KIDS!
KIDS! THERE'S A LOT OF LOVE IN THIS HOUSE. BEN AND
BRIDGET BARRUS OF BOISE
HAVE A TOTAL OF 18
CHILDREN. YES, YOU
HEARD THAT RIGHT, 18.
THE FAMILY HAS ADOPTED
ENTIRE SIBLING GROUPS,
THREE TIMES! SOME OF
THEIR KIDS ARE OFF TO
COLLEGE, ONE IS
MARRIED,
MARRIED, AND SOME STRUGGLE WITH HEALTH PROBLEMS.
BUT THE BARRUS' WILL
TELL YOU, THEY HAVE
ALWAYS BEEN CHAMPIONS
FOR FAMILY, FOSTER CARE
AND ADOPTION.
THIS SPECIAL COUPLE -
WHO HAS ALWAYS GIVEN
BACK - IS NOW FINDING
THEMSELVES IN NEED.
SOMETHING THEY DIDN'T
SEE COMING.
MAGGIE O'MARA HAS THIS
FAMILY'S TOUCHING
STORY IN TONIGHT'S
SEVEN'S HERO.
SEVEN'S HERO.
BEN
BEN AND
BEN AND BRIDGET BARRUS HAVE OPENED THEIR
HEARTS
HEARTS TO
HEARTS TO DOZENS OF KIDS OVER THE YEARS. BRIDGET WE HAVE
FOSTERED OVER 65
CHILDREN.
BRIDGET NOW WE HAVE
18 CHILDREN, FOUR
BIOLOGICAL, FOURTEEN
ADOPTED.
BEN OH IT'S BEEN
FANTASTIC, IT'S BEEN
CRAZY,
CRAZY, SOMETIMES DIFFICULT... SON BRONX, WHO WAS A
KTVB WEDNESDAYS CHILD,
SAYS HE WOULDN'T HAVE
IT ANY OTHER WAY.
BEN I'VE BEEN IN THIS
FAMILY SINCE 2012...
WHEN I FIRST GOT
ADOPTED I FELT LIKE I FIT
IN RIGHT AWAY, I LOVED
IT.
BIG BROTHER BODEN HAS
BEEN THERE TO SEE EVERY
NEW ADOPTION.
BODEN I LOVE EVERY
SINGLE ONE OF THE KIDS...
EVEN THOUGH IT'S BEEN
REALLY HARD. I LOVE
EVERY SINGLE ONE OF
THEM.
BRIDGET IT IS FUN, IT IS
LOUD IT IS CHAOTIC...
CONTROLLED CHAOS
MOST OF THE TIME... BUT I
WOULDN'T CHANGE IT
FOR ANYTHING... THERE
HAS BEEN A LOT OF HARD
THINGS, ADOPTION IS
HARD, BUT IT IS
BEAUTIFUL...
RIGHT NOW, THE BARRUS
FAMILY IS FACING THEIR
BIGGEST CHALLENGE YET,
AND IT'S HEARTBREAKING.
WELL,
WELL, BEN
WELL, BEN IS MY BEST FRIEND... A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO,
BEN STARTED HAVING
HEALTH PROBLEMS.
I NOTICED FOR THE PAST
TWO YEARS OR SO, I WAS
HAVING A LOT OF
STRUGGLES WITH MY
RIGHT ARM, WHERE
GRIPPING THINGS WAS
BEGINNING TO HURT A
LOT.
WE STARTED TO
EXPERIENCE MUSCLE
WEAKNESS, EXTREME
FATIGUE... TREMORS...
MUSCLE CRAMPING AND
FAST FORWARD TO TODAY,
HERE WE ARE BATTLING
SOMETHING THAT IS
DEVASTATING.
BEN WAS RECENTLY
DIAGNOSED WITH A-L-S, A
NEURODEGENERATIVE
DISEASE. IT'S STILL
SINKING IN.
