The Burton-on-Trent, England natives William and Jean Foster, who have been married for 32 years, have given up raising both biological and adopted children. The couple wed in 1982, and in 1988 they established a sort of family orphanage in their home where children and teenagers might stay while waiting to be legally adopted or adopted.

Via social services or the juvenile departments of the British government, the kids were brought to the Fosters’ home. Similar procedures are frequently used in the UK, where a family may sign up for a specific program, like William and Jeanne did, if it has room to admit infants.

As a result, 186 kids went through the Foster house over a three-decade period. William and Jean were compensated by the state for their assistance in the upbringing and upkeep of the «guests,» but they were not granted full parental rights; the future of each child was decided by the court. The parents still thought of everyone they aided as «their own,» regardless of how long the children lived with them—weeks, months, or years.

We keep in touch with almost all the children we have had a hand in raising. After us, most of them were officially adopted, and each time we watched how quickly and happily they joined the new family.

William and Jean told reporters that they quickly got used to each of their pupils. They liked to mess with both babies and older children. It was important for the couple to give the children left without families the belief that there are people who will love them for who they are.

The most difficult moments for the Fosters were when the children left the family. In an interview with reporters, William joked about it.

This is not only an emotionally difficult moment. We get used to cooking huge meals and continue to do so after the children are gone. And then we don’t know what to do with so many dishes.

Additionally, some kids remained in the household for life. After nearly five years of Naomi’s residence with William and Jean, they made the decision to keep her. She now proudly takes her kids to see her brave grandparents.

They make great parents because they are kind, witty, and loving. Every child enjoys having a pet, thus there were numerous animals in the home. There were kids all the time around me, and we played and grew up together. We all need foster parents in our lives, and these two have been outstanding from the beginning. I normally visit my family around the holidays, but this year the house is shaking because of Christmas.

Christmas for the Fosters, according to them, is indeed the most hectic time of the year, as they are waiting for dozens of families to the festive table. William and Jean even had to work out a schedule in order to have time to receive everyone and so that their house would not fall apart from the number of guests.

Despite the fact that William is already 82 years old, and Jean is 74, they have two babies in their care, 10 and 15 months old. The Fosters are confident that caring for children only prolongs their lives, so they are not going to stop at the mark of 186 pupils.