Written by ALGARY — The mother of an Alberta boy who has been in foster care in the United States for almost two years says all she really wants to do when he comes home is to hold him close.
“Aside from that, making him dinner, going for rides, just being with him,” Lisa Kirkman said Saturday from her home in Calgary. “Doing the everyday, day-to-day things.”
An Oregon judge ruled Friday after a hearing that took several hours that 12-year-old Noah Kirkman can return to Canada. He is to live with his grandparents for a time of transition before moving back in with his family.
Noah was taken by Oregon state officials in 2008 during a summer visit with his stepfather, who wasn’t considered a legal guardian. The Department of Human Services said it was concerned because Noah had open social services files in Canada. His mother has said the files were necessary for him to get help for his special needs. Noah has a severe form of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Kirkman said she hasn’t actually seen her son since July when she was allowed to visit him for three hours. And, she said, phone calls that were supposed to be allowed regularly every two weeks sometimes didn’t happen for three or six weeks at a time.
“They had to be supervised (by department staff) and could only be made during their (office) hours,” she said. That made it difficult because Noah would be in school during that time and she’d be at work back in Canada.
Nor could she talk to him on holidays, when offices were closed, or even on his birthday March 21, which fell on a Sunday this year.
Friday night, after the judge’s decision, she was allowed her first unsupervised call with her boy.
“I told him that I love him more than anything, and that I’m so happy, so happy he’s coming home and that I’m very proud of him for being so brave and being so brave in speaking with the judge.”
She said her son replied that he loved her, too, although he was pretty intent on watching “Avatar” in the hotel room with his grandparents.
“He was bouncing off the walls. I could hear in his voice he was really, really excited.”
Stop Badgering Dr. Rand Paul and Stick to Real Issues
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szandorblestman.com
A few nights ago, Dr. Rand Paul won the Kentucky primary race against Mr. Trey Grayson and became the Republican nominee for one of the Kentucky US Senate seats. Up until that point the story in the media had been more or less sweet on Dr. Rand Paul. They reported quite fairly on his popularity, his stances on issues and his surprising rise in the Republican Party despite the establishment support for Mr. Trey Grayson. They even at times seemed genuinely excited at the prospect that an honest, principled individual might actually beat a neocon who was supposedly more aligned with the party platform. The day after he won the primary, however, the media attack dogs came out in force. READ MORE »