Marc and Hild adopted 14 (!) children, but are now ‘retiring’: “A child with an attachment disorder, in our view, is the most severe disability”

“It was always forward. Take care of. Today, however, we crave time.” Marcel de Bakker (74) and Hild Helsen (73) once had one of Flanders’ largest families, with three sons, fourteen adopted children and two foster children, most of whom had severe disabilities. They are now exchanging their large house for a service apartment, but their offspring remains close: “We never let anyone down.”

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