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| Special Advertising Section |
From left, Ryanne E. Drogos, Esq., Geannine M. Boyette, Esq., Lori A. Ingram, N.C. Certified Paralegal.
The BoyeTTe Law Firm
616 Princess Street, Wilmington • (910) 251-9213 • www.BoyetteLaw.com
www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com WBM
“This one was forced into prosti-tution
at eight years old. That one
saw her mother run over by a train
as they begged in a station. That one
was forced to bury her baby sister
after her mother killed the child,
because she was not a boy,” Sister
Sophy said.
fter the tour, I reached
into my pocket.
Whatever I had,
dollars, rupees,
I would leave
behind. Prathyasha Bhavan was a
very poor place. If it had not been
for a little girl standing in the shadow
of Sister Sophy, I would have given
my donation, then climbed back into
my air-conditioned car and returned
to my air-conditioned life. The child
was wearing sunglasses, and I needed
to know why.
Little Reena had been begging
on the street with her mentally ill
mother, Sister Sophy said. They were
separated, and the beggar mafia kid-napped
Reena.
Sister Sophy removed the sunglasses.
“They took her to their place,
held her down hand and foot and
with a darning needle gouged out
her eye, so she would make a more
pitiful beggar and bring them more
money,” Sister Sophy said.
Her tone was even, uninflected,
the voice of a woman who had wit-nessed
so much cruelty.
I looked down into Reena’s
upturned face: One eye was perfect
and bright, the other a dull mass of
dead tissue. By now I could barely
breathe. Without hesitation, Reena
returned my look with the most
beautiful and trusting smile I had
ever seen in my life.
My mind was a jumble of emo-tions
— rage, pity and helplessness.
Then one clear thought pushed all
others out of the way: Reena, you
have had a horrible past. Somehow,
some way, I want to make your
future the best I can.
That smile — that certain smile —
G eannine M. Boyette and her associate, Ryanne E. Drogos, practice in the areas of
Domestic and Criminal Law, dealing with issues such as child custody and support,
spousal support, equitable distribution and divorce, DWI, and criminal and traffic
violations. Geannine also devotes a fair share of her practice to defending individuals against
the Department of Social Services. According to Geannine, “One of the things that is unique
about our firm is that we remain sensitive to the fact that our clients are being asked to make
decisions about important and often complex issues while under tremendous emotional
distress. As a result, we are able to more effectively meet their needs.”
A
8115 Market St. Ste 204
Just minutes from Wrightsville Beach
(910) 686-1869
www.GrowingGrins.com
Welcome Dr. Brian Talley!