Parent Advocate after surviving CPS

[melissaRRT]

My name is Melissa,

I am new here, here is a little about me.

I am 37 years old with 2 kids. I am a Respiratory Therapist, perminately disabled, and now on SSI/SSDI.

I have been through it all with CPS, my children were taken into Foster Care, and returned 24 hours later because of an over-zealous social worker. The court battle was long and very hard on me emotionally. I took the only way out I knew to make them "go away" I accepted their lies and did what they asked me to. After 3 months in Family Maintenance my case was closed.

This was the start of my second career. I became the parents' voice to the higher ups of CPS and the state of CA. I accepted to sit on the Differential Task Force Core Team, which included higher level CPS staff, (Chief Administrator, Director, Intake Supervisor, Lead intake Social Worker), The Director of the Child Abuse Prevention Council, and ME.. Parent from the other side. We report to a larger committee, who then reports to a bigger one, etc.

This experience has been interesting. I travel to conferences with my team and we meet other teams from all over the state of CA. to discuss and "invent" for CA. the use of Differential Response. This concept is not new, other states such as Missouri, New York, and more have been using it for years.

Now, this experiencehas recently lead me to one our Community Based Organizations. Their Associate Director went to our last convention. We talked and I told her that for 2 years now my goal has been to get involved with parents who need guidance, advice, or just someone to listen to them, at a time of crisis or confusion. Her reply was "I have been looking for someone like you to do this for us, come to the office, lets get this started.

Currently, I am a volunteer Parent Advocate, developing the foundation and implementing ideas for this organization.

I need some help. Would you all here at FightCPS.com be interested in helping me with your input as to things that might have or would help you in your situations. I wish I had found this site 4 years ago when my trouble started.

I look forward to your feedback

Melissa

[Bob_Lynn]

If you really want to help, learn the constitutional, federal, state laws on civil rights and federal & state CPS laws and protect the family and especially the children. Even when the parents are guilty, they not only have the same rights as those who are innocent but their children are truly innocent in most cases (there are vindictive children, let's not kid ourselves) and everyone's rights must be preserved.

The problem is, if you truly help the family, odds are, you're going to piss off CPS. I hope I'm wrong in your case but that's what happens in most cases.

PS - I voted and I'll tell you my vote:

"No, they may be helping CPS, I don't trust them."

[Dazeemay]

I told her that for 2 years now my goal has been to get involved with parents who need guidance, advice, or just someone to listen to them, at a time of crisis or confusion.

If you want to help parents you do not need the help of cps. Go down to the courthouse and find those parents, go to the cps offices where these parent/parents are signing up and start a group in your own home and help them that way.

You are getting mixed up in a devious political arena and you will either end up siding with them, or they will be back attacking you again. I was told by a therapist one time that one always has to remember that the negative always overpowers the positive in relationships. Hence why many stay in bad relationships be it friendships, marriage, etc.

I personally believe that one can only do their best outside of cps. Many of us are advocates right now and reaching those parents. I do not see how you can pull this off without instigating a retaliation from them towards you.

Guardian ad litems where suppose to be of that purpose too and many have sold us out.

I know you have a dream and I do not discourage you but I feel you must look at who you are dealing with. They are not going to change you know it and I know it.

[good dad]

My vote could have fallen into a few categories...

As a "parent advocate".. I'm assuming you will inform the parent(s) of their constitutional rights and civil rights as well as the process that the courts use in cases like this....( I like)

But after telling parents their rights and they inform CPS they don't have to do things CPS requests of them and it was the advocate that informed them of their rights..I feel CPS will see you as an adversary and you will be out of a job....(probably the norm)

And thirdly...If the lawyers did their job,(KNEW HOW TO HANDLE CPS CASES) stood up for/ told us our rights, explained all avenues in the process and fought the way they should.....Then the advocates job wouldn't be needed..(MY first choice of a solution)

It seems the advocate would be doing what a lawyer should be doing....If the advocate is paid, it would just add more money given from the feds..and show more of a need for more money..

