Woman Notices Markings On Boy, Decides She Needs To Intervene

When they were little boys, Richard and his younger brother Greg saw their world fall apart as their birth parents were wracked with addiction. The state intervened and deemed the parents were unfit to take care of the two boys. The brothers were separated and placed into foster care.

The younger brother was sent to a loving couple, Ms. and Mr. Ripley, and there he stayed happy and loved for the rest of his childhood. His older brother Richard, on the other hand, was not so lucky.

Richard was placed in the care of another home. Still hurt by the trauma of his childhood, Richard tried his best to make his foster parents happy. But it didn’t work out, and the foster parents did not want him. Over time, this disappointment only got worse.

Richard went through a total of four different homes, none of which wanted him in the end. This hurt Richard more than most of us can imagine. Unfortunately that was not even the half of Richard’s problems.

In the three years Richard was tossed from home to home, he was able to take a break from it all when visiting his little brother Greg at the Ripleys’ house. He loved his brother dearly, but the differences in their lives made his emotional turmoil worse.

The Ripleys were so loving and caring. It was a short time of bliss for Richard, who envied his little brother’s luck. They would enjoy time spent together over lunch at McDonald’s, where Ms. Ripley took notice of the odd markings on the older boy’s body.

Over time, Richard learned to cover up his pain and torment, so no one knew what was being done to him. Ms. Ripley, who was so caring and attentive, recognized the marks on his body were scars from abuse. She immediately stepped in.

For the next four months Ms. Ripley took to the courts to convince judges that Richard should be let into the family. From then on she became a ray of light for Richard, who was only 6 at the time, and needed help to cope with all his trauma.

Ms. Ripley would be there for Richard every step of the way. Through his therapy with a psychiatrist, Richard gradually learned to love and trust again, but it would certainly take time. A few words of love is what helped keep Richard grounded.

When Richard did something wrong in the past, his foster parents would threaten to send him away. To make sure Richard could trust her, Ms, Ripley would tell him, “You’re not going anywhere. Because you belong to us now.” The words became a part of his healing journey.

Richard gradually healed from his past trauma, and the family couldn’t be happier. Unfortunately, the happiness wouldn’t stay. Soon, Mr. Ripley was given news that would turn their lives upside-down.

While the couple was taking efforts to adopt the two brothers, Mr. Ripley had some medical concerns that needed to be addressed. He spoke with his doctor one day and was diagnosed with cancer. He was not given much more time to live.

The doctor was upfront and told Mr. Ripley that he only had nine months to live. Richard and Greg watched as Ms. Ripley’s love, her high school sweetheart, was taken away from her. The adoption was put off while the family spent their final days with Mr. Ripley.

With the love of her life gone, Ms. Ripley was lonely, but still had Richard and Greg to look after. It was a very rough time for her, but she did not want to lose any more of the people she loved.

So, Ms. Ripley adopted Richard and Greg. Because money was tight, the official family of three moved into a wide trailer, and she worked hard, bouncing between odd jobs to support her beloved boys. They didn’t have much, but they had each other.

Even with all the pressure on Ms. Ripley, she tried not to pass that stress onto Richard or Greg. The two brothers grew up happy and supported. Richard was always told how smart, handsome, and strong he was. He brought this strength into the next chapter of his life.

After Richard graduated from high school, he joined the Marines, seeing it as his best shot at entering college. With his service, he had the opportunity to attend and graduate from law school. His mom was so proud to see him grow into a remarkable adult, soon with a family of his own.

Today, he is the proud father of a little girl. Knowing how much he could affect his baby girl’s life, for good or for bad, he thinks of Ms. Ripley and reflects on how different his life would have been without her.

Richard shared his and Ms. Ripley’s story on the Facebook page “Humans of New York.” He candidly detailed his love and gratitude for his mom: “I should be broken, but I’m not. Because 30 years ago my mom decided to keep me…she poured enough love into me so I could heal”.

Every year, too many foster children are left feeling like they don’t belong, but thanks to people like Ms. Ripley, there is more love in the world. She sets a high bar. In many cases, the foster children themselves have to struggle to stay together — even if they drift apart for decades.