A disabled girl abandoned by her mother at a Washington, DC hospital has finally been given an appropriate name and birth certificate four months after her birth.
For months, baby Justyce and her caregivers have been waiting for the right paperwork to get the health insurance she needs for birth complications.
The four-month-old daughter, whose mother struggled with drug addiction and mental illness before her death, needs physical therapy for a paralysis in her right arm.
It was an uphill battle for Justyce’s foster mother, Yolanda Allen-Little, who had gone through a bureaucratic slog just trying to get her documents.
Allen-Little had hired an attorney to help with the situation, and multiple motions had to be filed in DC Superior Court to have the motion granted.
“I feel like a load has been lifted,” Allen-Little told The Washington Post.
A baby girl abandoned by her mother at a Washington, DC hospital has finally been given an appropriate name and birth certificate four months after she was born
Allen-Little, who once acted as foster mom to Justyce’s birth mother Jessica, spoke to the Post about the baby’s rocky journey.
According to the foster mother, she had kept in touch with Jessica over the years as she struggled with mental illness and drug addiction.
Just before Justyce was born, Jessica was in a psychiatric ward and met Allen-Little, who implored her to stay there to get the help she needed.
The woman said Jessica promised her she would stay but then fled during the night. Allen-Little later received a call that Jessica had given birth and left the child.
She had reportedly told a social worker that she wanted her own former foster mother to take Justyce home.
When Justyce was born she had cocaine in her system. Ten days after her birth, she was released into the care of Allen-Little.
The woman was in Turkey when Justyce was born and then had to look after her elderly mother for several days. At that point, she said she had no idea if the baby was being held or loved.
“It just made me feel bad to know that she was waiting up there and had no one to love her,” she told the Washington Post.
For months, baby Justyce and her caregivers have been waiting for the right paperwork to get the health insurance she needs for birth complications
The four-month-old daughter, whose mother struggled with drug addiction and mental illness before her death, needs physical therapy for a paralysis in her right arm
Allen-Little was never informed that she could take Justyce in as a foster parent instead of informal placement.
That would have given the woman access to government funds and an instant birth certificate, the Washington Post said.
The informal placement ended up causing even more headaches for everyone involved.
“We were kind of on hold, not knowing what else to do,” said Marla Spindel, Allen-Little’s attorney.
Spindel is Executive Director of the DC KinCare Alliance, a nonprofit organization that supports family members who adopt children for their loved ones.
Allen-Little was referred to Spindel by a judge, who recommended that she contact the agency for assistance in her case.
Luckily, others came to help the child and his needs, Spindel said.
“I’ve had so many calls and emails from people wanting to help,” Spindel said.
“Some people drop off diapers and formula at our office. There are people who just called to ask what happened to the baby or what they can do. “People just showed their humanity and it’s amazing how much love and support they radiate,” the attorney said.
Justyce’s mother died and her guardianship was in a precarious position after her birth
“They say it takes a village and the villagers came through,” Allen-Little said. “She really created a serious village.”
A GoFundMe facility for Baby Justyce has raised over $30,000.
Funds raised will help pay for legal, hospital and education costs for Justyce when she grows up.
A community has gathered around the baby to support her in any way she can.
“They say it takes a village and the villagers came through,” Allen-Little said. “She really created a serious village.”
Meanwhile, the foster mom told her she just wanted Justyce “to know that she matters, that her life matters.”
Allen-Little said the community that came together for this little girl donated several thousand to the campaign.
“You show her that she matters,” she said.