Two goats and a woman on a quest for justice and reunification
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Editor’s note: this story was originally published in The Daily Journal on Dec, 25, 2024. Updated information was added on Dec. 26, 2024.
Beverly Shaw, affectionately known as “The Goat Lady,” has been on a relentless quest to reunite with her husband, David Shaw, whom she alleges is a victim of medical kidnapping. Their journey, marked by love, determination, and an unusual companionship with her two “therapy goats,” has garnered significant media attention and public sympathy across several states.
Beverly Shaw’s van is a mobile billboard she uses to share her story. Lisa Brotherton-Barnes
The 64-year-old woman carries on a nomadic existence, primarily living out of a mini-van that she shares with the goats–Brownie and Marshmallow stay in kennels in the van–always on the move. The van is plastered with neon-green poster board laminated with photographs of herself and David. There is a marked difference in her husband’s countenance and physical condition between the periods of time she refers to as “before he got sick in Indiana” and “how it is now.” She has shared the same heart-wrenching story to media outlets in Indiana, New York, and Missouri; she will readily repeat it nearly verbatim to anyone with a listening ear.
Background
Beverly and David Shaw have shared over four decades of marriage, marrying shortly after high school, then they had a son. She said, “From the start, we have always been inseparable.”
They lived in what she called “their homestead paradise” in rural Southeast Missouri. She said theirs was a simple life that made them happy so long as they were together. They raised goats and trained them to perform and function as therapy animals for nursing homes and daycares. In November 2022, Beverly said David suffered a stroke, leading to a prolonged hospitalization and rehabilitation. By April 2023, under Beverly’s care, David returned home, showing significant improvement.
In August 2023, during a visit to David’s hometown of Shelbyville, Indiana, he became dangerously dehydrated due to the extreme summer heat. Beverly took him to a local hospital for emergency treatment where he received intravenous fluids. Beverly alleges that she had provided her husband’s medical information, being quite specific regarding the severe reactions he had to certain anti-anxiety medications and beta blockers. She alleges that the hospital’s negligence led to a severe infection at the IV site and that they administered the very medications to which David was allergic. When she threatened legal action, she claimed the hospital-acquired power of attorney and a court-appointed guardian for David without her knowledge, effectively stripping her of her rights and placing David in a nursing home against their wishes.
Beverly said this is the part of the story where their estranged adult son from Missouri, Jeremiah Shaw, makes his entrance. Fearful that their case would only languish within the Indiana courts, she said an agreement was made with Jeremiah acting as a straw man in a guardianship situation for David so they could return him to Missouri. Beverly agreed to discontinue the legal fight, Jeremiah was granted guardianship of his father, and they all returned to Missouri.
The allegations
Beverly contends that upon the return to Missouri, Jeremiah had David admitted to a nursing care facility, stating that his father’s care was beyond what could be provided at home and one of the conditions of him having guardianship was that David had to be admitted to a nursing home. Beverly contends that she is capable of providing the scope and scale of care required by her husband to recover his former state of good health. Instead, she alleges that David is being held in a nursing home to exploit his Medicare benefits and allow Jeremiah to gain control over their estate. She describes the facility’s conditions as deplorable, alleging that David is heavily sedated with medications like Haldol—known to be risky for elderly patients with dementia or stroke history, and one of the medications to which he is severely allergic—resulting in severe cognitive decline. She also reports instances of neglect, including unsanitary conditions and lack of proper hygiene care at the facility located in Farmington.
David, Beverly said, begged her to “get me out of this place!”
“So, I told the staff that I was taking him home and signed him out. I had a police officer with me and it was all done legally,” she said. “Then, I put him in a wheelchair, rolled him outside and then in the van, and we headed south.”
It was in Mississippi that they were unexpectedly pulled over by the state police and she was accused of kidnapping David. David was physically removed from the vehicle, separated from her, and transported back to the “lousy nursing home in Farmington,” according to Beverly.
