Greetings All,

    I am frustrated to tears on this issue and could use some input - if
anyone has any ideas or experiences.

The background
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           I am currently giving a home to an "abandoned"/"Runaway" child.
This is the story. This needs to be kept confidential. She is 15 now and
will be 16 in June. As of Wednesday 4/10 - I have her at my house - she has
her own furnished room and bathroom.

           She  was living with her mother and stepfather. Her mother
decided to divorce the stepfather and move to France. She left around
Thanksgiving - pulling the chil  out of school and  taking her with her.
They have lived in Paris - in one room for the last 4.5 months - the child
has been babysitting to keep them afloat - The mother doesn't have a job.
The child did not go to school while she was in France. Actually, the child
told me France has a 3 month visitors visa - so she  there where  there
illegally - The stepfather brought the child back to the States. The mother
refuses to come back. The stepfather doesn't however want the child living
with him. So she is living with us - we want her. It seems her mother is
willing to sign over custody to me  As I understand it - the child father
has relinquished all rights to the child. It maybe as simple as the mother
signing a custody transfer form. I don't know - would need to talk to a
lawyer about this. I am trying to keep this quiet as I don't want Fairfax
County to come and put her in foster care.

      Additional History about Athe child - from the best of my knowledge.
The child's mother abandoned her at birth and was raised by her father - a
drug addict - she lived in filth and squalor sharing the house with wild
animals and caring for herself. She called Child Protect Services herself to
be taken away from him. She was placed with the grandmother - the father
threatened them and followed thru with the threats - at this point the
mother got custody of her about 4 years ago  and moved her up here.

   I would like to the child back in school - as she now missed the 10th
grade and she was an honor roll student. I can't do this without having
custody.

Here is where we are today!!!

        Fairfax County doesn't allow temporary guardianship - so I must
apply for custody of the child - in order to have custody - I need written
premission from her plus 3 garunteed copies of her custody papers ( mother
is France so takes time to get papers back and forth). If her father needs
to be contacted then I need to place an ad in the paper and we need to wait
72 days for him to answer. Then and only then can I have some temporary
custody papers for the child, and then at a future date we go to court for a
custody hearing. By then school will be over for the year. Also even after I
have custody of the child - Fairfax county will charge me 8,400 to put her
school - as I am not the mother even tho I will have custody - unless I can
prove hardship - and her mother being in France is not considered a hardship
- and the has choice of living in France illegally with her mother and not
going to school - or living here with me and going to school - sounds like
hardship to me. In the mean time the the child can't go to school - surely
there must be someway to get her school.

 She wants to live with us and go back school and be with her friends.

   Ideas would be great - prayers, or good thoughts - would be really nice
also.

                                    Brightest Blessings - Trisha