https://www.nzcatholic.org.nz/2017/01/18/goal-bring-52-disabled-iraqi-children-nz/ The New Zealand National Catholic Newspaper Sun, 16 Apr 2017 23:20:36 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.1 https://www.nzcatholic.org.nz/2017/01/18/goal-bring-52-disabled-iraqi-children-nz/#comment-17209 Mon, 27 Mar 2017 02:01:47 +0000 https://www.nzcatholic.org.nz/?p=14397#comment-17209 Rowena
Hi I’m a non Catholic christian living in NZ. I moved here with my family from USA. I have two adopted boys from Ukraine who have special needs. Unfortunately, the 15 year old who still lives with me (the other is now in a Spectrum Care home) was investigated for sexual assualt by the police because a 15 year old girl who also had special needs and attends the special needs unit at school claimed he assaulted her. The church asked us to leave. During the investigation, both parties explained that there was no touching of genitals or grabbing clothing, only a tickle fight that ended with a kiss on her cheek and disputed lewd comment. After the “no charge” decree from the police, we petitioned the church to reestablish us and that we would make sure he didn’t leave our side, plus he was sorry. They had already excluded him from children’s church for “being loud.” We thought restorative justice the best course of action. The elders secluded us into a room and said “We made some calls, We heard something about your son. We don’t want him back. We won’t tell you what we heard or who told it to us.”
Please educate any/all families willing to open their homes up to disabled orphans that large percentages of families who do end up isolated by the very people they expect support from. It’s exhausting.

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