Imagine you were separated from your only sibling at birth, unable to develop the close bond that only siblings can share. Alyssa and Ella began life this way…until their CASA volunteer won the fight to have them united.
Alyssa was just 10 weeks old when Larry and Annette became her foster parents. She had been neglected, her rib cage painfully visible. Under the loving care of Larry and Annette, Alyssa began to thrive. When Alyssa was 18 months old, her biological mother gave birth to another daughter, Ella. Ella suffered from a large hole in her heart. Immediately, Ella was removed from her mother’s care and placed into a foster home equipped for medically fragile children. Larry and Annette knew if there was one gift they could give to these girls, it would be to bring them together in a home where they could love each other. They could not imagine the tragedy of forcing Alyssa and Ella to search for one another later in life.
Louise was appointed to be Alyssa and Ella’s CASA volunteer – their powerful voice. Little did Louise know how hard she would have to fight for the girls’ future.
When Alyssa was 18 months old, her caseworker from the Department of Human Services (DHS) suddenly informed Larry and Annette she was placing Alyssa back in her mother’s care. Louise advocated against the move, telling DHS the mother was not at all ready – she was struggling to stay off of drugs and alcohol and away from the girls’ father, who was a registered sex offender. But DHS had made their decision. A woman from a housing program had offered to become the mother’s mentor and let her move into her home, and the caseworker believed this would be enough.
The removal lasted only 72 hours before the police became involved. During this time, Louise kept in touch with the distraught mentor who told her that the mother refused to listen to her guidance, wasn’t feeding Alyssa properly, and had taken Alyssa’s to visit the girl’s grandfather, who was also a registered sex offender. Louise asked the mentor to document all the information.
Before Louise could take this information to court, the mentor came home to find Alyssa’s mother and father together in her driveway. The father took off running. The mentor called the police and DHS, and Alyssa was returned to Larry and Annette’s care. After just three days with her mother, Alyssa was distraught and unable to speak, and did little else but sleep for the next three days.
Louise knew how important it was for Alyssa and Ella to be together and develop a bond – each one was the only family that the other girl had. Louise advocated in court for visits between the girls. Yet Ella’s foster mother saw visitation as a threat to her chances of adopting Ella, and kept cancelling the visits. Finally, Louise succeeded, and DHS initiated supervised visits between Alyssa and Ella. Louise attended these visits and watched the girls begin to connect with one another.
The girls were also having regular visitations with their father. As Louise observed these visits, she noticed the father exhibiting erratic behaviors, including becoming suddenly agitated and paying no attention to the girls. She discovered he had lied to the court about where he was living. Louise brought all this information forward and kept after DHS until they finally agreed to take away the father’s visitation rights.
Louise focused on reuniting Alyssa and Ella in the same home. After Ella underwent surgery for her heart condition, her foster mother continued to tell DHS that Ella needed constant care and medical attention, something only she could provide. Louise contacted Ella’s cardiologist and found the reality was much different: she said that Ella was doing great, and there was no reason Ella couldn’t be moved into the same foster home with her sister. Additionally, Louise had observed many unsafe conditions for Ella in the foster home she was currently in. Louise felt that Larry and Annette could provide an excellent adoptive home for both girls.
But the DHS caseworker – now the third one that the girls had during their time in foster care – believed Alyssa and Ella should remain permanently separated. Louise developed a packet of recommendations for the permanency hearing committee, but DHS failed to give her information to the committee, and by the time Louise discovered this and supplied copies, the committee had no time to review her recommendations. The committee voted for separate adoptions for the sisters.
Louise refused to give up – she knew Alyssa and Ella’s futures depended upon her. She kept talking to the DHS caseworker, urging him to change his mind and request a repeal of the decision, something that Louise was not authorized to do. Finally, he told Louise his conscience would not allow him to let the separation be finalized. He appealed the decision. A second committee overturned the decision and recommended that the girls be adopted together. Alyssa and Ella were reunited within the week.
Even before the decision was made, Annette knew in her heart Ella would be a part of their family, and had bought the girls matching pajamas. As soon as Ella came to live with her sister, the two started to bond. Larry and Annette did everything they could to facilitate this bond. If either girl got hurt, they asked her sister to get her a band-aid. The girls started picking each other up when the other one fell down.
When Alyssa was 5 and Ella was 4 years old, the adoption was finalized. The girls were finally together in their “forever home”, with loving and nurturing parents to care for them.
Today, Alyssa is 8 years old and Ella is almost 7. The girls attend a private school together, and both are in gymnastics. They sleep in twin beds right next to each other, and Ella often wakes up to find Alyssa has crawled into her bed with her. Whenever Alyssa gets a prize at the dentist’s office, she asks if she can get one for her sister as well. They write love notes to each other, as well as to their parents and teachers.
Ella’s heart continues to do well with the device that was implanted several years ago. Every year she sees the cardiologist. At some point down the road, she may need a heart transplant.
Annette says, “Louise will always a part of how our children became our children, and I will never forget that. We couldn’t have done it without her. Most children could never articulate their fears, their concerns, their desires, or what they wished their future could be. Louise became the mouthpiece in some of the most important settings.
“How do you repay the voice of a child? I remember one afternoon, after coming to visit the girls, it was nearing Louise’s time to go and the girls said their goodbyes as we walked her to her car. As she was pulling away, Ella raced back to me saying she wanted to hug her again. So I flagged Louise down as she was heading out the driveway. As she rolled down her window I told her that Ella needed to give her another hug. I believe this speaks volumes. How could you ever articulate as a 3-year-old how much you appreciate your CASA? – except by giving her another hug.”
Click here to listen to the April 13, 2011 radio interview with Alyssa and Ella’s adoptive mother Annette.
Connect
