Teacher and wife adopt student and his siblings: 'God's answer to my prayers'
Justin and Kacey Padgett along with their adopted children: Hailey, Jayden, Alexis, Jase. (Credit: Kasey Padgett)
DANVILLE, Ky. - A Kentucky educator hopes to inspire others after he and his wife adopted one of his students along with his three siblings.
Justin and Kasey Padgett of Danville became the adoptive parents of Hailey, 16, Jayden, 14, Alexis, 12, and Jase, 9.
In 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 lockdown, Justin was a fifth grade elementary school teacher when Jayden was placed in his class.
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Jayden was in foster care and his parents worked at Justin's school.
Justin had started tutoring Jayden when one day, the fifth grader typed on his computer that he needed to be adopted after learning his birth parents would not regain custody.
The Padgett family. (Credit: Kasey Padgett)
Justin then went home and to speak with his wife about adopting Jayden.
"When I went home, I said, ‘I got this little boy in my room, and he needs to be adopted’," Justin told FOX Television Stations. "He had three siblings. So we had that conversation."
Kasey was immediately onboard with the idea given that the couple had infertility issues.
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"I had been praying for a really long time to be a mom, and so I really felt like that was God's answer to my prayers," Kasey said.
The couple finalized the adoption of Jayden and his siblings in March 2022, and since then, their story has gone viral, garnering national attention.
"I got a family that loves me and treats me good," Jayden said. "They also treat my siblings good, so I like it."
The couple said they would still pursue having biological children, but they're also open to adopting more children, encouraging other couples to consider that route as well.
"Everybody wants a newborn, and teenagers and older children get neglected through that," Kasey continued. "So if we adopted or foster again, I would be open to all ages, and that way we could help someone in need if we can."
This story was reported from Los Angeles.