I am a voice for Vermont children.

Did you know that there is currently no system in the state of Vermont that stops and prevents the abuse of children?

This site is designed to bring awareness to the epidemic of child abuse and to  hopefully help stop the abuse of children in Vermont and elsewhere.  It is meant to help the public become aware of the need for more resources and social systems that address and stop child abuse where it starts in the home.  

 My name is Kimberlee Forney.  I am an artist (www.kimforney.com) , teacher, mentor and mandated reporter.  I am also an advocate for survivors of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) and an advocate for the health and safety of children.  I am concerned about the decay of our social systems, and the rising of violence  in the human family.  This site was made to show the very IMPORTANT  need to develop and support social systems that address child abuse and respond in a responsible, swift manner that is in the best interest of the child.  A child remaining in the abusive custody of a parent, is NOT in the child's best interest.  What is in the best interest of the child is removing the child  from an abusive situation, and delivering  consequences and offering support and opportunity for  the abusive parent(s) to address their own abuse and give them a means to heal from it, if they are willing.

Abuse is generational, and is taught and passed down in families.  The only way to stop it, is to stop it and if able and willing to teach them a different way of being.  Obviously not all will be willing or able to heal from their pain.  But allowing them to pass this pain and way of being onto their children, is promoting and allowing violence toward children, and continuing it in our world.

Everything a mother, a father or guardian does, effects the child.  The more contact a parent has, the stronger an effect it will have on the child.  Shouldn't we as a society help mothers and fathers? I believe we should.   Regarding my niece, shouldn't we first stop her mother from harming her and offer help to her mother? Many people will not be willing or able to take the path of help and healing.  Often times, it  seems to be easier for one to choose the path of abusive behavior, instead of opening their heart and addressing and healing ones own pain and stopping the destructive behavior that can result from this pain. Is my niece's mother even capable or willing to learn that the ways in which she behaves and the decisions she makes is dangerous and violent and inappropriate for a child to be around??

For the past 7 years, when I have been around Ashley (my niece's mother)  and she has shown no desire to change her abusive ways.  She has only chosen to threaten and  intimidate others.  She has chosen to  isolate Madison from other loving relatives whom Madison loves.  Ashley displays no compassion, and no sense of right and wrong...she exhibits no sense of care for how her decisions and actions affect her daughter(s).  Nor has she ever shown any care for their safety or well-being.
The abuse of a child has damaging and life long affects. Abuse CHANGES a child.  Abuse is what Ashley Terjelian Meek  and Robert Meek experienced as children.  And unfortunately, they care nothing about their own well-being or that of children they are in control of.  Instead, they spread more violence in the world of my niece and her sister.  These decisions and behaviors have so far been allowed by authority figures in VT including the police who did nothing except blame me when Robert Meek tried to run me over in front of my niece in January 2007.

We can all help to stop the cycle of violence and abuse in our communities, one child--one family--at a time. 

This  site exists because I care about children and people and what is true and what is right.  This site exists as another one of my tools to stop the abuse of a child I know my 8 year-old niece Madison Terjelian.  

I feel like I have exhausted all avenues...and yet the blatant abuse continues.  I am creating this site to let others know of the epidemic of child abuse in our society and  with the hope  that it will succeed in helping to stop the abuse of at least one child, and hopefully many . 

There are 26,000 children in VT being abused.  My niece is  one.  Her sister is another. 

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traumatic brain injury

I became a TBI advocate for a variety of reasons.  A brain injury can happen to anyone and is often misunderstood and mistreated. I care about what is right and the right to a high quality of life for everyone.  The survivor of a brain injury usually  loses their rights and voice in our society..  Brain injury affected me personally when my  brother was  injured  in 1986.

 After years of failed counseling and state intervention with my brother and our family,  I took an interest into finding a solution.  In 2000 I  started researching about TBI and all of the things that accompany the injury including lawsuits, and legal actions.      I came across some disturbing facts. I learned, there really is no social  system in place to help those (and their families) who survive a brain injury although help and resources are available and many people can recover remarkably.   The available institutions are few and underdeveloped and only have the ability to help a small percentage of brain injury survivors.   It seems our number one solution for helping brain injured individuals is to imprison them. 

 Every 21 seconds in the U.S., a person is brain injured. 
 70-80% (or more)  of those in prison, have had a brain injury.

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child abuse

I became involved in the issue of child abuse, when concerns arose about the abuse of my niece while in the custody of her mother.  I had been visiting with my niece on a regular basis until the mother prohibited my mother and I from visiting her.    (My niece was born  in Nov. 2002 to Ashley Terjelian and Larkin Forney during some difficult  times in both their lives.  During Ashley's pregnancy in the summer of 2002, she  was being beat up at home by her father, Paul Terjelian  and Larkin was distraught and being told by Paul Terjelian that his daughter (Madison) had been aborted and to not worry about it.)

