A man, who is the father of several children, noticed that one his daughter’s friends were spending a great of deal of time at his family’s home. The 12-year-old girl would arrive after school and often stay until the evening hours. During that time, she would help with the younger kids and assist in preparing dinner.
While the girl had behavioral problems in the beginning, they bega to dissapear over time, and she became more outgoing and loving. The man learned the girl’s mother was a heroin addict and was in the process of divorcing her husband. After the girl refused to provide details about her home life, the man went to see for himself and was appalled at the living conditions in the girl’s home, which was filthy and smelled bad.
The girl’s mother was intoxicated and stated that she did not care about the welfare of her daughter. At that point, the man started letting the girl sleep over at his house four nights per week. He said having one more mouth to feed was not going to cost that much as he was already feeding six people, and he could simply put aside a little extra money to buy the girl clothes. The man eventually put in a call to social services, which sent officers to check the girl’s home.
The inspection revealed the house was a mess, and the girl’s mother was drunk. It was also learned that the woman was being evicted from the house because she had not paid her rent in quite some time. Social services agreed to let the man and his wife take the girl in as a foster child. The long-term plan is to consult with a lawyer and make the girl a permanent part of the family.