When love leads the way - Lewiston Sun Journal

Ken and Roxanna “Rockie” Decker of Farmington have two biological children and have taken in numerous foster children over the years, adopting seven of them. The blended family is seen at a wedding in March. Submitted photo

FARMINGTON — When Ken and Roxanna “Rockie” Decker’s nephews needed a place to stay the couple knew they could help.

Ken and Roxanna “Rockie” Decker of Farmington have opened their home to numerous foster children over the years. They have adopted seven of those children. Submitted photo

“We started with kinship placement. My parents were foster parents, I grew up with it,” Rockie said. “I knew it was something we could do to help.”

She said Governor Baldacci had passed a law that anyone taking in Maine children needed to be licensed so they did.

“They (nephews) were reunified with their mom, which was great,” Rockie said. “We ended up taking in others after that.”

The Deckers have two biological children, the oldest born in 1994. They have had 26 other children live at their home through the years.

Rockie said of those, they adopted two groups of siblings. One was a family of four from Lewiston. The other a family of three from Wilton.

“They were living two houses down from us in an apartment building,” she said. “We didn’t know them.”

One of those children has high medical and intellectual needs and doesn’t eat. The three siblings were all born on July 27 in different years.

Rockie said with as many kids as they have, they don’t do as many big celebrations, but with three birthdays on the same day, they make it big.

“Because one of them doesn’t eat, we celebrate in other ways (than cake and ice cream),” she said.

Rockie said one of those siblings was adopted two weeks before turning 18. She went to Maranatha Christian University in Wisconsin, obtained her nursing degree and now works in a hospital in South Carolina.

“She got married this year, on March 14. Just before the lock-down was put on us,” Rockie said. “One of our biological children is in school in Massachusetts.”

She said there are seven children currently in the house, including two foster children. The oldest is 12 and three are six years old.

Rockie said one of them runs around the house singing like an opera singer and dancing.

“One six year old is in my husband’s hip pocket,” she said. “He knows how to drive the tractor, equipment.

“The kids bundle wood, help in the hayfield in the summer.”

In addition to raising and loving so many children, the Deckers operate Genesis Farm on Hammond Road. High-quality horse hay and firewood are the two primary products sold.

“We offer bulk firewood for winter and bundled firewood for summer,” Rockie said. “The kids work hard, play hard. They have 65 acres to roam. You can see most of it.”

She said the family eats family-style around the table. Few pre-packaged items are served.

“We eat out maybe once a week,” Rockie said. “It can be expensive. For a fun thing, we go to McDonald’s or Pizza Hut.

“We filled a whole row at the movie theater to watch ‘Frozen II’.”

Rockie is also a fulltime student at the University of Maine Farmington. She is working towards a psychology degree.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, everything is being done by video now. Department of Health and Human Services meetings, school for Rockie and the children, Skype or Zoom meetings with parents.

“It’s a challenge right now,” Rockie said.

She said also challenging is getting everyone’s schedules set.

“Each child comes with a reunification plan, with schedules for visitation meetings with parents one to three days a week,” Rockie said. “Most are in therapeutic services, those need to be arranged as well.

“The most rewarding for me is when we can reunify. Seeing parents working really hard to get their kids back. If that’s not possible seeing another plan, giving them a firm foundation before sending them out.”

Rockie said her biggest goal is to undo trauma, to show the children there is another way.

“We’re a pretty busy family,” she said. “There’s a lot going on usually.”

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