This is worth reposting.  I have no idea if it is true but I wouldn't doubt
it for one second.

Phil.



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Luis Guerra" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, March 05, 2007 3:21 PM
Subject: Fwd: Help They're Taking My Baby!


> To all of you Blind moms, blind dads, even sighted moms and dads that know
> the capabilities of the pareninting of your blind spouse, and anyone else
> interested, I read about on the blind handy girl list from a lister named
> Trinh trinh martin [log in to unmask] It's about the very sad
> experience that this lady Rose is going through right now, as an agency is
> threatening to take her baby when she is born. Feel welcome to writing to
> Rose, understandably she needs all the support she can get. If you
> experienced a simular experience when your children were young, when we
get
> appropriate addresses together especially in Canada where she is, you can
> relate those experiences in a letter. This type of situation has happened
> way to much to many blind parents through the years, so we can do our part
> by flooding the agency and other appropriate places with letters in
support
> of Rose and her boyfriend to keep ther daughter, and to relate experiences
> that are simular that you may have had, and pass this information to
others
> that you think that would be interested in assisting. I'm putting simular
> experiences in a file of which I've received so far from the blind handy
> girl list. I suppose it wouldn't hurt for those of us in the states to
write
> to nfb andACB     as they may have good contacts to pass her information
> along too. God only knows that there may be simular situations going on
> right at this very time. You may remember last year there was a situation
> where the hospital was not going to let the blind parents take their baby
> home. It's extremely heartbreaking, discriminating, let alone the
> questioning of one's capabilities of daily life. I too will write to Rose
to
> extent my support, and see if she could provide this agency's address, the
> canadian council of the blind of which she's getting support from, and at
> least some local tv and radio stations we can flood with letters in hopes
to
> correct and change the decision that this agency has made.It's so very
> heartless and insensitive amongst all the details, with a cold heart to
> inform Rose and her boyfriend that they had a foster couple in line
already
> to take their baby. God Bless you, Rose. My heart truly goes out to you.
> I'll directly right to you after I've sent this message. Rose, know that
> many of us have you in our prayers, so your  baby can always be at home
with
> her own mom and dad, meaning you and your boyfriend. Everyone, here's
Rose's
> message. Even if you pass Rose's message to others, that could be a great
> source of support.
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "trinh martin"
> <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent:
> Sunday, March 04, 2007 2:42 AM Subject: [blindhandygirl] this is the email
> from rosey the girl i was writng about
>
>
> Hi all: This is just Rose writing in with a concern and am wondering if
> anyone can think of anything that can be done. I don't know if I told
anyone
> on any of these lists or not, but I'm expecting a baby. I'm almost at the
> fourty-week mark, so I could go in at any time now. For anyone that's
either
> from Canada or is familiar with the Canadian law, I have a question for
you.
> The children's aid society of Brantford, where I am presently residing, is
> involved with me because of the fact that they say they have concerns
> because of my visual impairment. I am considered partial, so I do have a
> little bit of vision, though not enough to read print. CAS first told me
> that they were involved because they felt that my baby would be at risk
> because of my visual impairment. They've been involved since early
October,
> perhaps early November. They had drawn up a service plan for me in
December,
> which was signed in early February. This service agreement stated that I
had
> to be willing to participate in parenting classes after the hcild was
born,
> that I was to go to all my appointments after the birth, and that I was to
> report any problems I felt I was having with either myself or the baby.
They
> also said that as long as I did everything they'd asked me to do, such as
> going to parenting, prenatal as well as postnatal classes, that I was to
> keep my child. It has gone from that to not being able to keep it. They
are
> now trying to say that they have other concerns. I will have you know that
I
> am living with my boyfriend who is otally blind. We both have extensive
> experience with children. CAS is also saying that I have little to no
> knowledge of what it takes to raise a child. They are also telling me that
> neither my boyfriend or I can look after ourselves, much less a child.
They
> are also saying that I have refused to go to my docor's appointments.
> There's never been one time I didn't go to my appointments, with the
> exception of ast Monday, because of the fact that my care was transferred
> over to the midwives at the birthing center where I'm going to be giving
> birth. I went to see a lawyer today about my case, and I found out that
CAS
> had written a letter to him saying that they had other concerns. That's
> where all the junk about me not being able to take care of myself came
from,
> was the letter they had written to my lawyer. From what my lawyer is
telling
> me, there's nothing that can be done at this point until CAS has presented
> me with documentation saying that the baby is going to go into foster
care,
> which they have not yet done. CAS is also telling me that I have not
gained
> enough independence. They are also trying to say now that when I was
staying
> at a maternity home for a while, I had refused to use my cane, thereby
> endangering the infants that were there. They are lying through thei teeth
> here, because never once did I leave my cane somewhere whenever I was
> walking around in the house. They are also saying that I have been
refusing
> assistance. This is also not true. I have been trying to ask for
assistance,
> and have gotten a lot more than was expected. I gues what I'm trying to
ask,
> is do you know if there's anything that can be done to try and prevent
this
> agency from taking my child? They have said to me that this is going to be
> for a minimum of six months, perhaps longer. If it goes beyond one year,
my
> child will then become a crown ward of the CAS, by which time I'll be
> screwed, because there will be little to no hope of me getting her back. I
> will also have you know that my caseworker had first made this foster care
> idea sound like a suggestion, then when I was on my way to the birthing
> center, she'd dropped the bomb on my head that she had already had foster
> parents lined up for my baby. When we got to the birthing center, she told
> the midwives there that after the baby was born and I was ready to go
home,
> the foster parents were going to come and take the aby to their home from
> there. As I said, they have not yet presented me with any documentation
> stating that this is going to happen. I do have the Canadian Council for
the
> blind advocating on my behalf about their concerns, but for anyone in or
> from Canada, what I'm trying to ask is if there are any more advocacy
groups
> or something that I could possibly get to advocate for me on my behalf
about
> all of this? Any suggestions anyone has will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
> Rose her msn and email address is this
>
> [log in to unmask]
>
>
> please let us just bring her in prayer every time we think of her and her
> boyfriend and baby!!!!!!!!!!
>
> because of the love of god, may we always have a special smile, a sprinkle
> of love and kindness to shower upon those who god brings into our lives
>
> because of the love of god, may we always have a special smile, a sprinkle
> of love and kindness to shower upon those who god brings into our lives
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
> This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from
> http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm
>
>
> -- 
> No virus found in this incoming message.
> Checked by AVG.
> Version: 7.5.447 / Virus Database: 268.18.7/711 - Release Date: 3/5/07
9:41 AM
>