Natalie Roy is a woman from Miami who is unable to have biological children. Treatments for childhood leukemia left her unable to conceive. She loved children, though, so she decided to become a foster parent to children throughout Florida. But she and her husband Kevin don’t take in ordinary children; they take on especially difficult cases that may be more difficult to place. In total, she and her husband have fostered more than 30 children.
These children often come from abusive situations, have parents with mental illness or substance abuse issues, or maybe just have disabilities that make them more challenging. It can be difficult for these children to find foster homes, but the Roys gladly take on these challenges.
While they are happy to help these children, they quickly realized that the stipend from the state was not enough to cover the children’s expenses. Natalie set up a network of volunteers to find donations of goods and services for foster parents. Kevin built a giant climate-controlled shed in their backyard to store things likes cribs, beds, dressers, and other furniture. If foster parents need something right away, they can call the Roys at any time and pick up the things they need free of charge.
While this would make for a wonderful story on its own, it’s not the end for this special couple. The Roys always intended to adopt children permanent, but wanted to wait until the time was right and the child was right. That happened recently when they received a newborn baby girl. The girl was just three days old and was wearing a paper onesie. The girl’s limbs were stiff and she stayed in the fetal position at all times. Natalie drove her to a specialty clinic, where the little girl was diagnosed as being on the fetal alcohol spectrum.
Because of this diagnosis and the related health-risks, the little girl would need regular doctor visits for the rest of her life. Natalie knew this was the little girl she was meant to adopt. She named her Isabella, and she became the first child for Natalie and Kevin. But the couple wasn’t done there.
The Roys accepted another placement, yet another newborn girl with some extreme physical disabilities whose mother was ill with schizophrenia. The girl they would name Luna bore scars on five distinct portions of her brain because of an unknown trauma. This little girl would also need serious medical care for many years. Like Isabella, the Roys knew she was a perfect addition to their family and permanently adopted her.
They adopted their third, Sofia, whose mother had abandoned her. She was born prematurely and her mother simply left her at the hospital. Sophia suffered from what doctors called a “failure to thrive.” Like her sisters, she would need constant medical attention to ensure that she grows up healthy and happy.
While these children would be more of a challenge that some parents would want, the Roys love their little girls. The house can get a little hectic, but it’s exactly what the couple had envisioned for their life. Sophia works full-time as a stay at home mom to these special little girls. The Roys also continue fostering children, and intend to continue doing so into the future. They also hope to permanently adopt one more child. They would love for this child to be a boy, but are open to adopting another girl.
Natalie comes from a big family (she is one of seven children) so she always envisioned having a home full of children. While her childhood illness robbed her of a chance to have biological children, she was able to make her dream of a big family come true. Not only has she made her dreams come true, she’s providing a home for children who may otherwise have been forgotten. It’s difficult enough to find permanent homes for children, and it’s doubly difficult when a child has a permanent medical condition. This special couple really has done some great things for these special children.