Teenage boy breaks courtroom during adoption hearing session

 

 On August 13 of 2018, Sara Cozad stood in front of a judge with her husband and two foster children. This was the final adoption process, where she could finally be their legal mother and care-provider.

As the whole family was waiting for the judge’s final decision, the older boy, Dayshawn, decided to make an astonishing announcement during the court proceedings. He went ahead and revealed something that left Cozad flooded with tears.

 

 

It would definitely be odd for someone to immediately confide in you that she wants to become a foster mom on your very first date. Her husband however, was rather impressed by her dream, rather than weirded out. “I was impressed with how [Shank] rolled with it,” Cozad revealed in an interview she had in September 2018.

Her and her husband, Shank, were clearly meant to be from day one. Not only did they both want to be foster parents, they also shared many things and interests. They fell in love like crazy, becoming one unbreakable pair.  They knew they were right for each other and it didn't take them long to get married. It was a few years following their first date. 

Cozad had always wanted to know what it was like to be a foster mom, her love for kids and maternal instincts were very strong. But even after her marriage, she was still quite young, she was only around 23 years old and never thought about caring about kids close to her age. Up until then, she had only thought about fostering children or infants.

After mutually agreeing to become foster parents, the couple started taking in kids. The kids Cozad and her husband fostered were only newborns and toddlers.

They took in their first  baby for seven days. Cozad and Shank were then requested to take care of a three-year-old boy called Michael for only seven days.

 

So when they took in Michael, the couple did not intend to keep him for long. But their initial plan didn’t long to change, “That weekend turned into a week. And that week into months. And those months into years,” she revealed on their website ‘Love What Matters’.

The couple took care of Michael and grew very fond of him. What was supposed to be a weekend became weeks then turned into months. But that wasn’t it,  Cozad and Shank had a visit from a very special guest during that period, none other than Michael’s very own brother, Dayshawn.

The first meeting of the two brothers was a very emotional moment for everyone. As soon as Dayshawn saw his baby brother, he ran straight to him and gave him a warm embrace. The couple was quite touched by the brothers’ reaction, Cozad realized instantly that these brothers needed to be united and never separated again.

Going through with this plan meant that their entire life was going to change. If they were going to take the ten-year-old Dayshawn into their home, it was going to go against all of Cozad’s plan. She and her husband had both agreed that they would take in only kids and toddlers.

 

Cozard felt unequipped to handle an older child as she had never anticipated fostering an older child. But at the same time, she saw that he and his brother needed to stay together, and she was willing to do extra effort just to make sure the siblings wouldn’t be separated again.

 

After much struggle with herself trying to decide what she wanted to do, Cozad was finally able to make a decision. She wrote how she felt that time on Love What Matters, “We advocate for reunification whenever it’s possible. The best part about fostering is seeing parents work tremendously hard to get their children back.” Reuniting the boys felt more important than Dayshawn’s age.

Since they saw first hand that the two boys were ecstatic upon meeting each other once again, it would be a sin to separate them once more. When it came down to Michael and Dayshawn, the couple was willing to make an exception. They only wanted to keep the brothers happy so they worked towards giving them both reunification and adoption.

 The couple was facing a very unusual situation, they had to just roll along and see where things go. The couple then made plans to get ready to get the brothers, Michael and Dayshawn and reunite them once and for all. Even though they did not plan for it, after almost a year, the couple decided to go for a legal adoption for the two brothers.

The couple worked hard and put in a lot of time and effort to make sure they did everything right. This was not a trivial case and it needed a lot of time. They had to be patient and persistent in how they handled the situation. “This process went on for years,” Cozad revealed later on ‘Love What Matters’.

 Adopting one child was already  hard enough so taking in two boys was a ride that Cozad and her husband had not anticipated to be so difficult.

It had taken more time and effort than what the couple had expected. And even Cozad took to their website ‘Love What Matters’ to reveal how it had affected them both. It had taught her patience and how to get the most of every second she could spend with  with Michael and Dayshawn. 

 August 13, 2018, the long wait was finally over. Cozad and Shank were officially the adoptive parents to Michael and Dayshawn.

Everything started in the courtroom. 

There was footage of the recording during this adoption proceedings that  showed the judge asking, “You think they all agree that this adoption ought to go forward?” Cozad and her family were right in front waiting for the judge to finish with the proceeding. But then somebody spoke out…

No one expected to hear anyone speak  or say anything during the session besides the judge. But just then, Dayshawn gave a surprising reply, “Yeah, they all love us.”  After he said this, the whole courtroom filled with joyful laughter. But that wasn’t it, the teenage boy still had something else to get off his chest.

Dayshawn continued with the same emotion in his tone, “We love them. Our whole family is the best thing we ever had. I’m glad to have these people in my life. I’m glad to be their son. They’re the best thing I ever had.” .

 

Since the couple was adamant on adopting him and his brother together, it was clear for him that they loved them dearly. Dayshawn saw the struggle they had to face in order for him and his brother to stay together,  and knew the love they held for his brother and him, and for this he was incredibly grateful and glad to be their son. The teenager continued, “If I could wish for anything in the world, I would wish I could just love these people for the rest of my life.”

It was such a beautiful moment in court that made so many of the people present cry of joy. The brothers were now safe and sound in the care of Cozad and her husband. The adoption went smoothly and they were now finally a complete family united forever.

 Following the adoption, Michael and Dayshawn took on Shank’s last name, the teen boy even came up with a middle name for himself. He picked “Star,” which Cozad claims to describe him perfectly. “He defies every stereotype of a teenage boy,” she admitted in an interview.

The family was living in harmony, the boys were receiving the love they’ve always longed for, and the couple received that love back, if not multiples of it. People admired their relationship and the strength of their bonds. However, some questioned the couple’s willignless to take in other foster children after the adoption.

 

In September 2018 the couple then took another kid in. They looked after a 14-year-old child who was the first kid they took in after the adoption. The couple was under training to hold a responsibility as foster parents for kids who were victims of sex trafficking.

Cozad then took to ‘Love What Matters’ to express how she felt, “It’s heartbreaking that these demographics of teens sit in social workers’ offices or shelters for weeks (or even months) on end since so few homes are open to them.” 

Cozad and Shank were extremely happy to spend their lives this way. They could not see their life leading any other direction other than how they were spending it now. “No child should feel grateful to have a family love them,” Cozad added, “It should be a given.” Dayshawn’s wish has finally come true, they’re finally living together under one roof, happily.