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In the Interest of J. H.

The mother's failure to address her mental help problems or avail herself to assistance offered by DFACS and her co-workers to find housing supported the termination of her parental rights.

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The natural mother of J. O. H. and J. A. H. appeals the juvenile court’s order terminating her parental rights. In her sole enumeration of error on appeal, the mother contends that there is insufficient evidence that the children’s deprivation is likely to continue. Specifically, the mother contends that the Department of Family and Children Services DFCS “refused to use reasonable efforts to help her regain custody of her children.” We disagree and therefore affirm. In reviewing a juvenile court’s ruling terminating parental rights, we view the evidence in a light most favorable to the juvenile court’s determination.1 We will affirm the lower court’s ruling if the record demonstrates that any rational trier of fact could have found by clear and convincing evidence that the parent’s right to custody has been lost.2

Viewed in this manner, the record demonstrates that in early 2002, the mother was living in a Salvation Army homeless shelter with her two boys, four-year-old J. O. H. and two-year-old J. A. H.3 According to Anita Thomas, the manager of the shelter, the children: were not clean; were poorly supervised; were fed “junk food;” and had black eyes. Thomas also testified that the mother was supposed to be looking for permanent housing while at the shelter, which had a program whereby its inhabitants could bank money toward future rent. Although the mother received an income tax refund of approximately $1,200, she failed to bank any money toward future rent or to take advantage of the shelter’s assistance in finding suitable housing.

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