PLANTSVILLE, Conn. -- November is National Adoption Awareness Month, and with that in mind, Channel 3 honored two parents from Plantsville who have adopted five children.

"We had three daughters at the time," said Bob Crawford.

Bob and Sue Crawford love children so much that they wanted to provide a happy home to even more kids. So, they became foster parents.

"We became licensed about eight years ago," Sue Crawford said. "We lost count at about 80."

Sue Crawford gave birth to three girls, and it was when their youngest was about 4 years old that they became foster parents.

The idea behind fostering is to provide temporary care for children, who the state determines are in danger, with the goal of reuniting them with their biological families.

"We wanted to temporarily take care of kids until they could be returned home," Sue Crawford said. "Our very first foster child was probably here for about six weeks when they called to tell us that she was returning home. We did cry. She needed to be with her mother, so it was a good thing."

The Crawfords found other children who couldn't return home, so they opened up their home to become a permanent family.

• Sam, 18
• Alex, 16
• Sarah, 15
• Felicia, 14
• Amanda, 12
• Shania, 11
• Kimmy, 3
• Jake, 3

"We like kids and we like to help out," Sue Crawford said. "We grew very fond of our children and attached and we were able to adopt some of them."

The Crawfords admitted they had some concerns about how their biological daughters would handle all the adoptions.

"We did worry on what type of effect it would have on our biological children, and we actually found that it's actually been more positive," Sue Crawford said. "Our kids have more compassion."

"It makes them better people, they really are. They're awesome," Bob Crawford said.

"It was so much fun when we first did it because there were so many kids and we just played with them all day," Sarah Crawford said.

The older girls really help out -- not just with the youngsters, like Alex, Kimmy and Jake -- but they know just what to do when a foster child comes into their home, as some still do.

"Sometimes, when they're younger, I like, play games and stuff," Shania Crawford said. "If they're my age, we usually get along."

"We just make them feel like they're part of the family," Amanda Crawford said.

"If you look at their home, they didn't just take the kids into their home. They made this home the children's home," said Meg Michaels, who is with the state Department of Children and Families.

"They've given the greatest gift, which is a forever family, to these kids," said Michele Varanay, a DCF social worker.

As foster parents who have also become adoptive parents, the Crawfords helped dozens of children in distress, and they continue to inspire others.

"We could definitely use more families. We need more foster parents and more adoptive parents," Michaels said.

Foster parents receive financial support for each child, and there's support when a foster child is adopted.

• Parents have received thousands of dollars each year to raise the children
• The state provides medical benefits for each child
• The state provides funds to help pay for college
• There are support people available to help when children have emotional or behavioral issues

"What we need to think about is that they're not problem kids, they're kids with problems," said Jean Fiorito, executive director of the Connecticut Association of Foster and Adoptive Parents. "It makes a different process when you think about that because, really, all these kids want is to belong to a family."

You can learn more about fostering and adoption by calling 888-KID-HERO.

Also, the "5th Annual Heart Gallery" is scheduled for Nov. 6 and will feature pictures of 35 children who await adoption. The event is scheduled to take placed at the Bushnell Auditorium in Hartford on Nov. 6 at 6 p.m.

Link: DCF November Adoption Events/Open Houses | Connecticut Adoption Information

Link: Adopting.org - National Adoption Awareness Month

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