Sam & Joe's Story
Sam and Joe were two brothers who lived with a mother who couldn’t stop drinking or doing drugs. Since they came to live in New Jersey three years earlier, the boys have lived in seven different shelters, had no consistent education, and went from place-to-place with everything they owned in a single suitcase. They frequently smelled of urine and feces and wore clothing that didn’t fit. Their school reported that one of the boys was found looking for food in a garbage can.
Despite help from various agencies, the mother couldn’t care for the two boys and they were placed in a temporary shelter by the Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS) awaiting a Judge’s decision as to where they would go next. It was during this time that their mother disappeared. Fortunately, at their very first hearing, they were appointed a CASA volunteer by the Judge.
The CASA volunteer visited them every week while they were in the shelter – often playing games with them to take their minds off their situation. He delivered letters they wrote to their mother for the DYFS worker to give to her in case she was found.
Most importantly, he kept every promise he made to call or visit them. Since they had no other visitors, he came to realize how precious these visits were to the boys.
But the CASA volunteer gave them the most precious gift when he found their father. While reviewing the case files, the CASA volunteer found a reference to the boys’ father living in Florida. After finding the man’s address, the CASA volunteer sent him a letter and explained the boys’ situation. The father had no idea that the boys had been removed from their mother. In fact, he had been wiring money to her for child support up until that time.
Immediately the father reached out and starting working with the Division of Youth and Family Services to regain custody of his two boys. The CASA volunteer worked with the father to expedite the process of getting his boys back. He even helped the father overcome some hurdles with completing necessary paperwork. He also relayed messages back-and-forth between the boys and their father during the process.
The boys have since moved to Florida to live with their father and his wife and now have the kind of life they deserve thanks to the efforts of their CASA volunteer.
BOTH BROTHERS WERE REUNITED WITH THEIR FATHER
Things Turn out Differently When You Speak up for a Child.