“Now, because I fought for my husband, and threatened to report the nursing home for neglect, and because Jeremiah and his wife blame me for a hotline call to DFS over their kids not being treated right—they won’t let me see David,” she said, then broke into sobs. “All I want is to see my sweet David, to hold him and take care of him. I did get to visit him once with a clergy member present as chaperone, but that was months ago, long months ago. My so-called son won’t return my calls and I don’t know where my David is now. Jeremiah lives in Jackson with his wife and kids and has hidden David from me.”
Determined to regain guardianship of her husband, Beverly has launched a public campaign to raise awareness and funds for legal assistance. She created a GoFundMe page detailing their ordeal, seeking financial support to cover legal fees necessary to challenge the guardianship and “bring David home.” Several times, she has been successful in raising as much as $30,000 in February 2024 to retain an attorney to help fight the battle for her to regain guardianship. Her legal progress stalled when she had to dip into the funds for living expenses.
“When you can’t pay the lawyers, they lose interest in doing the right thing to help people,” she said.
The journey with the goats
Brownie and Marshmallow on their odyssey with owner Beverly Shaw. She allows people to pet them and have a picture taken for $5. Submitted
In a bid to draw attention to her cause and raise funds again, Beverly embarked on a curious journey accompanied by her two goats, Marshmallow and Brownie. Traveling over 1,000 miles from Missouri to New York, she sought assistance from various organizations and individuals, hoping to find someone who could help her navigate the legal complexities and reunite with her husband. She eventually found herself camping in her van, parked in front of Rockefeller Center.
“You’re not supposed to stay there overnight,” she whispered. “The police there were very kind, and they would remind me I shouldn’t be there, but they would check in on me and didn’t make me leave after I shared my story with them. I camped out there for two weeks.”
Beverly’s unique story has been covered by multiple media outlets, highlighting her unwavering commitment to her husband and the lengths she is willing to go to bring him home. Her tale has resonated with many, shedding light on issues related to guardianship, patient rights, and alleged medical exploitation through abduction. Westchester News 12 broadcast her story in October 2023. New York Times readers learned about her after she spoke to a woman who knew a reporter there and she made the headlines; other news affiliates shared the story. Yahoo News also did a feature on her quest in March 2024.
Current status
In the days after Beverly shared her story, the Daily Journal made several attempts to contact the administrator at the Farmington care facility Beverly spoke about. Calls were not returned. Attempts were also made to contact Jeremiah Shaw, the Shaws’ estranged adult son; those attempts also yielded no responses.
As of December 2024, Beverly continues her fight to regain the guardianship of David. Her GoFundMe campaign has garnered support, but the legal battle remains stalled. She struggles with living expenses and to get an attorney who will help her. She remains hopeful that increased awareness and public support will lead to a resolution, allowing her to bring David back home with her.
Until that time, she says she will “keep on keeping on.”
“I have an extra bag of grain, diapers, stuff that the goats need – water and a trough for the goats. Stuff to survive on until I get home,” she said, adding that she washes up in public restrooms and uses some of the money people give her to eat once a day and pay for gas. “People sometimes give me $10 or $20; I use as little as possible. I try to save back as much as I can for the lawyer fund. That’s the most important thing, the lawyer fund.”
She says she plans on staying in her van until she raises enough money to pay for her legal fees and hopefully, be reunited with her husband. She welcomes any questions or suggestions from anyone interested in her story. She can be reached by Facebook messenger (search for Beverly Shaw), by phone at (573) 200-4315, or by email at dnbshaw@gmail.com. The link to her GoFundMe page is gofundme.com/f/xb2ks-save-my-husbands-life. A Cash App has been established with the handle $2goatsand1lady.
Lisa Brotherton-Barnes is a staff writer for the Daily Journal and the Farmington Press. She can be reached at lbarnes@dailyjournalonline.com.
