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HomeMy WebLinkAbout94-2794 Civil IN RE: CHANGE OF NAME OF : IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF NATHAN TREVOR ARMOLD : CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA : CIVIL ACTION - LAW : : NO. 94-2794 CIVIL TERM IN RE: CHANGE OF MINOR'S NAME BEFORE OLER, J. ORDER OF COURT AND NOW, this l~ay of October, 1994, upon consideration of the Petition for Change of Name respecting Nathan Trevor Armold, following a hearing and for the reasons stated in the accompanying Opinion, the Petition is GRANTED and the name of Nathan Trevor Armold is CHANGED to Nathan Trevor Cresswell. BY THE COURT, ill '".,: ': J'W sley a. Suzanne H. Griest, Esq. 129 East Market Street York, PA 17401 Attorney for Petitioner David L. Miller 2843 Deer Chase Lane York, PA 17403 Natural Father, Pro Se :re IN RE: CHANGE OF NAME OF : IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF NATHAN TREVOR ARMOLD : CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA : CIVIL ACTION - LAW : NO. 94-2794 CIVIL TERM IN RE: CHANGE OF MINOR'S NAME BEFORE OLER, J. OPINION and ORDER OF COURT Oler, J. This case was commenced by the filing of a petition by a mother for change of name with respect to her minor son. A hearing on the petition was held on Monday, August 1, 1994. Based upon the evidence presented at the hearing and upon applicable case law, the petition will be granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. Petitioner is Suzanne Michele Cresswell, an adult individual residing at 8 Monarch Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.~ 2. The subject of the petition for change of name is Petitioner's son, Nathan Trevor Armold, a five-year-old child born on July 31, 1989, and residing with Petitioner at 8 Monarch Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania.2 3. Petitioner's husband is Scott Brian Cresswell, an adult individual residing with Petitioner and her son at 8 Monarch Lane, Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania;3 Petitioner and N.T. 6, Hearing, August 1, 1994 (hereinafter N.T. __). N.T. 6, 8. N.T. 11-12. IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM her husband were married in May of 1994 -- a first marriage for each -- and Petitioner assumed her husband's name.4 4. The natural father of Petitioner's son is David Lester Miller, an adult individual residing at 2843 Deer Chase Lane, York, York County, Pennsylvania.s 5. Petitioner and the natural father were never married,6 their son was born out of wedlock,7 he was given Petitioner's maiden name of Armold,8 and he has never used the name of his natural father.9 6. Petitioner's reason for seeking a change of name for her child was expressed at the hearing by her as follows: Nathan is beginning to enter school this August, and for school purposes of how he will be seen to the public, and I plan to be in attendance with Nathan as a room mother, I felt it was in Nathan's best interest to be seen as a unit of my family, that we had the same last name. Scott and I have discussed it. We would like to have other children, and we don't want Nathan to feel like an outsider with our other children by having a different last name. And we'd like to show a full family unit of all of us residing with the N.T. 6, 8, 12, 20. N.T. 18. N.T. 7. N.T. 6, 12. N.T. 6-7. N.T. 8. IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM same last name.~° 7. The natural father opposed the change of name, expressing his position at the hearing as follows: Well, first of all, you know, I feel very strongly that the name -- for Nathan's name to be changed to Cresswell, you know, is not going to affect him one way. You know, it's not going to go against him in his learning and in facilitating him and his school, the way his friends accept him, because Nathan is his name. And his last name -- the reason he wants Cresswell to be his last name is because his mother instilled that in him. And at the same point in time, it would just make it a lot more convenient for her in the enrollment process in the school. The environment that he's in, as far as a family, is very important, but at the same point in time, many children, many many children, nowadays do carry a different last name. With this, you know, if the name change would go through, I'd feel a separation from my child. Yes, the child has my -- well, his mother's maiden name, but it's a blood/parent name, and I have no problems with that. But it just -- for my child to have a different last name other than one of his parents, you know, I completely object to. Recently, back before Suzanne got married, I got a letter from her saying she informed Nathan it's okay to have two fathers; but at the same point in time, she never went on and said it's okay for Nathan to have two different -- a different last name from his mother, basically which would result from the marriage. And last but not least, Suzanne had gotten married in May. Her marriage has been ~0 N.T. 8. IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM for two months, and she has resided where she is since December of '93. Now Suzanne is, I believe, 23 years old, and I'm not exactly sure how old Scott is. It's a young marriage, and who's to say -- I'm not saying their marriage is bad, and Nathan shows good signs from both of them, but how do we know that five years down the road things won't be as sweet as they are after two months of marriage? And then my son will be carrying around her ex-husband's last name. And that really would really really bother me then because marriages usually are nice in the beginning, and with statistics with young marriages, it's 50 percent plus, according to different statistics. And last -- this is the last thing -- if you feel that there is a need to change Nathan's last name, I would like to ask you right now for a continuation of this hearing so I may file a petition for him to have my last name, which my last name will always be, and there would be no reason to ever have it changed again.