Help Cole keep his visitation rights!

Hi, I'm Cole Kimball and I'm raising money to get neurological treatment and a family lawyer for a hearing currently awaiting rescheduling.

 

Where to begin? I have a daughter, Taytum, who will be 3 years old this month. Her mother and I were not a couple during the pregnancy. Shortly before Taytum's birth, her mother told me that she did not want me involved in our daughter's life. I wasn't allowed at the hospital, nor was I listed as her father on the birth certificate, and she doesn't have my last name. She and her fiance were raising Taytum, and she called him "Daddy." Within a month of Taytum being born, I got a lawyer and sued so that I could have a DNA test, and rights as her father.

 

It took 2 years, but I finally got a settlement last year. It was a stepped-up visitation schedule. Basically, a set number of supervised visits, then a set number of 8-hour unsupervised visits, then some 18-hour overnight visits, all of these happening on the first and third weekend of each month. After that, I would have standard visitation rights (1st, 3rd, and 5th weekends of each month).

 

That same day we settled in court, Taytum's mom and her fiance allegedly had a major falling-out, which I have evidence of. I'm told her fiance became very upset as he did not want me involved in my daughter's life. Since that was no longer possible, they split up.

 

At that time, Taytum and her mother were living with her grandparents, who were very supportive of us spending time together. In that time period, my son Ethan and I saw Taytum weekly, with few exceptions. I wanted for Ethan and me to see her as much as possible and get through all the visitation steps as quickly as we could, and we nearly did.

 

Around the time I got into having unsupervised, 8-hour visits, Taytum's mom reconciled with her ex-fiance, and they moved in together. Visitation every week became every other week, and then became strictly by the papers (1st and 3rd Sundays of each month). Around March, I missed some visits due to health issues, miscommunication and other problems. It was the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown, and things were a mess all over. When I couldn't make a scheduled visit, or if I was running late, I was told I'd have to wait to see her until the next scheduled visit. But I still made it through the last of those 8-hour visits.

 

On Father's Day (which happened to fall on a visitation day), I was running an hour late. My fault, I know. Taytum's mom told me that I had 45 minutes or I couldn't see Taytum. It takes an hour to get there, and her mom said she knew that. She seemed to have intended for me to say "Nevermind, I'll just see her next time." I told her Ethan and I were on our way, because I had to try, whether I made it or not. Miraculously, we made it on time. Taytum started crying her eyes out. Apparently her mother had already gotten her excited about going somewhere else that day, banking on me not being able to make it in time. It ruined Taytum's mood for much of the day. We still had a good day, for the most part, and I got her back home. By the end of the day, I was exhausted and extremely stressed. Ethan and I got home, and sat down to play a game.

 

That night, while playing with Ethan, I had a Grand Mal seizure for the first time ever. Fortunately Ethan was here. He called 911 like I'd taught him, and I was taken to the ER. The doctor told me it was possibly stress-related; but to refrain from driving as much as possible until I can see a neurologist and rule out epilepsy.

 

Unfortunately, I have no health insurance nor money to see a neurologist. I'm unemployed, disabled, and have been in the process of trying to be approved for Social Security Disability and SSI since the seizure. I've been disabled for over a decade, and I always wanted to try and make it on my own. But I had to find a way to take care of myself and support my children. Until I can see a doctor, I'm unable to drive the roughly 4 hours total that it takes to have visitations with Taytum. So I've missed the last two visits, which were supposed to be my first overnight visits with her. Because of the amount of driving time, it's difficult finding a ride to help me pick her up and take her home.

 

On August 11th, I was served with a subpoena. Taytum's mother wants me to be forced back into having supervised visitation due to me being "inconsistent with visitation." She also wants me jailed for 180 days for being unable to pay child support, though she knows I'm in the middle of applying for Disability so that I can be able to pay it. Unfortunately, it seems she and her fiance want me to have as little involvement in my daughter's life as possible.

 

That's why I need your help. I'm a good father. I spend as much time as possible with my kids. Ethan spends at least every other week with me. I need a fighting chance at protecting my time with my daughter. I can request a court-appointed attorney for the jail-time issue, but I'm on my own with trying to not lose the regular visitation I've gotten so close to over the past year. I need money for a lawyer, court fees, preparation, and transportation. I also need to see a doctor for my seizures, get medication, cover the costs of visitation, and other related expenses while I'm in the process of waiting for my Soc Sec Disability and SSI to be approved. If I don't take action about these seizures (I've had two now), and keep my visits as consistent as possible, it is going to hurt my chances of preventing restrictions to my visitation rights.

 

I've never done any kind of fundraiser for myself like this; but I'm low on options and could really use your help. $5,000 seems to be a good starting point for hiring a decent attorney around here. Thank you so much for reading, and hopefully for your donation.