After I read the poll question again:

Do you feel a Parent Advocate could help CPS clients to navigate through the system?

I'd have to change my: yes, I would like one..
To: no

Navigate has nothing to do with explaining your rights, just showing you the path to take..

[Dazeemay]

I was told by a therapist one time that one always has to remember that the negative always overpowers the positive in relationships.

I meant to add that if the positive is not strong in the relationship and knows who they really are and self esteem is high that the negative has the more power.

[melissaRRT]

Thank you all for your posts.

I want to explain that I am a volunteer Parent Advocate with a Christian based councelling agency, not CPS. I am here to give the parents that are shell shocked and silent, or not listened to, a voice.

Some parents willl NOT talk to their therapists, and are afraid of the social workers, I work with many parents that are not CPS clients. I am trying to help them NOT get caught up with the system. It is not a requirement to have CPS involvement to have questions. I listen to what they are saying and help "Navigate" them to the places that will best serve their needs, if it is housing, drug treatment, or guardianship issues, if their is a question or issue that needs an answer to or idea, I try to find it.

As you all know, MANY/MOST parents are falsely accused. Children are even being "taken" by family members that are not happy with the childs home life, THEIR personal opinion of the home life. I am here for the parents, not the social workers, not CPS, not anyone- but THE FAMILIES. I believe that families should be kept together first and foremost.

Finally, one thing I offered to a client that is in the middle of a case with CPS that has been blown WAY out, is I directed them to this site for GREAT information and understanding.

I hope this helps to explain that I am not on "their" side.
Our Rights have been ignored.
Our voice has been ignored.
Our intelligence has been insulted.
Our children have forever been scarred.
All by a system that is out of control.

Yes, some parents are not fit, but most are being extremely violated and tormented for no reason at all. This has to stop.

I am the "1-800-Help me , CPS was here and I'm scared" hotline that I looked for after my first visit.

Does this make any sense?

I need to work on my description of a Parent Adovcate. I do not want anyone to fear I am part of the problem.

[Bob_Lynn]

I understand and appreciate your position but if you're associated with CPS, people aren't going to trust you regardless of your good intentions.

For example, Catholic Charities sounds like a great organization by name. But in fact, these people in many areas such as New York City have been chartered to take the place of CPS and do the very same things that CPS does. They are under fire for taking part in the illegal experiments with HIV drugs on foster children.

[melissaRRT]

From reading your posts directed at what I said. I think that there was a misunderstanding

I am NOT with CPS, I am on my own, developing a program that will HELP parents when they are involved with CPS. I want to help them get CPS off their back and give them a voice that they might not have at that point.

I really want your advice as to how I would approach these families and HELP them to avoid further action by CPS.

Just a side note. Because of what I am doing, I have been instramental in getting one social worker fired and 2 others have been put on probation because I spoke up and provided the voice for the way their case was being handled.

I am not a bad person. I feel that my presence here has been taken as a negative. I am wanting to get information and ways to engage the parent in talking with me so I can help them.

Thanks for reading (I noticed that many read posts but few respond)

Melissa

[Gary Shaw]

melissa,

I actually thought your orginal posts were pretty clear that you are a volunteer. There is certainly a great need for someone to assist the parents that need and want the help. As I am sure you have found out all do not want the help. Sometimes it reminds me of the Doctors who treat the symptoms and not the disease. Good luck. We are in the baby step stages of a similar group here in Georgia.

Gary Shaw

[kdddav]

Melissa,

Careful of the word "volunteer" as many may take it as a synonym for working the other side.

I understand what you want to do and why. For that, Kudos. You will find yourself alone, without support, and when CPS sees you are advocating against them, you will be retargeted over and over. They want to make you back down.

We need allies, and that is you. I see it. I feel it. But many here are telling the truth. You may have totally altruistic motives, and may get warped by CPS who may try and "show you the truth".

There are even CPS Agents who post here. Every time they talk about a truly horrible situation where they saved the kid, I shoot them down with a news article where they killed one. They can't stand me. So be it. I am on fight the War against Families in every way I can.