One Child's Story

The Terjelians are abusers.  Ashley Terjelian Meek, a mother of three, is an abuser who married an abuser.   It is a generational cycle and MUST be stopped by those who do not support the abuse of children.  Please view the court documents on this site showing the Terjelian violence. http://www.voicesforvermontchildren.com/ashley6.html

I started researching the signs and symptoms of child abuse on the internet-- the resources available nationally and locally, and searched for whom to contact about my concerns.  I located and contacted everyone.  PCAV, DCF, The Police.  The courts.  Lawyers.  Our officials.  Our representatives...the press....  My brother and I have been going around in circles, contacting different people, writing letters, filing motions, only to be told to call another number and that there is no reason to substantiate abuse of Madison Terjelian while in the custody of the mother Ashley Terjelian or that they do not handle that or that the courts handle that or it's a police issue or vice versa...

We are told that photos of bruises and audio of Madison speaking of the abuse by Patrick Duxbury and others  is not evidence and not allowed in court.  A 6 year-old child disclosing to me,  her aunt, that she sees naked men and boys at home... Sometime but not all the time (and then has a panic attack) is hard evidence and  SHOULD be of major concern to DCF and their workers.  But it (along with other signs and evidence that abuse is occurring)  has been ignored.

Judge Mark Keller (note: IN 2011, MARK KELLER WAS NOT REINSTATED AS A FAMILY COURT JUDGE.) the family court judge in charge, made a final ruling on Jun 25, 2008 that Ashley have sole legal and physical responsibility for Madison and that Larkin Forney shall have parent child contact as follows: (see court document on child custody June 25, 2008)   and that Both parties shall attempt to facilitate a positive relationship between Madison and the other party.  Both parties shall have Madison refer to Ms. Terjelian as mother, mommy or mom and refer to Mr Forney as father, daddy or dad.  (June 25, 2008) Ashley continues to do  the exact opposite of attempting to facilitate a positive relationship between Madison and her dad and she still continues to neglect and abuse Madison and her other children.

Ashley refers to Larkin Forney as a child molester to Madison and tells her she is in danger and that her father will hurt her.  Robert Meek (Ashley's  husband) tells Madison he will shoot your father with a shotgun.  (Threatening comments on the comments section regarding the video of Ashley and Robert attacking me and my family in front of Madison and other children on  Jan. 7, 2007 are believed to have been left by Ashley, Robert or others.  Whoever left these comments, make threats similar to Robert's and Ashley's verbal threats against Larkin and his family.)  (note: ROBERT MEEK LEFT ASHLEY AND FILED FOR DIVORCE IN EARLY 2011 DUE TO HER ABUSIVE BEHAVIORS TOWARD HIM.  HE HAS SPOKEN OF THE FACT THAT ASHLEY HAS BEEN “GETTING THOSE CHILDREN HIGH EVERY DAY SINCE THE DAY THEY WERE BORN.  HE IS CONCERNED ABOUT THE SAFETY OF THE TWO GIRLS AND  OF THE LITTLE BOY BORN TO ASHLEY IN 2011.)

 We have not seen Madison since late July 2008 in spite of court orders. ( Madison was located and was able to visit with her Aunt, grandparents and father  for several months from 2009-spring 2010). Ashley is in contempt of court AGAIN and each day that she has custody of her children is a day they get abused and more damage is done.    Ashley is allowing Robert Meek and Patrick Duxbury and others to abuse my brother's  8 year-old daughter.   Larkin Forney is trying to stop the abuse of his daughter and was hoping the family court judge Mark Keller would stop it.  The judge(s) is    the one who is appointed into the state of VT legal system to make a decision for what is in the best interest of the child .

It is in her best interest to not be abused.  But she is still being abused.  Abuse is horrible.  Abuse is damaging.  Abuse (and  the allowing of abuse to continue) needs to be addressed and stopped.

But who will stop it?  Who stops the abuse of a child?  The police? A judge?  The law? 
We have gone to DCF (Dept. For Children and Families) and they told me they are not a preventative system and they have sent letters to my brother and myself that there is no reason to substantiate abuse.  In 2003 Madison was found to be a CHINS (Child in Need of Supervision) and custody was taken away from the mother, Ashley Terjelian. http://www.voicesforvermontchildren.com/ashley5.html  My niece was then placed back into the care and custody of her mother, by the authorities of the State Of Vermont.

