Success Stories

When I first met these brothers, they were 13 and 11. The older brother was very protective of his younger sibling. They were always clean, well spoken; very serious about school and sports. The older brother did almost all the talking as the younger one always looked on and occasionally nodded his head. They did…

I first met JJ when he was four years old. He was in his second foster home since separation from his Mother about seven months before. He would be moved again to two additional foster homes over the next year. He was developmentally delayed and legally blind. He did not know how to eat; meaning,…

At five-and-half-months-old, Julian was hospitalized with multiple broken bones in different stages of healing. His young parents reported that they didn’t know what had happened. Julian was diagnosed with non-accidental trauma and taken into the custody of the Department of Children and Families (DCF). Julian was placed with a foster family, who were friends of…

Shera entered foster care at age 15 due to a pattern of physical abuse at home. Her young parents were separated and both having difficulty coping appropriately with Shera’s risky behavior, which included disciplinary difficulties in school, an older boyfriend, drug use, and running away. One day she arrived at school with a black eye,…

Tomas was born with heroin in his system because his mother used the drug during her pregnancy. She had a long history of substance abuse and had lost custody of her other children. In four months, she also lost custody of Tomas, who went to live with his father. He has not seen his birth…

Investigations began when 7-year-old Andres was asked at school about the bump on his forehead and he replied that his mother had hit him. The family was not new to the Department of Children & Families (DCF). The mother had been involved with DCF decades earlier as an abused child herself. Andres had three older…