They lie and tear families apart. I had to deal with them for years, beginning when my neighbors reported me to them when I first lived in Pittsfield. I moved to Hermon, and yet another neighbor called them. All because my children were playing outside for a few minutes and I was not in sight. Once you get DHHS in your life, you are stuck untill they close the case. I made the mistake of mentioning my personal life to them and I begun to be under constant scrutiny. Sure I made some bad choices in men, but none of them EVER sexually harmed my children. Yet when the girls were taken from me in November of 2004, that was one of the reasons. Improper supervision was another reason...but with those two things alone, I was accused of putting them in jeopardy. My oldest child, Ariane, had problems for years. For years all I got was that she was mentally retarded. Noone had told me she had ADHD, which causes children to be impulsive. Oh no...my girls were not diagnosed untill DHHS took them and the agency that provided therapy for them diagnosed them. I worked my tail off, going to therapy, taking parenting class and anger management...just to comply with what DHHS demanded of me. I learned a lot from it all, don't get me wrong. But when my girls were returned to me, my oldest girl began acting out violently against me. She had also pushed her sister, Clio. She had never been that way to me before. I felt helpless to be able to control her actions. I know she was angry; she probably thought that I allowed DHHS to take her away. She slapped me and I reacted. I told DHHS and they took Ariane away...again! I wanted her to get help and come back. The worker, Denea Llerena, (who then worked for DHHS) was pressured by her boss to pressure me to make a decision whether to try to raise my Ariane or not. Only two choices were presented to me: commit to raising her even if things do not improve with her behaviour, or voluntarily terminate my rights so that another family can adopt her and help her. I didn't want Clio to come to harm because of the behaviour, so I chose the latter, on CONDITION that they would find a family in the state that would allow contact between Ariane and us. After she was taken, she was in two foster homes. Funny...after the hearing for the Termination of Parental Rights, Ms. Llerena got done working at DHHS. I did not find out about it for weeks! The Kittermans from down south in Maine showed interest, so DHHS said. I met them...nice people. Ariane was moved down south and under the control of the DHHS office down there, plus receiving counselling. Brandy Hayes and her supervisor advised the Kittermans NOT to communicate with me via phone or email. Cathy at least has been sending me pictures. Cathy has been very understanding and sweet to me.
One day I checked out the Family for ME site, through the WABI TV site...and saw Ariane's picture and profile posted. Under the news section, there was an article that talked about her. The article referred to her situation as a foster home! I thought the Kittermans were going to adopt her! I tried to email Cathy about it and she reiterated what DHHS had instructed her; she is not supposed to talk with me about Ariane and refer me to Brandy at DHHS. Brandy Hayes is not "comfortable" with emails and told me to talk with her on the phone. Now I can only wonder...is she afraid to have anything in writing where I can use it to show what liars work at DHHS? I am afraid now that by the time Ariane is grown and able to come back to us, that she will be more angry than ever and not want to be with us. I am afraid people are filling her head full of shit...telling her I don't want her. I love her, and miss her very much. Yes I still have Clio and I am grateful she is with me. But Clio misses her "Sissy" too. I married in May and wish with all my heart that Ariane was back with us. We may not have access to many resources that would allow Ariane to continue with sports (most schools require a fee), but she would have been rich in love from her sister, myself and her new step-dad. I feel helpless...there is nothing I can do. I have no say in her life now. But the fault lies with DHHS.
To all families: be careful, love your children, take good care of them and don't leave them alone outside your home. You cannot trust that other people will keep their noses to themselves. The only person/people you can trust is yourself.
Remember that and you will not have a broken family.