IT CHANGES BY THE HOUR
I THINK THE QUESTION OF
HOW ARE YOU DOING IS A
STRUGGLE
STRUGGLE TO ANSWER... WE'RE TRYING TO MAKE AS MANY MEMORIES AT
THIS POINT WITH THE
KIDS.
KIDS.
THIS
THIS DISEASE IS TERMINAL, THERE IS HOPE IN THINGS THAT THE FDA
IS DOING AND
TREATMENT BUT THERE
ISN'T A CURE YET.
I WANT TO HAVE THE
MEMORIES MY CHILDREN
MAKE WITH THEIR DAD BE
AMAZING...
BUT, BEN'S ALS IS
ADVANCING QUICKLY.
ADVANCING QUICKLY.
IT
IT CAME
IT CAME ON SO RAPIDLY, WE WERE NOT PREPARED
FOR
FOR ACCESSIBILIITY... WE WERE WALKING FOUR WEEKS AGO...
NOW WE CAN'T MAKE IT
UP STAIRS, WE CAN'T GET
IN A CAR, WE CAN'T
SHOWER WITHOUT
ASSISTANCE, WE'RE AT
THAT
THAT POINT. SO I HAD TO RELENT AND I REALLY DIDN'T WANT TO,
THE WHEELCHAIR WAS A
NECESSITY.
THE HOUSE ISN'T SET UP
FOR BEN'S NEEDS.
THE COST OF THOSE
THINGS IS SO
SIGNIFICANT.
18-YEAR-OLD BRONX IS
DETERMINED TO HELP HIS
DAD.
IT'S A HUGE NEED...
I WANT TO SHOW MY
MOM THAT I CAN BUILD
THIS RAMP FOR MY DAD'S
WHEELCHAIR.
HE'S IN A CONSTUCTION
CLASS IN HIGH SCHOOL,
HIS HEART'S IN THE RIGHT
PLACE BUT I THINK WE'LL
ASK FOR SOME HELP
FROM PEOPLE WHO
KNOW A LITTLE BIT
MORE...
MORE... BUT HE WANTS TO DO WHATEVER HE CAN TO HELP.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE
OUR DAD CAN GO
EVERYWHERE IN THIS
HOUSE SO HE DOESN'T
MISS A THING
WHAT WE ARE GOING
THROUGH IS SO
INCREDIBLTY COMPLEX
IT'S HARD, AND IT'S
GOING TO REQUIRE ALL OF
US... I'VE WATCHED
TEENAGERS COME HELP
LIFT THEIR DAD UP STAIRS
AND LITTLE KIDS RUN AND
GET WATER BOTTLES.
BEN IS STILL WORKING AS
AN ACCOUNTANT, BUT
WITH COSTS ADDING UP,
THIS FAMILY IS GRATEFUL
FOR THEIR FRIENDS.
PEOPLE HAVE REALLY
STEPPED UP TO LOVE ON
US AND SUPPORT US
DURING THIS HARD TIME.
HONESTLY WE CAN'T DO
IT WITHOUT HELP, WE
WANT TO, WE WISH WE
COULD, BUT WE CAN'T.
THE BARRUS FAMILY
KNOWS THERE ARE
DIFFICULT DAYS AHEAD...
THIS HAS REALLY
BROUGHT US TOGETHER
AS A FAMILY.
OUR FAITH IS A HUGE
CORNERSTONE OF WHO
WE ARE AND PROVIDES
SOME
SOME HOPE
SOME HOPE AND BUILDING BLOCKS FOR WHERE DAD'S GOING,
AND THEN THE LAST PART
IS JUST LOVING THEM.
SO THAT'S WHAT WE'RE
TRYING TO DO.
BRIDGET AND BEN
BARRUS...
MY MOM AND DAD ARE
SPECIAL BECAUSE, I MIGHT
CRY, AS YOU CAN TELL
THIS
IS THE REASON WHY THEY
ARE SPECIAL TO ME, AND
I'M VERY GRATEFUL FOR
THEM.
I THINK THE LOVE IS
THERE AND IT SHOWS...