Never Empty Nest: Grandparents raising seven grandchildren

OKLAHOMA CITY —

Kids of varying sizes pile out of the commercial-size van at Greater Mount Olive Baptist Church.

They are two children too many to be the Partridges and one more than the Brady Bunch. But the seven Thornton kids don’t fit molds. For one thing, they are being raised by their grandparents.

Jacqueline and William Thornton, both 59, of Oklahoma City, have guardianship of their daughter’s children: Sharryc, 17; Kyra, 15; Kaleb, 13; Cameron, 12; Abriana, 10; Aaron, 8 and Demarcus, 6, because the last of their three fathers was accused of abusing some of them six years ago.

"My husband and I were away with friends when we got the call," said Jacqueline Thornton.

She said the children had been temporarily placed in separate foster homes and her primary concern was keeping them together.

But living in a 1,500-square-foot home with just two bedrooms, the Thorntons did not meet state requirements for so many children. With the help of a social worker and after remodeling their home, making the den into bedrooms, they were able to achieve their goal.

"The social worker was just precious," said Mrs. Thornton. "She didn’t want to split up these kids."

Then, a few years ago, a deacon from their church sold the Thorntons a 3,200-square-foot home with four bedrooms so the family would have even more room. Both of the Thorntons work for the church and say they have tried to instill a spiritual sense into the lives of their grandchildren.

Several of the grandchildren had lived with the Thorntons at various times, but once guardianship was granted, the Thorntons faced raising a family of seven just when their three children had finally left home.

"For two months we had the house to ourselves. All of a sudden, things drastically changed," said William Thornton.

The youngest child was 10 months old and still in diapers at the time.

"I thought, ‘We’ve got to do this all over again,'" he said.

The challenge was greater not only because of the number of children but because several of them had serious health issues. Five of the children had severe allergies and respiratory problems, one had herpes on his legs and another had severe eczema diagnosed as a trauma-related illness.

"His hands were so crusted he couldn’t use them," said Jacqueline.

Another child was losing her hair because of stress, and one had learning disorders because his mother did not take him to kindergarten or first-grade, the grandmother said. Another child, she said, had attachment issues after she was left at day care by her mother, who then disappeared for two years.