Some advocates are awesome. Others get flamed, ripped to shreds verbally, and attacked by CPS. It depends on your resolve. People here are in the fight of their lives, and they will sometimes buck and push, what one would consider too cautious, but as many of us here found out, there is no such thing as too cautious.

Welcome to the fight of the rest of your life. Read about Expungement. Read out in our forum in CPS Investigations about Temp Guardianship to protect your kids. Then do it. Look up the "Hatch Amendment" and get it your kid's school recotrds. If they are not in school yet, then get one ready for when they go. Then advocate. But beware, they WILL call your employer and tell them you fight Child Protection. Dirty rotten, but that is their nature.

Actually, in the CPS forum CPS Investigation, read my post, "Bastages Tried Again 7-25-05" and see how far they will go to try and wrongly take kids. If that intimidates you, don't advocate, it'll cost you more Therapy. If it makes you mad and you want to fight, you have me as an ally.

The Tech

[macaroni]

I'm currently in the middle of our case in San Diego. Last week we came in contact with new medical evidence that contradicts everything CPS accuses of. Due to this experience, we have been witness to kinks in the system.

Anything I can do to ensure that this does not happen to any other families is my aim. If you can send me info on what your programs do and what I can do to become a part of it would be greatly appreciated.

[macaroni]

you mentioned you had a social worker fired, etc.
I don't know if you can get into details but what qualifies a social worker to be reprimanded?

our social worker has been on the job for five years but his incompetence would make one believe it was his 1st day.

[Guest]

I want no part of this forum

[hope]

I do not feel this question is complete because there is no definition of what this parent advocate will do, or any other advocate for that matter.

I have advocated for the rights of children in state foster care to be cared for properly and to be safe.

They are not safe in residential/group foster care and someone said, If you Advocate for the Child/Family (I am an advocate FOR THE CHILD), you will piss CPS off.

HOW horridly true this is! CPS HATES me and it is stupid because I do not actually HATE THEM. Without their intervention in many situations, children die and are maimed. We have several of each and it is the most heartbreaking thing to deal with but while parents are trying to navigate through the system, our organization can only create a platform where the parents are able to help one another.

We have a team of legal researchers who are putting together a booklet of information based on the Texas Family Code, Policy and Procedure Manual, Texas Constitution, as to the rights of children in state foster care residential treatment centers. This is intended not only to inform children of their rights but to assist parents in enforcing those rights.

We have climbed the chain of command in the appropriate manner but they do not "play" fair and children are retaliated on; especially children who were already Special Needs prior to entering foster care. When they are able to come home, whatever their Special Needs were are exacerbated beyond comprehension.

Honestly, I do not know how parents deal with the fallout of CPS taking their children under the auspices of protecting them; only to have their child abused in more ways than had EVER even alleged to have occurred in their own homes.

I feel at this point, after years of trying to get legislation that would actually effect positive change for children who are in foster care through no fault of their own, and being totally unsuccessful, we will move into the
Investigate
Expose, Expose, Expose, Expose
Present Solutions

At this point, regardless what occurs to the child, CPS takes no responsibility. When a child is seriously harmed in foster care, why does the state not take the High Road and give this child appropriate care? What... and admit that residential foster care is a dangerous place for a child to reside?

When hell freezes over...

[hope]

There are things that an Advocate can do if they know what the hell they are doing.

True, we piss off CPS, we piss off the parent's attorney (God only knows WHY!), we piss off the GAL's, and we piss off the judges; and we don't even try to do this. Simply making a GAL aware that his client has not received necessary clothing, is enough to send the GAL screaming at the caseworker, who screams at mom's attorney, who then has the office assistant call mom and end up cussing her out! WHY?

So, why would anyone with an ounce of sense put themselves into this position?

Because I have walked this path, for seven years, and I know how insane it is and if I can keep a parent from losing their ever lovin' mind, I have helped.

Recently, a parent with numerous children was having a very hard time getting the court, or anyone else, to see her FAMILY. All the CPS papers saying how horrid they were, how they did not supervise sufficiently, could not control their own children, blah blah blah..

