It was the moment he’d been waiting for since his wife fell pregnant.
But little did new dad
Samuel Forrest know he’d soon have to choose between his wife and his newborn son – because his baby was born with Down's Syndrome.
Little Leo Forrest was born on 21st January to an Armenian mother and
his New Zealander father – but his mother (Samuel’s wife) refused to
take him home because it would bring ‘shame’ upon her family.
She
wouldn’t even look at or touch their new baby because she feared she
would get attached to the tot, in a country where there is little
understanding about disabilites.
![Down's Syndrome baby Leo was abandoned by his Armenian mother at birth [GoFundMe/Samuel Forrest]](https://s3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/JFyoHcLiq1tFfb6vN_TMYA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/lifestyles/2015-02-06/f688bd30-ade5-11e4-876e-3f784c6c25da_3108563_1422335224-0014.jpg "Down's Syndrome baby Leo was abandoned by his Armenian mother at birth [GoFundMe/Samuel Forrest]")
The couple had no idea that
their son had a disability – but dad Samuel knew straight away that he
would not abandon their child.
“They took me in to see him and I looked at this guy and I said, he's
beautiful, he's perfect and I'm absolutely keeping him,” he told
ABC News.
But heartbreakingly, his wife (who we’ve chosen not to name), threatened
him with divorce if he kept little Leo – which she’d already decided on
before she’d met the baby.
She filed for divorce a week later.
He hopes that the support will draw attention to Armenia’s ‘hidden shame’ of the country’s ‘forgotten babies.’
His wife confirmed to
BuzzFeed that she had a Down's Syndrome baby who is now with his father, but declined to give further details.
There
is little understanding of disabilities in Armenia and in rural
villages, children are often hidden from communities and denied access
to education, according to a
UNICEF report.
“In this tiny, landlocked country
renowned for its' hospitality, scores of babies are abandoned each
year, for reasons ranging from physical or intellectual disabilities and
minor 'imperfections',” wrote Samuel on his GoFundMe page.
“This
practice of abandoning children due to disabilities is unfortunately
widespread throughout Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union,
resulting from a culture which refused to accept human defects.
“Health
professionals estimate that 98 per cent of all Down's Syndrome babies
born in Armenia are abandoned, every year. These abandoned babies are
often placed in squalid orphanages, where they live and die, rejected
and forgotten by society.”
To help support Samuel and Leo, please visit their
GoFundMe page.
The new single father soon set up a
GoFundMe page for his disabled son, with the aim of returning to his native New Zealand where Leo can have a better quality of life.
“With
little work, no money, resources or family, and now no home, his father
Sam wants to return to New Zealand with Leo, where Leo can have a
quality of life and acceptance, integration into society that sadly, is
not yet possible in Armenia,” wrote Leo’s Support Team on the site.
“As
a now solo father, Sam's aim is to raise enough money to be able to
care for Leo fulltime himself for at least a year, to give him the love,
cuddles & devotion he needs to thrive.
“Your support will help to ensure this gorgeous little guy has a chance at a normal life.”
In
just nine days, supporters from all over the world helped Samuel to
smash his $60,000 goal, raising more than $175,000 for Leo.
Messages of support came in thick and fast, with parents and relatives of Down's Syndrome babies praising his decision.
“This story brings so much light to the narrow minded thinking out
there. We have come light years in this country,” wrote one supporter.
“When my brother was born in 1990 they handed my mom a brochure about Down's Syndrome and they said you could also give him up.
“This
was in Boston! Now 25 years later - No hospital would ever do that. We
are accepting and caring because children born with special needs, are
gifts of joy brought into this world. Support now is given right away to
families.”
In a thank you message Samuel posted today, February
6, he thanked the army of supporters for their generous donations, which
ranged from $5 to $1000.
“Thanks everyone – we are stunned beyond words at the incredible support & love you’ve shown for little Leo,” he wrote.
“9
days after we started our campaign, Leo and I found out in the wee
hours of morning that we had crossed our target! He is a lucky guy to
have the support of thousands of friends like you around the world."
He added that the money
will go towards helping to raise Leo in New Zealand, but also supporting
orphanages for disabled babies in Armenia.
“Some of the
additional funds that we have raised will be used to secure better
living conditions in Auckland, and to give Leo higher quality
opportunities when it comes to education - a good home and school cost
money, but Leo will have all that and more, thanks to you," he wrote.
“We
will use some of the money you've given to fund facilities and programs
here in Armenia that will support future parents to keep their kids
despite all disabilities, and to help better care for the special ones
who end up away from their Mom & Dad.
“We’d also like to
share the surplus funds with the only orphanage in Armenia that
regularly takes abandoned Down's Syndrome babies as well as other
organisations that can help these children – thanks to your support we
can start to make a difference already.
“Thanks again for your care and generosity!”
He hopes that the support will draw attention to Armenia’s ‘hidden shame’ of the country’s ‘forgotten babies.’
His wife confirmed to
BuzzFeed that she had a Down's Syndrome baby who is now with his father, but declined to give further details.
There
is little understanding of disabilities in Armenia and in rural
villages, children are often hidden from communities and denied access
to education, according to a
UNICEF report.
“In this tiny, landlocked country
renowned for its' hospitality, scores of babies are abandoned each
year, for reasons ranging from physical or intellectual disabilities and
minor 'imperfections',” wrote Samuel on his GoFundMe page.
“This
practice of abandoning children due to disabilities is unfortunately
widespread throughout Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union,
resulting from a culture which refused to accept human defects.
“Health
professionals estimate that 98 per cent of all Down's Syndrome babies
born in Armenia are abandoned, every year. These abandoned babies are
often placed in squalid orphanages, where they live and die, rejected
and forgotten by society.”
To help support Samuel and Leo, please visit their
GoFundMe page.
