Hi, I'm Justin. As a single father of 2, and a full time shipfitter, I've got a lot on my plate already, but I've found myself in a pinch and as much as I don't like asking for help, here I am.

My sons' mother and I recently split due to some struggles with addiction and some unresolved mental health issues. Currently, my sons are in state care because I also struggled with addiction and a rocky past. My goal is to continue with my treatment, get my license back, fix my car, and bring my sons back home to a healthy living situation. The urgency now is for funding to attend a victims panel on Friday, the 18th of July. And hopefully a little extra for replacing the couch that my dogs have destroyed since I started working 12 hour days, 7 days a week.

The victims panel weighs in at a total cost of 65 dollars cash, to be paid on arrival and admission. The couches are more flexible, although I did find very nice replacements that my young boys, ages 2 and 4, will love very much. They have lights under them and power recliners. I've never actually paid for any couches, but I know these ones are a bargain at 500 dollars.

At this time, the couches are a bit more important than getting my car fixed because I have a walk through scheduled with CPS later today, and I know it's a long shot, but I believe there are still good and generous people left in this world that want to see the single dad "underdog" type be successful. If I can replace my busted couch with something better suited for my sons and I, and pass this inspection, my sons will be allowed to come home to visit me on the weekends.

I've been working hard for weeks. Not just at my place of employment, but working on my house, my car, and myself all at the same time.

The day my boys were placed into state custody, was one of the hardest days of my life, because I'm the one who made the call to cps. I knew I needed treatment, and their mother was deep in a drug induced psychosis, and I wasn't 100% sure they were being cared for properly, and had suspicions that they were actually being neglected and physically harmed, when I went to work every day.

So I did the best thing I could think to do that would guarantee that they would be safe, loved, and cared for while I went to treatment.

I called cps and asked that my young sons be placed in a temporary foster placement situation.

Holding back my emotions, I came clean. I told the case workers at cps everything that had been going on. I explained the situation with their mother's mental health, our collective substance use, and told them my fears about what might have happened toy boys if I didn't make the call that I did.

Everyone ive spoken to since that day has told me how brave and selfless it was for me to do what I did to help my boys and my family.... and they may be right. To be very honest, I was scared.

It's been almost 4 months since i made that call, and though there have been a few stumbles and missed steps on my part, I can proudly say that I've been clean and sober for 10 weeks. Additionally, by some stroke of devine assistance, I've managed to maintain my employment at the shipyard while juggling intensive outpatient treatment group meetings 5 days a week, visits with my sons for 6 hours per week, and keeping up with the clean-up efforts in my home, as well as caring for the 2- 75+Lb dogs that I couldnt bring myself to rehome during this dark time in my life.

I think that's enough of the "hard to talk about" stuff. The good news is, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Along with my sobriety, I've found faith in the almighty, and I've let that be my guide through the struggles and it carries me forward to better days when I can be reunited with my little boys. The dark days alone are almost over. There's just a few more things to get handled, but I've fallen short financially. My hope is that my story can be an inspiration to someone who feels like its impossible to do what I'm doing, and maybe even a story that inspires some prayers for my family and my recovery, and possibly a little bit of generosity from a stranger.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and may God bless us all with the humility, courage, and strength that I've been given by his love and guidance.