Defying all odds, they have remained a family.
The four Lee siblings were together again in the rambling West Adams district house they've come to call home. The elder three had come back from college to celebrate the 18th birthday of their youngest sister -- and to celebrate their good fortune at being rescued by total strangers when they were orphaned six years ago.
After their single mother died suddenly, the Lees -- Grace, 12; Emily, 13; and 15-year-old twins Patrick and Shane -- came within hours of being permanently split apart.
No relatives could be found, and family friends were unable to permanently accommodate the suddenly homeless brood. Because older children are difficult to place in foster homes, it seemed certain the four were about to be sent their separate ways.
That's when a campaign to find them a new home was hatched at Fairfax High School.
As a group of students there prepared to plaster Fairfax district telephone poles with "Looking for a Home" posters, writer-producer Gavin Glynn stepped in.
Glynn, who is gay, agreed to take in the Lees. And the orphans bucked the odds once more when county officials agreed to let him serve as foster father for all four.
Things were rocky at first. But now the Lees recognize their good luck.
"We stayed a family. That's the most important thing. We became a strong family," said Shane, now 21 and a junior majoring in communications at San Francisco State. "We used to be individuals. Our dad helped our bond as a family grow."
Patrick, a junior studying cinema at San Francisco State, agreed. So did 19-year-old Emily, who is studying at Los Angeles City College.
"This is a special place," said Grace, the 18-year-old who is scheduled to finish high school in February and enter West Los Angeles College.
The Lees were orphaned in late November 2001 when their mother, Katherine Lee, 46, had a heart attack. Patrick administered CPR following instructions given to him by a 911 operator, but she later died at a hospital.
The siblings spent several days in temporary shelters before being reunited by a friend of their mother who took them into her Westside apartment. After less than two months, the woman's landlord ruled that the children were violating the terms of her lease and gave them a deadline to leave.
For a time, it appeared they might be placed in separate foster homes by Los Angeles County child welfare officials. That's when Patrick and Shane's skateboarding buddies stepped in.