I'm dumbfounded at the rulings and reasoning.  The abuse is obvious.  And is has been ongoing for my niece's  entire life.  Madison was taken out of her mother's custody by SRS (presently DCF) in 2003 and placed in the temporary custody of her maternal grandparents Lisa and Paul Terjelian  (child abusers).  Why were her paternal grandparents, Linda and Richard Forney never considered for temporary custody of their granddaughter?  Why was it decided that the child stay within the custody of the abusive Terjelian family? (where Ashley was able to have daily contact with her daughter.)  Why is it still ok for Madison to be hidden from her father and extended family?  (a major sign that abuse is occurring.) It is NOT OK with me for this to be continuing to my niece.  And it should not  be OK with anyone who cares about the well-being of others especially children.

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During a walk to raise money for Prevent Child Abuse Vermont, I was told  a story by an aunt of one little girl and her sister who remained in the abusive custody of her mother for years.  All reports to DCF and authorities were ignored until the older of the two girls (age 9) tried to kill herself because of the abuse. 

I do not want it to escalate to this point with my niece.

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I have met a wide spectrum of people while on Church Street in Downtown Burlington.  I talk with many people while displaying a  large sign painted with facts and statistics on child abuse (one of my attempts to hopefully reach  someone who can help to stop the abuse of my niece).
Many people have told me of theirs and others stories of abuse.  One  person told me that he has met a lot of people while traveling on the road (and many if not most  homeless people are products of abuse).  He realized through his conversations with these kids (these folks), that  there are two paths that a survivor of abuse can take.  They can choose to take the path of confronting and   healing the abuse, or they can choose to hide the abuse and continue down the path of abuse and remain a victim and/or abuse others. He asks, which one do you think is harder?  The answer is: confronting and healing the abuse.

 Ashley Terjelian, Robert Meek, Kristen Place and others have taken the easy path and Larkin Forney and his  daughter and others are  paying for it.

My brother has taken the path to healing (from the abuse and trauma he has experienced in his life) and he does not want his daughter to continue to pay for mistakes he made in the past particularly the  mistake he made when he got involved with Kristen Place in 2002.  A  mistake which unjustly  labels him as a sex offender.  The mistake he made  was believing an abuser,  Kristen Place,  in 2002 when she pursued and lied to him about her age in order to have sex with him and get him in trouble with the law.  Her lies continue to this day (7 years later) in order to keep helping her friend (Ashley Terjelian Meek) to  harm Larkin and his attempts to stop the abuse of his daughter.  (note: DUE TO THE STRESSES AND PAIN LARKIN HAS EXPERIENCED IN LIFE AND CONCERNING THE SITUATION WITH HIS DAUGHTER, HE HAS AGAIN CHOSEN TO DRINK ALCOHOL TO COVER HIS PAIN.  IN EARLY 2010, HIS ADDICTION CONTINUED TO EFFECT HIS BEHAVIOR  TO THE POINT HIS FAMILY COULD NO LONGER HELP HIM.   HE HAS NOT SEEN HIS DAUGHTER SINCE THAT TIME---AND BY EXTENSION, NEITHER HAVE MADISON’S PATERNAL GRANDPARENTS OR MYSELF (HER AUNT).  SHE HAS BEEN ISOLATED FOR TWO YEARS FROM US, BEING ABUSED, HARMED AND BRAINWASHED BY HER MOTHER TO BELIEVE THAT WE INTEND TO KIDNAP AND HARM HER.)

Larkin Forney  is a recent college graduate (graduating near the top of his class)  and he is a good, honest  person.  The courts and others, via their lies and rulings are trying to paint him as a dangerous sex offender. He does have a long rap sheep.   He is trying to get his daughter out of the dangerous custody of the mother and away from Robert Meek and others..   Larkin Forney ran for State Senate in 2008 (opening himself up to public scrutiny)  because of his concern for the safety of his daughter and wanting to expose the abuse and the courts rulings regarding his daughter and his attempts at exposing the abuse and attaining custody of his daughter.  
  Larkin Forney is a  great father who only has his daughter's best interest at heart. Unfortunately,  the woman he had a daughter with is the product of child abuse and IS CHOOSING to continue the generational cycle of abuse by  abusing  their daughter.  And unfortunately, no one is helping him to stop it.  

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Currently, Madison Terjelian (and her sister AND BROTHER) is still in the custody of their sick mother, Ashley Terjelian Meek a mother who forces Madison to ingest Xanax, and gives naked men and boys access to her. A mother is supposed to be the nurturer and provider and keep her children safe from the darkness of the world. Ashley is NOT a mother---She is the abuser of (at least) two (THREE) children. She is a thief of innocence.
{Female-female Abuse The bottom line is that society finds this idea (of sexual abuse by women) very hard to accept, because if we accept that women can be abusers, then how can we ever feel safe that our children are safe?
www.healthyplace.com/abuse
(Written January 18, 2008 by Kimberlee Forney- Artist for Social Justice and Change--some revisions and updates October 2010 AND JANUARY 2012)

 (Written January 18, 2008 by Kimberlee Forney- Artist for Social Justice and Changesome revisions and updates October 2010.)