doctor’s visits, enroll her in preschool and provide other care afforded their other children. Today, she is a healthy, happy child who loves her adoptive family. Joe Cassioppi provided support. “It was gratifying to assist in providing some security to a family that was already invested in making something positive out of an otherwise tragic situation. Though the young child was safely adjusting to her life here in Minneapolis, obtaining legal status as custodians was necessary to give our clients certainty that their bond with the child would be respected and recognized outside of their home. The relief and gratitude they felt for that service was truly rewarding.” – Olivia Cares
ADOPTION UPDATE
LOAN HUYNH
PAULA BLENKER
Like life, pro bono projects can be complex and require additional services, even years after the initial work. Beginning in 2011, Loan Huynh and paralegal Paula Blenker began representing Moses, who had been abandoned as a baby in a public bathroom in Kafanchan, Nigeria, and left to die. He was found by nuns and brought to a motherless children’s home, where it was determined that he suffered from cerebral palsy. Because of the extreme poverty and lack of resources at the home, Moses was left to sleep in a dirty steel crib, was malnourished and had very limited contact with people due to fear and lack of information about his condition. Karen, a social worker from Minnesota, happened to see Moses when she was visiting an orphanage in Nigeria in 2004. Karen was told that Moses was dying, and she learned that he had been kept isolated in horrible conditions. From that point forward, Karen, with much help from others, devoted her 13
