Both in Ohio and nationally, Fathers and Families receives many letters from divorced or separated military servicemembers with painful but preventable family law problems.
Many parents serving in Afghanistan, Iraq, or other distant locales are anguished that custodial parents have impeded or completely eliminated their contact with their children. When the deployed soldier calls his children at the court-specified time, nobody answers. Letters are written, but they never reach the children.
Other servicemembers return from serving to find that, while they once had a custody arrangement which allowed them to play a meaningful role in their children”s lives, a new custody arrangement allows them only a marginal role, if any role at all. To regain their previous custody arrangement they must engage in costly, time-consuming litigation, which increases conflict and consumes much of the time and money that they would otherwise be spending on their children.
Still others have faced child support abuses or other financial abuses. Wounded veterans have had their disability checks illegally seized for alimony.
Nationally F & F has addressed these issues and related ones through legislation in dozens of states. For example, in California, F & F recently passed perhaps the strongest military parent protection bill in the country, AB 2416–to learn more, click here. To learn more about our successes nationally on this issue, click here.
F & F of Ohio is concerned about the abuses faced by Ohioans who serve, and is working on legislation to address this important issue for the next legislative session.
Together with you in the love of our children,
Donald C. Hubin, Ph.D., Chairman, F & F of Ohio Executive Committee
Paul Lee, Esq., Member, F & F of Ohio Executive Committee
Steven J. Kokensparger, Esq., Member, F & F of Ohio Executive Committee
Matthew Johnson, M.S. Ed., Member, F & F of Ohio Executive Committee