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| Cuddling with Foster Grandmother under hand-made blanket just for her by Foster Great Grandmother |
First of all the "gag" order didn't just apply to this case. If any person who can read will look at the laws that apply to any juvenile case, you'd see that you are not allowed to discuss any case pertaining to a juvenile. Let me put this in a language hopefully anyone can understand---YOU CAN'T TALK ABOUT ANY OF THE CASES!!!
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| Foster Great-Aunt Joyce reads to Ruby! |
Hmmmm. Okay, here the hospital has a baby who is ready to be discharged and can't locate the mother because the non-English speaking mother has given an incorrect address. This child had to have somewhere to go.
Wendy and Douglas Tynes had less than 24 hours to prepare for the arrival of a foster infant girl. She was instantly welcomed and loved. Our entire family welcomed this baby into the world with complete and total love. This beautiful abandoned baby girl captured our hearts instantly. As they were pre-adoptive Foster Parents, we prayed and hoped she could be with us forever.
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| Visit to the Pumpkin Patch with Foster Grandmother and me. |
Two days later, we received word that the birth mother showed up at the hospital asking for the baby. TWO DAYS LATER!!!!! This baby was now five days old. Since the baby was abandoned, there were guidelines through DHS that had to be followed by the birth mother. The baby remained with us.
When she was five or six weeks old, I moved to Ocean Springs so that I could keep the baby while my sister and her husband worked. My sister had taken about six week's leave so she could be at home with Ruby. We all loved her and cared for her so much we couldn't bear the thought of her being in a day care.
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| Picking wildflowers.... |
DHS informed Douglas and Wendy that the birth mother's attorney had requested visitation. The visitation was granted, and we waited for a visitation to be scheduled. After two months, a visitation had never been scheduled. We called DHS to ask why and were told that it was up to the birth mother or her attorney to get with them about scheduling. In February, a visitation was scheduled. The baby was over three months old before her birth mother got around to scheduling a visit. My sister and her husband took the baby to the visitation. Since they were familiar with the baby and her care, they asked if they could remain in the room in case she needed anything. This request was granted. The next visit was canceled by the birth mother as were the next three visits. Just as a personal interjection--NOTHING could have kept me from those visitations had that been my child. She did "show up" for a few more visits before a scheduled court appearance.
Oh, and just a note to anyone who remains uninformed: Wendy and Douglas Tynes were also foster parents to another infant who needed constant 24-hour monitoring due to health concerns and wore a heart monitor for two months. This child was fostered in their home for four months when Ruby was seven months old. If you will notice, the identity of this child is withheld because YOU CAN'T TALK ABOUT A JUVENILE CASE!!!
Just to summarize the remainder of the nightmare:
Birth Mother is suddenly, when represented by the non-profit organization (MIRA), attending every scheduled visitation.
Birth Mother admits on the stand that her "husband" was mad at her because he wasn't going to get any of the money from the sale of Ruby. THAT'S RIGHT!!! She planned to sell this baby.
Birth Mother refused to follow the judge's orders which included to get a place to live that wasn't shared with six other people in which she only had a bedroom with a lock. She was also supposed to find legal employment. She could not get a "legal" job in the United States because Undocumented and ILLEGAL do not mean the same thing, people!!! Undocumented has a meaning: lacking documentation or authentication. Illegal also has a meaning: forbidden by law or statute. As far as I know, YOU ARE STILL NOT ALLOWED TO LIVE IN THE UNITED STATES LEGALLY WITHOUT BEING A CITIZEN!!!
Now, to dispell the rumors of wrongdoing on the part of the Tynes'. It has been stated for quite some time now that the judge who was overseeing this case was a judge that they "frequently practiced law in front of." They "frequently practiced law in front of" ALL the judges in Jackson County. That's what they do. That's their job!!! Any child who was placed in their foster home was placed there because it was an approved foster home by the State of Mississippi Department of Human Services.
The day we found out Ruby would be taken from our home was shortly after her birthday in November. We had two hours to say goodbye to her. My sister had already bought Ruby's Christmas presents. She made absolutely certain to get DHS to come pick them up and get them to her.
I do not wish on an enemy the heartaches my sister has endured. Over a year later, she is still being dragged through mud by anonymous postings on the internet. Lay claim to what you say, but stop being IGNORANT and learn the real story. What you know is what you've read, not what really happened.
She was part of our lives for over a year. We miss her so terribly that some days it seems impossible to breathe. We pray for her happiness, safety and health every second of the day. She will never leave our hearts...
I will post more at a later date.
