Couple with four children adopts six young men with Down syndrome because their kind son begged them to

Children who live in shelter homes long for familial love. For many kids with disabilities, this sometimes remains a dream. Then-10-year-old Joey, who was in foster care, also dreamt about having loving parents and siblings, as per PEOPLE. The young boy had Down syndrome and like any other foster kid, he wondered if he’d ever find a home to call his own. His life changed for the better when he met Shannon Pinkerton and her son Cody. 

Shannon and her husband Troy had four adult children, of whom Cody was the youngest. While they were already hands-on with their kids and grandkids, they decided to change the lives of people with special needs. "(My son, Cody,) begged us to adopt him. I’ve always had a heart for these kids,” the mom recalled. The couple adopted Joey and soon after, their hearts pushed them to do more. They soon adopted 5 other young gentlemen — Devlin, Julian, Cameron, Anthony, and Tracee — all of whom had autism and were in foster care. They also had developmental disabilities like nonverbal autism and dwarfism and were adopted in their teenage years, per TODAY. 

Despite their conditions, what touched Shannon and Troy was their zeal for life and heartfelt readiness to share love and light. “I want the boys to have life experiences they didn’t have [in foster care],” the mom noted. She added, “You know, it's harder to place kids that have disabilities. I just started from there,” per News Nation. It wasn't an easy ride but no parenting journey ever is. The couple loved their 6 newly-welcomed boys just like their biological children. “It’s very busy. [The boys] make life exciting and bring a lot of joy. We just want to help them and give them a place to call their home,” Troy mentioned. 

Shannon revealed that she simply had rules and certain points laid out to help the kids with their behavior and that worked out just perfectly. “We’ve had people move away from us at restaurants because they assume we’ll be loud—but my boys are very well-behaved. Just recently, one guy who asked for a different table ended up buying our meal and writing an apology note that said, 'I'm sorry for judging you,’” the mom recalled. Each men had their dreams, their qualities and also their trauma, which the couple selflessly embraced.

For instance, Cameron had trauma from being shifted during placements. When he did “damage worth $300,” his first thought was, “You’re gonna kick me out, aren’t you?” Shannon calmly responded, “No, no, no. This is your forever home.” “One day, he finally believed me,” she remarked. The men gel with the 4 biological children of the couple and like every family, they've had their fair share of fights, support, love, memories and more. Their journey was also documented on social media. One of the posts on Instagram wholesomely captures the 6 in their colorful outfits, posing together as brothers, feeling grateful with million-dollar smiles. People love Shannon’s thought behind her selfless gesture — "Every child deserves a family.”