A Family in Crisis. Your Help Could Make a Difference

The St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation for Freedom, Family and Faith cares about families. Our mission is to support families to deeper faith and commitment to the Lord and His Church. We offer our prayers, on-going catechesis, retreats, support groups and individual accompaniment. Learn more about us at nonnatus.org.

We often meet individuals and families with "crisis" situations. We met one young family and they are in need of your prayers and possibly your help. Please read the story of "Kelly" and her three-year old daugher "Susan", We will refer to different names to protect the family's identity. Kelly is currently married to her husband "Troy". Below you will read Kelly's own words and her struggle.

Kelly wishes for Troy's repentance and reconciliation, however, since there is great abuse in this situation, her main goal now is to protect her child from harm. Any prayers offered for her situation and this family are appreciated more than ever. If you have any kind of advice or suggestions, please contact the foundation. Here is Kelly's story:

Kelly says,

"Eight years ago, I married a man who turned out to be quite different than the image he presented to me during our courtship. The day of our wedding began a life of the unimaginable, a life where I knew the only way to survive was to shut down and become nothing, to cower before the alcoholism and all the abuse that went with it. And had it only been me, I would have stayed, longing for reconciliation and a marriage like that of my parents and siblings. But we had a child. And I could not bear to see my toddler growing up getting hit, seeing her daddy passed out drunk all day long, and being told she was only a possession.

Longing for hope and a future for my child, I left for a domestic abuse shelter, dreaming this could be the answer, only to find ourselves sucked into the whirlwind of the court system that only chews and spits out the victims.

I was raised to believe in the court system, to trust that the good guys would win and the judges would see the evil and protect the victims. I have found that to not be the case. Since leaving half a year ago, we have had close to 20 hearings with no real resolution. Commissioners, GALs, and judges alike have ignored state statutes that request no overnights or unsupervised visitation for child abusers, they have refused to talk to domestic abuse specialists and my child's trauma therapist, and the common opinion is that if we remove my husband's guns and give him a

breathalizer, then all will be well. I know different.

I have pictures and recordings that say otherwise. Alcohol is a symptom of something deeper, and a breathing device alone will not cure it. But the powers that be shrug off the truth and fight not for my child's best interests, but for equal custody and no parental alienation. And meanwhile, my child screams when told she's going to see Daddy. She clings to me and begs me not to send her there. She hits me, her toys, and herself after overnight visits. She has severe night terrors. And her countenance is harsh and rigid, no longer the soft, smiling face of my baby.

I am at a loss of what to do. I am desperate to protect my child, but the court system seems comprised of a “Good Old Boys' Club” who is not willing to do the hard thing and protect an innocent child. I have tried writing to my congressman and others, only to be told that they can't interfere with the court system. We have even been barred from writing letters to the editor to raise awareness of the domestic abuse failings of the court.

So what do we do? Will my child only become a statistic? Is there anyone who can help us?"

Prayer is Needed and Action

This story is real. It is a real-life family situation in need of much prayer and possible "advice". We, at the St. Raymond Nonnatus Foundation appreciate our readers and benefactors. Please, do pray for Kelly and for her family. Most especially pray for little Susan as the innocent 3-year old victim in this family crisis.

God bless you, and thank you.

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