~ 8. Petitioner's son expressed the desire at the hearing that his name be changed from Armold to Cresswell;~2 he has used Cresswell as his last name in the past.~3 9. The natural father initially declined to acknowledge paternity in the case of Petitioner's son,TM as a result of which ~ N.T. 19-21. ~2 N.T. 16-17. ~3 N.T. 9, 16, 22. It is clear, however, that Petitioner's prompting is at least partly responsible for her son's desire to change his name. N.T. 18. ~4 N.T. 7. 4 IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM he is approximately $3,000 in arrears on a support order.~s 10. On the other hand, the natural father and his family members have a good relationship with the child, and he sees the child every two weeks or so.~6 11. Both Petitioner and the natural father love their child and desire to do what is in his best interest.~7 12. The natural father's love for his child is such that he would not allow a change of his child's name to affect their relationship, even though he opposes such a change.~8 13. Petitioner's son has also grown to love Petitioner's husband,~9 although the latter understands that it would not be desirable for him to try to replace the natural father in the child's eyes and he encourages contact with the natural father and his family.2° 14. The proposed change of name is in the child's best interest, in that it will facilitate his school experience as an identified member of a family unit, will maintain the uniformity of N.T. 10-11. N.T. 7-9. N.T. 8-9; 19-21. N.T. 9. N.T. 13. N.T. 12. 5 IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM his and his mother's last names, and should not significantly affect his relationship with his natural father. DISCUSSION A thoughtful discussion of issues presented where the mother of a child, born out of wedlock and bearing the mother's maiden name, seeks to have the name changed to that of a man she has married, and where the natural father objects to the change, is contained in In re Richie, 387 Pa. Super. 401, 564 A.2d 239 (1989) (Beck, J.). "As has been recognized," the Court noted, "'the child's best interests must control in a proceeding to change a minor child's surname.'" Id. at 404, 564 A.2d at 241, quoting In re Montenegro, 365 Pa. Super. 98, 101, 528 A.2d 1381, 1382 (1987). In Richie, the following observations were made by the Court in affirming a lower court's grant of a name change petition in the present context: It seems clear to us from the face of the petition alone that the child's mother offered sufficient support for her position that a name change would be in the child's best interest. It seems only logical that a child will grow up feeling more part of a family unit when she shares the name of the parent with whom she resides, in this case, her mother. [The father] appears to completely disregard the impact which denial of this petition might have on the child. He boldly asserts that the mother's reasons for seeking the name change "have less to do with making [the child's] life easier than they do with making [the mother's] life more respectable since [the child] would then be known to the world by her stepfather's name and presumed to 6 IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM be his child. This result is not in the child's best interest since it would be detrimental to her relationship with [the father]." We disagree. It is easy to understand why a father would object to the name change of a child who shares his surname. A name change in that case could arguably have some effect upon the parent-child relationship, at least to the extent that the child would no longer be held out to the world as the issue of his or her father. In the instant case, the child has had her mother's name from birth. With her present surname ..., [the child] is no more or less "known to the world" as [the father's] child then she would be with any other surname. To insist that the child retain her current surname under these circumstances would provide no real benefit to [the father], but may well work to the detriment of the child whose mother has assumed a new name. [The father] claims that the name change would be detrimental to his relationship with [the child] as it would lead to the presumption that she is the natural child of [the stepfather]. However, we perceive this argument as one aimed more at the best interest of [the father] than that of the child. The child's mother made clear that the child knows [the father] as her natural father. Whether the child retains the [mother's maiden name] seems of little consequence vis-a-vis the father-child relationship. What is of consequence is how the child will be identified to the outside world, a particularly important factor as [the child] enters school. Certainly, in this age of ever-shifting family dynamics, there are many children who do not share the surname of a natural parent. However, where a child has the opportunity to share the name of the family with whom she lives, we see no reason to thrust upon the child the burden of explaining why she does not share that name. 7 IN RE: ARMOLD 94-2794 CIVIL TERM In re Richie, 387 Pa. Super. 401, 404, 564 A.2d 239, 241 (1989). Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact, and in accordance with the decision in Richie, the following Order of Court will be entered: ORDER OF COURT AND NOW, this [~day of October, 1994, upon consideration of the Petition for Change of Name respecting Nathan Trevor Armold, following a hearing and for the reasons stated in the accompanying Opinion, the Petition is GRANTED and the name of Nathan Trevor Armold is CHANGED to Nathan Trevor Cresswell. BY THE COURT, s/ J. Wesley Oler, Jr. J. Wesley Oler, Jr., J. Suzanne H. Griest, Esq. 129 East Market Street York, PA 17401 Attorney for Petitioner David L. Miller 2843 Deer Chase Lane York, PA 17403 Natural Father, Pro Se :re