So, we created a photo album. The cover page included one picture of each member of the family, with name and age under each pic.

Then we chose numerous pictures of the children participating in band, soccer awards, kid of the day award, mom and dad attending numerous school functions, and the kids being kids in their own home, with their pets, with their parents, and this was taken to court, passed around to everyone (everyone loves pictures) and for once, this "case" became a FAMILY that everyone could SEE.

FYI: Judges do not want to see pictures with lots of emotional words.
---For instance: Do not write, CHILD NAME, having a great time with family at beach in NC.
--- Under Picture, typed on your computer beforehand and spelling checked, Write: CHILD NAME, at NC Beach
Write: "Mom, Dad, Child Name, at SCHOOL NAME, for Halloween Party 2004"
---- I have seen numerous occasions when judges would not allow photo albums because of the emotional wordiness, stick to the facts of the picture only....

At times, the constitution, knowing your rights, and everything else that would make legal sense can be thrown out the window. Do not think for one moment when you stand in family court, that law is going to be practiced; that truth means one damned thing, but it is amazing what this one single item did for this case.... ??

There is no template, no two families are alike, no two children are alike, but most of the residential treatment centers are alike and they are making millions off the backs of children who are placed in foster care.

My FOCUS is the CHILD... that pisses off a lot of people which I find to be rather ignorant of those who would get angry. I do not behave like a ranting ignoramous and I do not make unrealistic requests of the people who are PAID out the wazoo to take care of these children.

BUT, when these facilities think they are going to get away with having millions of dollars in the bank while children go without basic necessities, they had better think again!

One by One... because many parents cannot work together for the good of their children, and the children end up in foster care; and other times the children are wrongfully removed from their homes, and there are times when parents think CPS can provide better medical care for their child, and the myriad of reasons a child may end up in residential foster care....
HONESTLY,
I do not care how they arrived in residential foster care but I do CARE how They are Treated and I will NEVER SHUT UP, Nor Will I EVER back off.

[Guest]

I want no part of this forum

[hope]

I am unsure what your Points are in reference to and it was a misstatement on my part to say, "I do not care how they got there". More accurately stated, is "Regardless of how a child ended up in RTC Care, we want them to be safe. I work very few cases at once and get to know the children and family like the back of my hand; the good, bad, ugly, and indifferent. I need to know it all so that I am not hit with information that I cannot respond to.

I would like to know where you get your statitstics concerning the number of children in state foster care who should not be there; assuming you are stating this because you assume the child was never abused or neglected. True, most children should never have been removed from their homes but I have personally seen children brought to death's door by parent/s. I am not speaking of a bruise on their butt, but bruises from their head to the back of their knees, held against the wall by the neck, repeatedly dunked until the child thought they were going to drown, beaten unmercifully at 6 months - 3 years of age, force-fed until they began to have seizures..... These parents did not deserve the right to have custody of their child and without any family who would take custody while parents spend time in prison, where should we place these children?

If your "stats" are based on the level of abuse in foster care compared with the general population, I would have to say 100% of all children should not be in foster care. As horrid as Texas state foster care is in the maltreatment of children in care, it is a far more dangerous place for children than when in their own homes.

We do not not address issues with Foster Homes but rather, Residential Foster Care Facilities, aka Group Homes, aka Wilderness Camps, aka any privately owned, state licensed, facility that cares for anywhere from 15-249 children at one time, 24/7.

Our resources are limited and by focusing on RTC foster care we have decided we are able to effectuate change for more children at one time than if we were focused on foster parents, individually.

While I would like to see the system dismantled, that is not going to happen within the next few years, if ever. There is too much financial incentive and too many governmental jobs to be lost for them to be taken down anytime soon. imo

So, working with what we have, our goal is to make certain children who are living in RTC/Group Facilities are safe, cared for according to the Level of Care system in place, and that facilities be held accountable for the abuse of children in their care, just as any parent would be.

