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$500K Raised for Father Who Refused to Give Up Down Syndrome Son; Boy's Mother Denies Threatening Him With Divorce

Samuel Forrest and his son, Leo, (L) and baby Leo (R).
Samuel Forrest and his son, Leo, (L) and baby Leo (R). | (Photos: Samuel Forrest)

A New Zealand father whose Armenian wife reportedly left him because he refused to abandon their newborn diagnosed with Down syndrome, has received nearly $500,000 in support from around the world to help him care for the boy. His former wife, however, is disputing his story.

The father, Samuel Forrest, told ABC News that when little Leo was diagnosed with Down syndrome shortly after his birth in Armenia on Jan. 21 his wife, Ruzan Badalyan, gave him an ultimatum.

"This pediatrician walks out of the room with a little bundle — that was Leo," said Forrest. "She had his face covered up and hospital authorities wouldn't let me see him or my wife. When the doctor came out, he said 'there's a real problem with your son.'"

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In Armenia, according to Forrest, children with disabilities are frowned upon culturally and are usually abandoned in squalid orphanages every year. His wife allegedly told him that he would have to choose between her or his son.

"I got the ultimatum right then," said Forrest. "She told me if I kept him then we would get a divorce."

Last Thursday, Badalyan confirmed with ABC News that she gave birth to a child with Down syndrome and that she left her husband, but she didn't say much more.

In a Facebook post on Saturday, however, she explained what led to the most "ruthless decision in my life."

"Hardly had I recovered from the first shock, when the doctor approached me and told me to voice my decision whether I was going to keep Leo or not. I had to make the most ruthless decision in my life within several hours," she said.

"The first thing that came to my mind after the diagnosis was that I don't want my child to live in a country where certain stereotypes dominate the lives of people with DS and no opportunities at all. I want him to be involved and well-received in society, an integration that will require years and years for our society to adjust to. I saw the evasive looks of the doctors, my relatives' tear-stained faces, received calls of condolences and realised [sic] that only a move to a country with such standards as New Zealand would entitle my son to a decent life," she continued.

Badalyan further explained that she hadn't received any financial support from her then unemployed husband who was depending on her family and her $180 salary to survive. She claims that she didn't see how it would be possible to raise a special needs child all by herself in a country that has very little infrastructure to support children with disabilities.

"I understood that in Armenia, where [there] is no extensive social infrastructure to help children with developmental disabilities, no governmental support, with the continuous hard economic situation in the country, with the possibility of renewed war with our hostile neighbour — with whom the fragile cease-fire seems to be deteriorating over time — always looming in the background, with my salary of $180 being partly supported by my sister and living in my mother's place and having no other income, as my husband did not work, I would not be able to raise my child with special needs," she said.

Credit : (Photo: Screen Grab via GoFundMe)
(Photo: Screen Grab via GoFundMe)

"In the hardest moment of my life when my husband should be next to me and support and help to take the right decision, I could not find any support from his side. … Without giving me any option and trying to find with me any solution in this hardest situation, he started to circulate the story on every possible platform without even trying to give me a voice, accusing that I put him an ultimatum marriage or the baby, which is absolutely not true. I tried several times to communicate but he never tried to listen me and to find common solutions. The only response was the accusation from his part," she noted.

Forrest told ABC News, however, that he wasn't aware of the cultural practices when it came to children with disabilities in Armenia.

"What happens when a baby like this is born here, they will tell you that you don't have to keep them," he said. "My wife had already decided, so all of this was done behind my back."

He said a week after Leo's birth his wife asked for a divorce.

"It's not what I want," Forrest said. "I didn't even have a chance to speak with her in privately [sic] about it."
Far from being unemployed he told ABC that he works as a freelance business contractor, and will be returning to New Zealand where he will find support for Leo.

Once Forrest went public with his story it went viral and a gofundme campaign he started to get help with his son has raised almost $500,000 from donors outraged at the ruthless decision of Leo's mother.

In a message on the gofundme page Sunday, Forrest thanked donors and said he would be using the funds raised to care for Leo, but he will also be dedicating some of it to spread awareness about Down syndrome and other disabilities in Armenia. He also asked that people not target Leo's mother with "frustrations."

"The outpouring of kind emotions and great wishes has been overwhelming. Leo is one lucky guy. He is doing well and is very healthy. He gets visitors daily who shower him with love and affection. Leo is the number one priority for me right now and needs all my attention," he said.

"The money raised is far beyond anything we expect or need. With a team of experts, I am planning how to best use the funds that you have entrusted to me. Of course this is for Leo, but it is also for the people of Armenia. My hope is to assist and help bring a better understanding of how to cope with newborns and children with special needs. I think this will be Leo's legacy to his Armenian heritage. We will keep you updated," he continued.

"Ruzan should not be the target of all of the frustrations that this situation has created. Our paths may be moving in different directions, but she is Leo's mother and I still feel a great deal of love for her. She and many like her are the victims of the social norms in Armenia. My hope is that through raising awareness we will be able to change things for the better," he ended.

Contact: leonardo.blair@christianpost.com Follow Leonardo Blair on Twitter: @leoblair Follow Leonardo Blair on Facebook: LeoBlairChristianPost

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