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Pursuant to Ind.Appellate Rule 65(D), this Memorandum Decision shall not be regarded as precedent or cited before any court except for the purpose of establishing the defense of res judicata, collateral estoppel, or the law of the case.

ATTORNEYS FOR APPELLANTS:
DAVID W. STONE, IV

ATTORNEY FOR APPELLEES:
C. RICHARD MARTIN

Stone Law Office & Legal Research Anderson, Indiana
GREGORY A. SMITH

Martin & Martin, Attorneys at Law, P.C. Boonville, Indiana

Washington, Indiana
ROBERT G. HAMILTON, II

Salem, Indiana

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF INDIANA
IN RE THE GUARDIANSHIP and ) ADOPTION OF M.S.G. and N.B.C., WILL and ) STACY FERGUSON, MARK and ANGELA ) CLINTON, ) ) Appellants-Petitioners, ) ) vs. ) ) ROBERT GARRISON and GINGER COMBS, ) ) Appellees-Respondents, ) ) and ) ) MITCH and PATTY AHRENS, ) ) Interveners. )

No. 14A01-0512-CV-535

APPEAL FROM THE DAVIESS CIRCUIT COURT The Honorable Robert L. Arthur, Judge Cause Nos. 14C01-0308-GU-19, 14C01-0310-GU-27, 14C01-0411-AD-227 and 14C01-0411-AD-228

August 29, 2006 MEMORANDUM DECISION - NOT FOR PUBLICATION FRIEDLANDER, Judge

Will and Stacy Ferguson (the Fergusons) petitioned to adopt M.S.G., and Mark and Angela Clinton (the Clintons) petitioned to adopt N.B.C. After a hearing, the trial court concluded the consent of the biological parents was necessary. The Fergusons and the Clintons now appeal, and present the following restated and consolidated issue: Did the trial court err in concluding the biological parents' consents to the adoptions were necessary? We affirm. The facts favorable to the judgment are that M.S.G. is four years old and the biological child of Ginger Combs and Robert Garrison (collectively, the parents when referred to jointly). N.B.C. is five years old and the biological child of Combs and Ivan Keith Combs (Keith). Both M.S.G. and N.B.C. lived with the parents. On July 8, 2003, the Fergusons obtained physical custody of M.S.G. and N.B.C. because the parents were being evicted from their home and needed temporary assistance with the care of M.S.G. and N.B.C. After being evicted from their home, the parents lived in a friend's home and 2

thereafter in their car. The arrangement with the Fergusons initially was intended by all parties to be temporary and last only two or three weeks. On August 1, 2003, the Clintons obtained physical custody of N.B.C. from the Fergusons because the Fergusons "c[ouldn't] handle both of them . . . ." Transcript at 134. On August 8, 2003, the parents consented to the Fergusons' guardianship of M.S.G. and Combs and Keith consented to the Clintons' guardianship of N.B.C. On August 26, 2003, the Clintons petitioned the trial court to be appointed as co-guardians of N.B.C., and on October 14, 2003, the Fergusons petitioned the trial court to be appointed as co-guardians of M.S.G. On October 27, 2003, the trial court appointed the Clintons as co-guardians of N.B.C. and the Fergusons as co-guardians of M.S.G. In October 2003, the parents attempted to arrange a visit with M.S.G., but were denied by the Fergusons because "they'd not seen [M.S.G.] for three months" and "[the Fergusons] were . . . mommy and daddy [now]." Id. at 58. Shortly thereafter, the Fergusons stopped answering or returning the parents' phone calls. During that time, Combs called the Fergusons eight times on October 7, 2003, three times on October 10, 2003, and three times on October 11, 2003. The parents attempted to visit M.S.G. on several other occasions, but were unable to because of financial problems. In December 2003, the Fergusons' phone was shut off, was reconnected from approximately November 2004 to February 2005 when it was again disconnected, and was not reconnected as of May 2, 2005. After the Fergusons' phone was disconnected in

December 2003, the parents wrote M.S.G. letters and sent the Fergusons letters requesting visits with M.S.G., to which the Fergusons never replied. They also sent 3

M.S.G. $40 and some clothes between April and September 2004. Combs did not have physical contact with M.S.G. from August 8, 2003 until November 18, 2004, and Garrison did not have physical contact with M.S.G. until November 21, 2004. Combs's experience with the Clintons closely resembles Garrison's and her experience with the Fergusons. 1 Combs called the Clintons a few times, and requested visitation during two of those calls. Combs sent the Clintons a check for $10 for the support of N.B.C., but the Clintons never cashed the check because they were concerned it would be dishonored. Combs also sent N.B.C. a stuffed animal, a coloring book, some bubbles, clothes, and diapers. Later, in February 2005, Combs sent N.B.C. more bubbles and clothing. The Clintons, like the Fergusons, stopped returning Combs's phone calls. Combs called the Clintons once on September 27, 2003, eight times on October 1, 2003, and five times on October 3, 2003, each time leaving a message requesting a return phone call. On July 2, 2004, the parents filed a petition to terminate the Fergusons' guardianship of M.S.G., and Combs filed a petition to terminate the Clintons' guardianship of N.B.C. On September 28, 2004, the parents filed an emergency petition for visitation with M.S.G., and Combs filed an emergency petition for visitation with N.B.C., both of which were granted on November 30, 2004. Before the trial court awarded the parents visitation with M.S.G., the Fergusons regularly refused their efforts to have unsupervised visits with M.S.G. Further, the Fergusons did not cash any of the

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Keith, N.B.C.'s biological father, consented to the Clinton's adoption of N.B.C. Keith is not a party to this appeal, and the record is unclear regarding his contact with N.B.C., if any.

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checks sent by the parents, explaining "[w]hat is Forty Dollars going to do?" Id. at 97. On November 4, 2004, the Fergusons filed a petition to adopt M.S.G., and the Clintons filed a petition to adopt N.B.C. On November 19, 2004, the parents filed a motion to contest the Fergusons' adoption of M.S.G., and Combs filed a motion to contest the Clintons' adoption of N.B.C. On September 7, 2005, the parents filed a motion to resume visitation with M.S.G., and Combs filed a motion to resume visitation with N.B.C. The trial court granted both motions. Thereafter, on October 26, 2005, the trial court

concluded the parents did not abandon M.S.G., and Combs did not abandon N.B.C. Both the Fergusons and the Clintons now appeal, raising identical issues. Additional facts are provided as necessary. The Fergusons and the Clintons contend the trial court erred when it concluded the parents had "contact . . . sufficient to require consent to the adoption" and "the parents . . . [did] not abandon[] [N.B.C. or M.S.G.,]" Appellant's Appendix at 175, because the parents did not communicate with or provide support for M.S.G. or N.B.C. We will not disturb the trial court's ruling unless the evidence leads to but one conclusion, and the trial court reached the opposite conclusion. In re Adoption of C.E.N., 847 N.E.2d 267 (Ind. Ct. App. 2006). We do not reweigh the evidence, but rather examine the evidence most favorable to the trial court's judgment, together with all reasonable inferences drawn therefrom, in order to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to sustain the decision. Id. Under Ind. Code Ann.

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