IMO, these facilities should be held to a HIGHER Standard than would be required of a parent but in Texas, we have Minimum Standards for facilities, but as I said, working with legislation to ensure children's safety while in Group care has repeatedly proven to be futile, and after seven years, we are seeing far too many children entering the Judicial Justice System, directly from foster care, due to lack of supervision, repeated abuse of the children, promises made by caseworkers that the child will have more access to their family, IF.... , but the promises are empty and the child gives up. Why behave if they are going to be mistreated and abused and access to their family continues to be pushed farther away? Group Foster care can become nothing more than a life sentence without the possibility of parole, until they turn 18.

Minimum standards are treated as Maximum Standards and facilities repeatedly fall below the level of Min. Standards. When facilities do not abide by the Standards Guidelines, they should be closed. Sanctions should be imposed against the facility, but it rarely happens.
Search Texas Child Care Facilities and enter "Pegasus" or "Hill Country Youth Ranch" or any other facility name, and read the numerous violations of Minimum Standards. When Minimum Standards are not maintained, children are seriously injured and die.

We have had Minimal Success dealing with RTC's, and only when we are able to get media involved, or OCCASIONALLY, an attorney who is actually fighting for their client.

CADI, continues abusing kids and now they are closed down, but not until a child was permanently maimed by an angry, worker, (3 time loser from the FL Dept. of Corrections).
More recently, Waymakers RTC was closed down after a felony convicted staff member threw a child into the wall breaking his arm.

We cannot take credit for either of these facilities being closed down because it requires numerous organizations, working together to expose numerous and repeated crimes against children. Another facility is under federal investigation for the misuse of funding, and we did bring that one on.

We have been accused of being on a "crusade" and one DA refused to bring charges against a facility citing our "bias". I told her, "Yes, I am biased. I am biased for the children who are in ___ and are being abused."

I have numerous recordings of children telling of the horrific experiences they have had in RTC care; it is beyond inhumane. CPS acts based on the ASSumption that children do not lie; that is, until they enter RTC Care. Then, everything they say is a lie.

We have considered shutting down because it often feels like an impossible battle to win but the few successes, wherein facilities were closed and children sent home, make the daily fight for the increased protection of children in RTC Care worth the DAILY fight.

You don't have to worry about offending me, or the work our organization does. We have certainly had worse things said about us by the Agency. The only reason the Agency could have for being angry is that we are watching, recording, and reporting.

What I still have a challenging time accepting is when parents pay BIG money to attorneys who will not file motions to enforce judge's orders or bring suit against workers and facilities who repeatedly violate Policy & Procedure, based on Laws!

They are almost as offensive as the facilities, "The Worst Little Hell Holes in Texas"... and for now, the best we can do is Advocate for the Safety of the Children forced to live in conditions that would not be licensed by the Animal Protections!

The Pee Wall is one of many pictures taken of Texas RTC foster care facilities by the State Comptroller, in the Forgotten Children Report. These children did not do anything wrong, yet are forced to live in conditions convicted murderers are protected from. I have yet to encounter an organization willing to take on the wrath of CPS in order to ensure the well-being of a child in RTC foster care.

This work is certainly not for the faint of heart, but when the state decides to terminate a parent's rights, SOMEONE needs to Speak Up for the children who are left behind.

[Guest]

I want no part of this forum

[gemini]

just as no two families are exactly alike, neither are there exactly similar state legislation pertaining to child welfare. i worked for cps in arizona and arizona is truly a pro-parent state. my personal stance is that i'm pro-child. all the excellent caseworkers that i knew are pro-child. just because i'm pro-child or any other case worker is pro-child, doesn't mean we're against parents.

