Help Me Protect My Son

***Update: My retainer is depleting. The child custody case is being dragged on and on to avoid court. My child’s father is hoping that if they drag this out long enough I’ll give up. Initially, I suggested mediation but you can’t mediate with someone who does not want to compromise for the sake of the child’s well-being.  His father spent $15,000 on a lawyer. There is no legitimate reason why my child’s father is trying to take custody of our son. Our special needs son has been with me his entire life.

I have NEVER kept him from his child. I have always attempted to keep a civil relationship for the sake of our child. No matter what happens I will never prevent him from seeing our son. As a matter of fact, I have offered extra time to him in which he usually declines because he’s usually out of town. I don’t understand why he’s doing this.  Our son isn’t being abused, the school he attends has an exceptional Special Needs program, his teachers genuinely care about him and his well-being, I make sure he never misses any of his appointments (ex. Doctors appointments,Speech therapy,etc), and we live in a very safe working class neighborhood. 

When my son was 4 years old, he was officially diagnosed with autism. For as long as I can remember, my main goal has always been to provide structure and stability for our son. His diagnosis brings challenges, including aggressive meltdowns and self harm, and I genuinely feel that routine and structure are crucial for him to avoid these as much as possible. I absolutely love our son, and only want what's best for him. I've kept up with his doctors and have researched extensively about ASD (autism spectrum disorder). It has been solely on me to handle everything.  I've always strived to provide him with the best future and care I possibly could.

Recently, my son's father has decided to try to take away my custodial parental rights. A change like this could potentially be devastating for our son, as he's consistently been in my care the last 16 years . I’m afraid what huge changes would do to the progress I’ve made. I'm reaching out and creating a gofundme in hopes of securing a lawyer to allow me to maintain my custodial rights. I have found one willing to work with us, but unfortunately I cannot handle the price tag alone.

My goal with this is not to be vindictive, or take my son away from his father. All I have in mind is what's best for our son, which is a familiar routine,therapy, and structure. If anyone is able to donate I can assure you no amount is too small, and my family and I will be so grateful.