In today’s heartwarming news to restore your faith in humanity, a Pennsylvanian gay couple has adopted six siblings that had been in foster care for 1,640 days!
Steve Anderson-McLean and his partner Rob Anderson-McLean adopted all of the kids so they won’t be split up. So, they adopted the 14-year-old Carlos, the 13-year-old Guadalupe, the 12-year-old Maria, the 10-year-old Selena, the 9-year-old Nasa, and the 7-year-old Max.
They adopted all six kids on May 23, 2019, and Steve gave an interview with Good Morning America in which he spoke about the decision.
“The judge asked, ‘Do you understand at this point forward they are your children? They are just as much as your biological children.’ Obviously, we knew that, but when I looked up and saw all those eyes, it was very emotional. We never imagined we’d be lucky enough or blessed enough to have six.” – he said.
The couple has been together for more than 18 years, and they got married in Maryland in 2013.
They raised two kids, Parker, aged 25, and Noah, 21, from a previous marriage, but after they grew up and moved out, they wanted to adopt kids because they weren’t done
parenting. So, they did research on adoption, and they found out about the devastating fact that siblings are often split. The revelation broke their hearts, so they decided to adopt siblings and not have them split up.
As they were searching for kids to adopt, they noticed the six siblings listed on a website. They realized that the kids were neglected and mistreated, and had been in the foster care system for almost 5 years. They knew that they could transform their lives for the better, but they didn’t expect their lives to be transformed.
“We instantly fell in love. I’d say our kids have brought a great kind of crazy to our lives. It’s heartwarming and so exciting to see how they connect with us,” said Rob.
So, they matched with the kids in June 2018, and they moved in to live with them a month later.
They immediately felt a connection, and both the kids and the parents wanted them to stay there forever.
They had been let down by adults so many times in their life, and were nervous it wasn’t going to happen,” – Steve added.
The procedure was finished in 2019, and the kids now live with the couple. Although it’s been a few years, the couple says that it feels like they’ve been home since forever.
“There are no rules as to what can constitute a family and the love that we share.” – Steve concluded.
Source: Upworthy
