Floyd and Deborah Richardson have been married for 39 years. In that time they have raised 217 kids together, and they aren't done yet.
The Richardsons have been house parents with Bethel Bible Village for 30 years, providing a short-term home for children in crisis.
"I'm overwhelmed and just humbled that God allowed me to be a part of so many lives," Deborah Richardson said.
Floyd Richardson offers to let his wife Deborah, left, and some of the girls from Bethel shave his decades-old beard to raise funds for the Christian nonprofit child care center. While the nonprofit center's Giving Tuesday campaign hit many goals, it didn't hit the one tied to the beard challenge. (Contributed photo)Bethel Bible Village is an alternative to foster care for parents who are in prison, suffer from drug addiction or are otherwise unable to care for their children. Bethel also accepts teens who have exhibited behavioral issues or minor delinquency, and teenage mothers with newborns.
The Richardsons live on campus, currently with a group of girls ages 5-17, each with her own room.
"We do things a normal family would do. We've gone on trips, we do fun things, we go to church together," Deborah Richardson said.
She said they love finding fun things to with the kids, whether it's something special for holidays or just laughing around the dinner table. With each group, they strive to find a new way to connect, said Deborah Richardson. One group of girls was really into puzzles; another loved watching "Dancing with the Stars."
Deborah, who is from Chattanooga, grew up in a small family and was the only daughter in a family of four children. Living in a home with eight girls was a new experience, she said.
Floyd, on the other hand, grew up in Illinois with six sisters and 10 brothers.
"Living with a family of eight kids was a smaller family for me," he said with a chuckle.
Children typically live in one of Bethel's four group homes for 18 months to two years. Unlike foster care, legal guardians maintain child custody while children are cared for at Bethel. The Christian-based program aims to reunite kids with their family and to keep guardians involved throughout the children's time at Bethel.
The Richardsons emphasized that everything they do is a team effort, working with other house parents, counselors, teachers, social workers and the support staff at Bethel to help the children as best they can.
"It's all of us together. You know the saying 'it takes a village'? Well it does," said Deborah Richardson.
The 64-acre campus located in Hixson features a gymnasium, basketball court, playgrounds, tennis courts, a library and Bethel Christian Academy, a middle and high school for teens living in the village. Bethel provides food, clothing, medical care, counseling, education and spiritual guidance to the children it serves.
In similar programs nationwide, house parents typically serve for an average of nine months, but the average tenure at Bethel is 8.7 years. The Richardsons have served for more than three times as long, working for 10 years from 1980 to 1990, returning in 1997 and continuing today.
When they began working with Bethel they were in their mid-20s and had a 9-month-old daughter. Now they are in their early 60s and many of the children they've helped are adults.
"We have some that are in their mid- to late 40s and they call us with advice for how to handle their own children," Floyd Richardson said.
After 30 years of experience, they have learned a lot about raising children.
"I've learned it's OK to not have all the right answers," said Deborah Richardson, who acknowledges that when she was younger she took herself too seriously and had trouble admitting when she was wrong.
"I think one of the most important things I've learned along the way is that everyone has to have someone to support them and to encourage them along the way," said her husband.
Even after more than 200 kids, the Richardsons are still enjoying their role and see no end in sight.
"The main reason we've served so long is because we love it so much," Floyd Richardson said.
"We keep asking ourselves how much longer? But God is saying 'not yet,'" said Deborah Richardson.