My name is Shirene and this is my son Steven. Steven and I have been together since August of 2017. We forged a strong bond and powerful relationship through good times and hard ones. Steven is autistic and has severe behaviors. He is also smart as a whip, curious, and has a great sense of humor!

In June our family made the decision to move to Arizona. The move has been really good for all of us. Steven is thriving! He loves school and they manage him quite well. We love having a swimming pool and so far the milder weather has been fantastic. The only issue we have had in this move is the Department for Disabilities here in Arizona. It's a complicated system but long story short because Stevens legal guardian lives in Utah they are refusing to approve Steven for the resources he needs. They know he lives here, attends school, has Medicare and every single other things that proves Steven lives here but they are requiring his guardian to live here. I do not, at this time, have legal guardianship of Steven. It's a long story but essentially I could not have it in Utah yet, ironically, it is required here.

All of this to say I am fundraising for the costs of attaining guardianship. I was very discouraged as lawyers were asking for thousands of dollars and I do not have access to that kind of money. My income is still not recovered from the move due to this delay in paperwork. But I found a paralegal that can prepare the correct paperwork and tell me where to file so that I can do it myself. I set the number on this fundraiser to cover the costs of the paralegal, thankfully only $500, plus the court costs in the state of Arizona and accounting for the fees on this site. At this time these are the only costs I know to be necessary. If that changes I will update the fundraiser. Any extra funds received would be used for bills and groceries and all funds are deeply appreciated. My community has stepped out for me so many times, I am deeply blessed by each one of. Thank you for taking the time to read this and share if your able!