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Adoption Gives Children Stability, A Place To Grow

DENVER (CBS4) – In Colorado, there are 435 children living foster care who are eligible for adoption. They are children who've had a rough start in life, and are looking for the stability a permanent home can provide. That is exactly what Les and Cyndi have been giving children for the last 22-years. They have 10 adopted children to show for it.

"It's wonderful and chaotic. It can be stressful, and it's just…I love my family. I love my family so much," Cyndi told CBS4.

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They range in age from 9 to 31.  Five of them are on their own, Tatum just got married, and Nick is serving a mission in Idaho. There are five still living at home, and the couple is working to adopt two more.

"It's nice being able to know that I have two parents that I can just sit down and talk to," said Natasha, 15-years-old.

"Some of them have had to self-parent for a long time, so we try to teach them how to step back, and let the parents parent, and they can be kids," Les told CBS4.

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Adoption is the promise that Cyndi and Less will always be there for every one of them, even after they're out of the next.

"It was good, good experience. I don't know where I would have been if I hadn't," said 23-year-old Charlie.

"It can be challenging, but the rewarding part is, I guess, the end result, when I see the places they've come from to where they've grown and what' they've become," Cyndi explained.

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So when there's a birthday or a wedding or a Tuesday afternoon, this family comes together for each other.

"We're a family…forever… and you can't put a price on that," Cyndi said.

CBS4 holds A Day 4 Wednesday's Child once a year to raise money and highlight the great work of The Adoption Exchange. You can help families like Les and Cyndi's by calling in a donation to 303-755-3975, text "adopt" to 91999, or go to The Adoption Exchange donation page to give online.

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