A Boy Interrupted a Judge to Explain Rumors Surrounding His Mother

If someone said hurtful things about your mom, you wouldn’t like it. It happens often, and one boy decided to end things immediately. While he was a foster child, he realized that woman should be his mother, and he wouldn’t let the judge take her away because people didn’t understand them.

Foster kids go through a lot, and he’d only recently found a woman to love him like a mother. Was it somehow inappropriate? Did his foster mom think something horrible? Continue reading to find out what the brave young child did for the woman he hoped to call mom.

Telling the Truth

One boy spoke up right as the judge went to give a final verdict on the case. The room fell silent when he stood up, asking to address the courtroom formally. Each person tensed up because they wanted the truth, and the boy cried while continuing.

First Date

Sara Cozad wanted to be a mother and felt that adoption would help tons of children. When she met Stuart Shank on their first date, she told him how important that goal was. He liked the idea, and they soon married to work on fulfilling that dream.

Toddlers and Babies

This young couple focused on babies and toddlers in their foster home. Both people felt that they weren’t prepared to handle older kids, and the tiny tots only stayed with them for a few days before getting adopted. Sara felt this worked for them.

Not Enough Experience

Sara didn’t feel she was skilled or experienced to handle older kids at the time. However, she didn’t know what was in store for her when her next foster child came to live with them. What could have happened?!

Stole Their Hearts

The couple wasn’t surprised when they were assigned a 3-year-old boy for the weekend. Michael was quite sweet, but he ended up staying with them for years. He stole their hearts, but there was a knock on the door that changed everything.

Emotional Embrace

Michael wasn’t an only child! Dayshawn was his 10-year-old brother, and they started crying and embraced when they next saw each other. Sara realized, from that exchange, that the pair couldn’t be separated, which threw a wrench in her plans.

Too Young

When these events transpired, Sara was 23 years old, which was 13 years older than Dayshawn. She wasn’t comfortable fostering older kids because she worried they’d need more care than she would provide. However, she was determined to keep the brothers together.

Decisions

Sara thought long and hard about offering her home to Dayshawn. She wanted to care for the brothers because they desperately needed their forever home. Just as she made her choice, things went south for the small family.

Romantic Feelings

Sara’s friends and family supported all of her decisions, never questioning her motives. However, they were upset about Dayshawn living in the home. The pair got close, and everyone felt he had romantic feelings toward her.

The Loving Family

Dayshawn often struggled without a loving family to guide him. Once he received it, he knew he had to open his heart and accept the opportunity. Therefore, he did what he could to show appreciation, confusing the others. Was something wrong?

The Court Hearing

Sara and Stuart couldn’t let someone take Michael and Dayshawn away from them, so they chose adoption. It was a lengthy process and had already been going on for a while. Now, the judge was ready to pass judgment.

Something to Say

Before the judge spoke, Dayshawn stood up and spoke out with a shaky voice. He asked to be excused for the outburst and said he wanted to talk if he could. The entire courtroom was shocked, but what did the judge decide?!

Unpredictable

Dayshawn was a teenager and had reached puberty. Therefore, he was unpredictable at times. Would he create some sort of outburst and upset the judge? Soon, he showed them that he wasn’t risking his new lifestyle.

Silence

The room went silent, and the couple tensed. Dayshawn continued by saying he had a confession for the courtroom. In fact, he claimed that his mother, Sara, had developed a strong bond with him. This couple loved them, and they wanted to be called their sons.

Filling with Emotion

The judge was moved by the love shown in that courtroom. This helped her decide what to do, and she granted their adoption request. Did everyone feel like the judge, or did this create problems later?

The Uproar

When the judge offered her judgment, the crowd erupted into an emotional uproar. However, it was all tears of joy, and no one was upset. Everyone was moved by what they’d seen and were happy for these two brothers.

Not Finished

Dayshawn’s words convinced the judge because he was adamant about staying with Stuart and Sara. This was the forever home the brothers wanted. The judge wiped tears away, giving her approval. However, the young man got their attention to say more.

More Words

He started to say that the family loved each other, and this was the best thing that had happened to him in a while. He was glad they were in his life and that he was their son. Sara couldn’t contain her tears after she heard that!

