Today, I'm about to give you the most wholesome, feel-good story possible. It's what we all need right now, isn't it? Well, I'm going to make your day with this incredible story about a man who grew up in foster care and has grown up to adopt three young boys in an effort to give them a loving home, all while raising awareness about the importance of being a foster parent.
Single Man Who Grew Up In Foster Care Adopts Three Boys: 'We Have A Bunch Of Laughs'
In a new interview with *TODAY Parents*, single dad Barry Farmer explained how he transformed not only his life, but the lives of the three children he adopted.
"After talking to the director of programs she was like, 'Wow, impressive maturity. I’m willing to take a chance and license you as a foster parent,’" Barry told the news outlet.
"The director was like, ‘I can get you a license. But to be honest a young, single male, social workers are not going to be kicking down the door asking for you.'"
It took a year, but Barry got his first call for a 16-year-old who was in a group home. He stayed with Barry for six months. Two months later, he got another call — one that would change his life.
"They asked if I want to try another teenager or do I want to go with a 7-year-old,” he recalled.
"(I thought) ‘Why don’t we go with the 7-year-old and see how it is going to go?' It seemed like I could be a little more active and take him places."
"This child, in my head, is Black," Barry explained. "When I got there, he was just the whitest white child that I ever worked with … I thought, 'Wow this is going to be interesting.’ Because I have no clue what I am doing."
As it turns out, Barry knew exactly what he was doing.
"He was so loving and caring. He just wanted some hugs and to call me dad," he explained.
After bonding with one another, Jaxon left to stay with another family.
"I didn’t realize how close he was to me until he left,” he said. "I was sad and he was sad. He did end up coming back and that’s when we both decided that I would adopt him."
Barry was only 22-years-old at the time, but went with his heart and adopted the young boy.
"You’re responsible for somebody else’s life on purpose... Going from true strangers, we built a bond in six months where we felt comfortable enough to be father and son."
"We were on our way back from the courthouse and I heard a little voice in the backseat saying, ‘So am I going to have a brother?’ and I’m like ‘I just became your dad like 30 minutes ago can we just calm down?’" he recalled. "Once I was taking care of him, he did need a sibling." Soon after Jaxon's adoption, Barry found a boy named Xavier, who lived out of state and needed a family.
“Kids need to know that you are committed to them. I wanted to be that person for him."
He explained to the news outlet why he felt the need to help these children..
"What motivates me are those feelings of rejection of not having my parents around. My grandmother, she didn’t have to take me in. I didn’t even know her... Why she did it, it was to help. She didn’t have to, she wanted to. Those are my reasons as well. I didn’t have to, I wanted to. It just really gave me a sense of purpose and I enjoyed it."
Soon after adopting Xavier, the program director at a foster agency reached out to Barry about fostering a 4-year-old boy. Understandably, the dad of two felt unsure. He said no at first but believed that if it was meant to be, he’d receive a sign.
A few months later, the director called again about the boy, Jeremiah, who needed a respite placement. "I thought this must be it. He must belong here."
Jeremiah soon became a part of the family. Jaxon is now 19; Xavier is 17 and Jeremiah is 11. The family enjoys their mini road trips on the East coast, visiting amusement parks, exploring new cities, and going to the beach.
“We have a bunch of laughs,” Barry told TODAY. "That really brought us all together."
What a beautiful and heartfelt story!
h/t: TODAY
Filed Under:
Most Popular
