Sean and Luis Green are brothers who shared an extraordinary journey that changed their lives with the help of two angels.
They were born into a dysfunctional family.
During the few times they saw their father, he was physically and emotionally abusive. He ran with gangs and was often high on drugs and alcohol.
They lived with their mother in San Diego and Tijuana, frequently moving from apartments to the streets to shelters.
She took drugs and worked as a prostitute.
While she was out, they fended for themselves, foraging through trash bins and stealing food. They attended school sporadically.
In 1998, when Sean was 6 and Luis 8, their mother vanished. They later learned she died from a drug overdose.
The boys entered San Diego County’s foster care system, where they discovered adoption would be difficult due to their ages and sibling relationship. “The expectation was we would just go through the system until we turned 18 and leave,” Luis said.
Shortly after entering foster care, they met their first angel, Art Tabanao, a Court Appointed Special Advocate for foster children. CASAs are volunteers who, after getting to know the children and their foster care situations, report regularly to judges at court hearings as to the children’s progress and needs.
CASAs are screened, trained and supervised by Voices for Children, a San Diego nonprofit.
Art, a retired teacher, grew up in poverty. Several teachers provided guidance that helped him succeed, and he wanted to similarly help disadvantaged children.
After being screened and trained, Art was assigned to Sean and Luis.
“They didn’t trust me or anyone,” Art said. “They had gone through a lot.”
“I took them twice a week to McDonalds, worked with them in their classrooms and got to understand them. They slowly realized I cared for them.”
Luis said, “Art was the first person who was a reliable source of love.”
Sean added: “He was our first role model we could trust. He guided us, fought to keep us together and helped change several bad foster home situations.”
Their second angel, Debi Green (now Romero), was Sean’s third-grade teacher at Kellogg Elementary School in Chula Vista.
“I was in my 2nd year teaching and knew of the boys’ situation,” Debi recalled. “They would hang out in my classroom after school. They were like lost puppies.
“I got to know them and fell in love with them. “It was a crazy and unusual thing to do, but I wanted to adopt them.”
There was much resistance to the adoption due to Debi being 27 and single. Art, however, successfully advocated for a trial foster care placement, which could possibly lead to adoption.
“Art picked us up and said he was taking us to a new foster home. We had moved through a lot of homes and were unhappy in the current one,” Sean recalled. “We pulled up to a condo and were stoked to learn Debi was our new foster mom.”
“I had tears in my eyes,” Debi recalled of the boys’ arrival in 2002.
She adopted them in 2004, when they were 14 and 12.
“Adopting them was the best thing I ever did,” Debi said. “They enriched my life so much.”
Sean recalled: “I felt this is my family now. We all went to the courthouse for the adoption and celebrated.”
They have since enjoyed a true and loving family life.
Today, Sean, 31, lives in San Diego’s University Town Center neighborhood and owns a business. He plans to volunteer as a CASA with Voices for Children.
Luis, 33, lives with his wife and four children in Florida, where he also owns a business.
The brothers have a step-dad — Ed Romero, one of Sean’s former baseball coaches. Ed and Debi married in 2016. They live in Eastlake.
Art, who also lives in UTC, is considered family. He is “Uncle Art” in Sean’s cellphone.
Debi is now in her 24th year teaching.
Looking back at how they survived a tough early childhood, Luis and Sean point to their resilience as children that came from their refusal to dwell on negatives.
“Never give up,” Sean advises foster children. “Keep a smile on your face and be kind … especially to teachers.”
About this series
Goldsmith is a Union Tribune contributing columnist.
We welcome reader suggestions of people who have done something extraordinary or otherwise educational, inspiring or interesting and who have not received much previous media. Please send suggestions to Jan Goldsmith at [email protected]
