
Surviving this hard transition….
Donation protected
My beloved friends and family,
I’m writing this letter with such heartache, and sorrow the level of pain my daughters and I have been experiencing these last 6 months is unheard of… 6 months ago I became a solo parent, the father to my daughters lost custody, permanently.
It’s been a whirlwind of emotions, confusion, grief, anger, every feeling a human can experience.
My daughter’s father was charged with 1 felony and 1 misdemeanor that involve being inappropriate with a minor. (Public information on the SC court website) Shock is the simplest way I can put what I was feeling… I had became a solo parent overnight and no idea what the fuck was happening… or how I was going to manage… but I did know one thing, I had to protect my daughters.
An emergency hearing granted me full sole legal custody of the girls which I am forever thankful for our legal system showing up to help me protect my kids.
Having the kids full time these last 6 months I’ve completely blown through my savings to provide for them. :(
I’m still unsure if I need to hire a lawyer to help me with this situation, I’ve been working closely with the self help center at the courthouse for their direction. I’ve missed a lot of work going to family court hearings and his criminal hearings all have been leave no pay :( as everyone knows I started a new job 6 months ago also…. and I am still on probation… luckily my new job isn’t using any of this time off against me. ❤️
I’m turning to my loved ones for one reason and one reason only I need help… I want to be able to provide a trip to my kids, a trip I was saving up for… I want to be able to pay my rent in full and not split it so I can feed my kids. I recently had to buy all new clothes for them because they grew over night! The amount of times I’ve had little to money is scary. The truth is I’m struggling greatly to survive financially… it’s taking everything out of me to build up the courage to ask for help… but here I am being vulnerable and doing it.
My kids don’t deserve what their father has done to them… what he’s done will alter their life permanently…. I have no idea what the future holds but I can confidently say they won’t grow up with their father like I dreamt and imagined my children would.
This has been SO hard for the kids… I just hope they know mama will always be there for them.
I appreciate everyone taking the time to read my message,
Much love always,
Maria.
Organizer
Maria Soto
Organizer
Santa Cruz, CA