Barry Farmer, 29-year-old single father is raising three adopted sons. He works for Richmond Schools and even though he has a very busy schedule, he always makes time to be there for his children.
For Farmer, foster care has always been a cause close to his heart. He became a foster parent at the age 21. “Personally, I grew up in kinship care, which is another form of foster care,” he said. “My grandmother raised me. Her doing that for me, there was no way I could actually pay her back, so I decided it’d be a good way to pay it forward.”
When he first became a foster parent, a boy named Jaxon was placed in his home. The two got along so well that Farmer adopted him when he was eight years old. He knew that he wanted Jaxon to grow up with a sibling, so he searched through photolistings. From there, he found Xavier and reached out to the boy’s social worker. Xavier was 11 when the adoption was finalized. Farmer thought his family was complete with his two children; however, life has different plans and suddenly his third son Jeremiah entered his life a year later.
Farmer admits that being a single dad can be challenging at times, but he says it’s definitely worth it. When asked about his family’s racial differences, he says they don’t give the odd looks a second thought. According to Farmer, “There is no reason to be afraid of our foster children who are waiting to be adopted. All they need is some security, some love, some attention, and stability.” He adds, “You can look at older children simply as diamonds in the rough. Even a diamond that’s in the dirt is still a diamond. They just need help, polishing them up, and once you hold them up to the light, they are still the same diamond, they’re just a little more refined now.”
Adoption.com has a wonderful photolisting website. Find out how to adopt a child by visiting their page.
