rights, followed
up on therapy appointments for the child and
worked diligently to ensure the paperwork
involved in an interstate adoption moved forward.
Eventually,
William's relatives in California permanently
adopted him - and still send a holiday card
and picture to Nick every year, thanking him
for being "such an angel to William."
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Laura
Laura's mother had
a long history of mental health issues and
drug use. She tested positive
for opiates at Laura's birth and for marijuana
and benzodiazapenes during prenatal visits.
She admitted to smoking marijuana and taking
Xanax during
her pregnancy .
Court appointed advocate, Justin, was
instrumental in helping the mother to establish
a support network and remain substance-free.
He provided consistent encouragement and reinforcement
as well as an ear to which the mother could
vent frustrations with family members and
CPS. It was with Justin's support that the
mother finally agreed to check into - and
actually complete - an outpatient program
and continue to attend NA/AA meetings where
she met others struggling with recovery.
Today, Laura is back in the custody of her
mother, and they both live with the maternal
grandparents. The grandparents have reconciled
their relationship with their daughter and
now enjoy helping to raise their granddaughter
in a loving, safe home.
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Tim,
age 7 and Katie, age 5
Tim
and Katie were taken into custody after their
mother left them with a homeless man at a
convenience store. Being left alone with strangers
was an unfortunate occurrence that the two
children had grown accustomed to while in
their mother's care. During visits to their
foster home, their Child Advocates volunteer,
Deena, discovered both children could graphically
describe how their mother cooked crack with
"a spoon" and smoked it in front
of them.
Regular visits with the children gave Deena
a chance to learn more about their mother
and a few relatives in the area. While the
mother was never found, Deena located an aunt
and uncle, who eventually led her to finding
Tim's father. Even though the father and other
relatives were unable to provide a permanent
home for Tim and Katie, Deena's quick investigative
work helped rule out possible placement with
those relatives and sped up the adoption process
for the two children. She worked tirelessly
with the DFPS caseworker to obtain termination
of parental rights.
Today,
both children are thriving in their adoptive
home. Tim is constantly showing off his basketball
moves, while Katie can't get enough of her
dolls - or her big brother's attention.
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Mario,
Victoria, Angel, Daniela and Elicia
ages 3 - 11
Five brothers and sisters, ranging
in age from 3 to 11, were filthy and lice-infested
when they were taken into children's protective
custody based on neglectful supervision. It
had been a week since the children had seen
their mother. Daniela's condition was so severe
that she was taken to the emergency room at
Ben Taub Hospital for treatment of protruding
lymph nodes.
Belinda,
the Child Advocates volunteer, worked tirelessly
to find relatives willing to care for the
children. Throughout the long process - involving
seven different caseworkers - Belinda remained
the constant voice for the children's welfare.
She ensured that the home studies were conducted
in a timely manner and was there to explain
to the children what was happening and assure
them of a safe future.
Today,
the children have been permanently placed
with relatives and still can't get enough
of Belinda's famous hugs during her occasional
visits.
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