Where They Belonged

Dayshawn’s speech caused the room to tear up once again, and the courtroom was filled with sniffles as he finished. This was an emotional moment, and everyone knew instantly that these brothers were at the right place.

Still Not Done

Stuart tried not to cry, but Sara held back no tears, bawling like a baby. She couldn’t stop herself from letting out her emotions. However, Dayshawn wasn’t finished with his speech and had more things to say.

Relief

The whole courtroom was in tears, but Dayshawn continued his speech. He now addressed his adopted parents and not the judge. Finally, they were his legal guardians. The family was happy and relieved to know they were saved from the foster system.

Final Words

Dayshawn was clearly relieved, too. He turned to his newly adoptive parents and drove his point home, even though they were already crying. He said that if he could get one wish, he’d want to be with and love those people forever.

Remembering This Day

Sara was too emotional at that time, but later, she described what was going through her mind on that day in August 2018. Every time she talked about it, she teared up because of her happiness and blessings.

The Rollercoaster

Sara confessed that the adoption was the best moment of her entire life, though she was on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. She’d had some mixed feelings, but that wouldn’t stop her from being excited at this point.

Bittersweet

Sara and Stuart were ecstatic to be legal guardians for those two brothers. However, Dayshawn’s speech did bring some sadness into the mix. Sara believed that no child should have to feel grateful that a family loved them; it should be the one given in their lives.

Support

On the fateful day, Sara’s emotions were on her face. However, those feelings were reflected in Stuart and their families. Everyone supported the couple and witnessed the entire thing. They were bawling at the end of the boy’s speech.

Watching the Fight

Stuart and Sara had supporters who had been with them throughout the event. They were there for the couple and continued to be there while they were fighting for legal guardianship over the boys. It took an entire three years!

Not the End

Everyone watched that family overcome the obstacles in their way. They were attached to each other from the start but were now recognized legally as the family they knew they were. That wasn’t the end of the story, though!

Final Details

The judge made the ruling for Dayshawn, Sara, Stuart, and Michael to be a family legally. However, the couple felt that one more thing had to happen before it would be official. What was it?!

Name Changes

The law recognized this family, and they wanted to share a last name. To them, it was crucial and symbolic to cement the sons and parents together. Therefore, Dayshawn and Michael became Shanks, and the family was whole.

The Limo

That new family walked out of that courtroom to celebrate, and there was a luxury limousine waiting to bring them home. Michael and Dayshawn were now officially the sons of Sara and Stuart, and they should go there in style.

Completely Thankful

Dayshawn was thankful for this blessing, and he gave another speech in the car. They rode around the city, happy that this day had finally come. Still, the supporters had another question for this new family.

Room for More

Now that their adoption process was over, their family and friends wondered if that couple would open up their hearts and homes to more foster children. They’d taken appropriate time to talk about it before making a choice.

Their Choice

Sara made a personal blog to explain their decision. However, people asked if they’d continue fostering along with their adopted sons at the adoption party. They chose to do so and created a specialized home. What’s that mean?!

Spreading Awareness

LoveWhatMatters actually featured Sara’s blog. There, she explained that she and her husband wanted to focus on LGBTQ+ teens and teen moms who were in the foster system. Their specialized home would primarily be for them.

Family for Everyone

Teen moms had many issues surrounding schooling and life in general. Likewise, LGBTQ+ teenagers had no safe haven for them. The couple wanted to provide a loving space to be while dealing with any problems head-on.

Committed

Sara wrote in her blog that they weren’t better than other parents. However, they felt so strongly that those teens were stuck in social worker offices for months or years because there weren’t any homes open to them.

Never Stop

Sara, Stuart, and their sons are happy to be a family, but she wasn’t finished. She fostered more kids who needed love and support. Plus, the couple learned that teens were often more rewarding because they already had past stories.

Not Dangerous

Sara realized that it wasn’t at all dangerous to foster teens, as most people told her. They aren’t usually troublemakers; they simply need love and kindness. She brought awareness about this situation because of her blog and continues writing it.

The Way Forward

Most people don’t understand how long the adoption process takes. Therefore, they back out of the deal because of the courtrooms and lawyers involved. Sara created materials to make it all easier to handle and deal with.