generally, when a state is pro-parent, the initial goal is for family reunification. cases vary, but seriously speaking, once parents are in the system for substaniated allegations, they have 6, 9, or 12 months to do the services and get their kids back (in az). i usually went mid-road and if a parent didn't comply with services and showed any kind of improvement (clean UA's, going parenting classes, drug rehab, getting a job, stable housing, etc.) by 9 months, i would change the case plan to severence (which is policy). but severence/adoption is really suppose to be the last resort and severence is granted because there is usually overwhelming evidence of parents' non-compliance.
i always told my parents straight up that if they comply and succeed and truly show that they care for their kids, the parents can get their kids back in 6 months; but if they didn't comply the majority of the time and/or go awol and they use up all the time alotted to getting their kids back, that would show me that they don't care about their kids to try to sober up and provide adequate care for them. cps policy allows plenty of time for parents to get back on track in order to get their kids back. if a parent is unwilling to participate in services for 6-12 months for the sake of their kids, they really don't care about their kids as much as they say they do- that's the bottom line of reality.

although, i was an ongoing case worker, i investigated a handful of allegations. from the 5 i've investigated, 1 was a false allegation which was reported from a relative of one of the parents. i know several reputable cps investigators and about 25%- 50% of the cases they investigate were false but investigators are not known to take kids away just because they felt like it- there has to be substanial evidence for removal such as the kids were left unattended, there's dangerous/hazardous housing situation (guns, knives, feces, etc.), the parents are passed out from drugs, the kids have bruises/cuts/burns visual marks of physical abuse, possible sexual abuse from what the child describes; all these reasons for substaniating a removal is suppose to be based off what the child say to the investigators and what is observed. if a child is too young to tell an investigator what's going, physical markers are key.

it's often a misunderstanding and easier task to blame a state agency such as cps or dhs for someone's problems. all the parents on my case load had bad drug problems, they blamed the system. it's easier to not take responsiblity for a parent in the cps system to pass on their own flaws than admitting they have a problem and ask for help. i've encountered a lot of bad parents, most aren't neccessarily bad people; i would say they're victims of society's socio-economic set up. but we live in a country that believes we should should be self-sufficient. but why blame cps if you or any of your relatives have a drug problem and can't adequately provide for your kids (hypothetical)? i had to deal with raging parents all the time blamin the system for their bad situation. only 1% of tax dollars are used for social services in this country and for the record, foster parents don't get paid squat (at least in az). the most a licensed foster parent gets paid for taking care of a kid is $21/day per kid, $200/yr for clothing, $100/yr for birthdays/holidays & presents for taking care of someone else's kids. obviously no one gets rich off of being foster parents with that kind of "funding".

just to be clear, about 2 out of 5 of all the kids in my case load beg me not to send them back home with their parents (it varies, some caseworkers had the majority of their kids not wanting to return home) because their parents beat the shit out them. that's why i'm pro-child. i listened to every one of my kids telling me how much they hurt when their parents hit them. why would anyone in their right mind think that they're being a good parent by beating their kids? how can blood-related people exist as a family unit if there is major conflict where some members are are whaling on others (be it dad beating mom or mom beating kids)? now here's the the gray area: what's more important to society- the welfare of kids or cajoling the parents' egos because they are powerless when an authority figure takes away the one thing the parents have control over?

[Guest]

I want no part of this forum

[Bob_Lynn]

i worked for cps in arizona and arizona is truly a pro-parent state.

Arizona is one of the worst states in terms of committing human rights atrocities on children and their families.

my personal stance is that i'm pro-child.

Children need their parents, quit kidnapping them in pretense of protecting them.

all the excellent caseworkers that i knew are pro-child. just because i'm pro-child or any other case worker is pro-child, doesn't mean we're against parents.

All??? You mean the 1 or 2 out of thousands? They don't last long because they usually fire them for not playing the game.

generally, when a state is pro-parent, the initial goal is for family reunification.

There is no such state, most are driven by the greed for federal funds. The goal is to get the children they kidnap adopted for additional bonus money.

cases vary, but seriously speaking, once parents are in the system for substaniated allegations, they have 6, 9, or 12 months to do the services and get their kids back (in az).

They're usually in the system for months, years or forever even when the allegations are unsubstantiated. And when they are substantiated, it's usually trumped up BS.

i usually went mid-road and if a parent didn't comply with services and showed any kind of improvement (clean UA's, going parenting classes, drug rehab, getting a job, stable housing, etc.) by 9 months, i would change the case plan to severence (which is policy).

You mean they have to jump through all sorts of hoops like a bunch of monkeys so you can get your rocks off and have no intention of giving them back the children you kidnap.

but severence/adoption is really suppose to be the last resort and severence is granted because there is usually overwhelming evidence of parents' non-compliance.

You mean it's what you're shooting for from the first second you kidnap children and you trump up all sorts of contrived nonsense to make sure you get the TPR.

i always told my parents straight up that if they comply and succeed and truly show that they care for their kids, the parents can get their kids back in 6 months;

6 months??? Who the hell are you to play God with people's children? James has it right, you're full of shit and you need to get the .... out of this forum and get a real job, you have no business here. I'm not even going to bother with the rest of your crap.

[Guest]

I want no part of this forum

[Dazeemay]

In regards to the Pee Wall you did not do your research on this. I have searched it because I do not just take anyone's word or media pictures or hype. I researched this because a young boy from that camp came in and complained that they took a good thing from him when they invaded this camp. Up to the time of that post I never knew a thing about it so I did my research for him so that I could better respond to this post.

One other person did research and posted his results. I did not think to do that so here is his post.

http://forum.fightcps.com/viewtopic.php ... ght=#10271

You are dead wrong about this camp.

It was for the sake of the person wanting to get her name in the highlights so that her political career would move ahead. She and cps destroyed a good camp for political and financial gain.

[Gary Shaw]

Gemini,

As usual with those of your chosen employment, you react and make statements of fact without thinking it thru and without any research other than your own valued (to yourself) opinion.

$21.00 per day per child. The average number of children in a foster home is three, $63.00 per day x 7 days= $441.00 per week tax free or $1,890. per month. You forgot to add that under your expert tutoring these fosters are expert at manipulating and using the other government services and funding available such as food stamps, wic, full medical, etc.

In our son's case the foster parents have their three foster children. They get $1,600 + per month in tax free cash. They get food stamps, wic, and of course free medical. They both draw disability from social security, I don't know how much but the law of averages says $600 to $1,400 each. Average the averages at $1,000 per month per person thats another $2,000 per month.

Total income from the government $3,600. per month tax free plus their food, wic, and free medical. Not to bad for someone without a job.

We raised five boys, that is almost as much as I make working full time. I had to pay for food, clothing, doctors, medical.

Peddle your pyscho babble crap somewhere else. In Georgia last year (2004 for those in Yuma) 97.5% of all REPORTS were either screened out (not meeting the criteria for maltreatment), or unfounded, or were founded for subjective reasons not facts. Subjective means in the opinion of the worker or investigator for those in Yuma.

In Georgia in 2004 there were 5,982 cases of real and obvious Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse, and Neglect. All on this site strongly want those children to be protected and the perpretators put in jail for a long, long time. Preferably with the CPS Workers who knowingly and willfully break the law on a daily basis.

Gary Shaw

[makaylasmemaw]

Gemini,

I am sorry but I cannot feel for you. I have been falsely accused of being abusive and of not protecting my daughter while she was growing up. CPS never looked at the fact that I was a single parent raising a child with bipolar and other mental illnesses and trying to get mental health and others to help us. I worked very hard to do all the parenting classes and any thing else I thought would help me to help my daughter and got minimal help at best. Hell I even had to show those stupid counsellors with their own books what I thought my daughters problem was. It turns out MY diagnosis was right. Those idiots propose to tell me now that I was a bad parent just because I am trying to get my grandson out of foster care.

I worked for many years raising her by myself and working taking care of disabled adults and elderly plus taking care of my mother who was an amputee and none of this stuff came up before that I was a bad parent then and no paperwork ever arrived saying they were investigating me and no formal charges were ever brought on me AND they never removed my daughter. And at one time I even took my otu of control daughter to their office begging for help and they told me I was out of line because she was supposed to be in school instead. And that I better take her to school and she is better off being at home.

So PLEASE don't tell me how CPS does not destroy families when they are not letting me have my grandson because they can't bother to look at the entire story!!!!!