Posted on 08/17/2011 11:17:55 AM PDT by NYer
ROCKVILLE, MD, August 16, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) — The astonishing story of a Maryland family with 11 children, ranging in age from 1 to 12, has been featured in a back-to-school piece by the Washington Post Newspaper. The August 10 story chronicles the Kilmer household's day-to-day life and details how they manage to stay lighthearted and have fun while balancing what some might consider an impossibly difficult lifestyle.
Read the Washington Post story here.
In an interview with LifeSiteNews (LSN), Larry Kilmer, a native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, said he viewed speaking with the Post about his family as "an opportunity to show that large families can exist and survive in the Washington area."
"It was a chance for others to see that with some sacrifices it can be done," he said. "Despite the fear that 'you cannot survive,' we wanted to show that it is possible."
The article introduces readers to Larry, a high school teacher, and his wife Jen, a stay-at-home mom, as well as children Christina, Joe, Michelle, Julie, Tommy, Steven, Matthew, John Paul, Larry, Rosemary, and Peter, none of whom are twins or triplets.
The feature chronicles the Kilmer family's daily life, from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. It notes the many challenges the family faces, but also highlights the many blessings, including the tight friendships shared by the children and the role that the "rock of Faith" plays in the Kilmer household.
"A large family helps to instill in a person many of the strong values and virtues that a society needs in order to survive and continue," Kilmer told LifeSiteNews.com. "In my opinion, the issue of putting others first is at the heart of a large family as you work and exist with other human beings in a close-knit environment."
Commenting on the Washington Post story, Jenn Giroux, founder of Speaking of Motherhood, who is also the mother of a large family, told LSN, "This is an incredible and fair portrayal of this beautiful large family. It is rare to get this perspective from a liberal media outlet."
"Large families have a positive impact on society," Giroux said. "At a time when our national birthrate is dangerously low, large families are producing the future workers that will sustain the elderly in the very near future… They are raising the next generation of Church and political leaders."
"At the heart of large families is the surrender to God’s supreme rights over our lives and an embrace and love of His gift of children," she said. "Unfortunately, this is a foreign and/or unknown concept that has been gradually lost over the last 50 years."
"It requires ‘blind trust’ in God in times of difficulty," Giroux said. "This is a difficult concept for a contracepting society where those today seek to control everything from the day they conceive to sometimes the very sex of their baby."
Read the Washington Post story here.
Take care of the child.
I don’t have a magic cash machine to give her a good life, but she was cool having sex poor, then she will be cool taking on the challenge of easing a child poor too like many others have.
Condoms aren’t the answer to everything, but if one wants to be poor and get it on, it answers quite a few of them.
So, you keep your opinions to yourself when you think they might hurt the team? Whoever the hell this team is.
I'm sure you're the life of the party whenever you're invited.
And you care why? How is this in any way relevant to the discussion? Are you genuinely worried that I'm out here ruining parties?
You know nothing about these people and have no business throwing your crap against their wall hoping something sticks
Gotcha. You're the only one around here allowed to have an opinion, and you alwaysreserve it for people who you happen to know personally. You've never made a comment here about people you've never met. Sure pal, I believe it.
She may also have canned all of her excess garden produce. And might have sewn her children’s clothes. It’s amazing what people can accomplish when they put their minds to it.
They’re related to a friend of mine, so I read the original story in the WaPo when it came out. Some of the comments were pretty nasty.
I was going to ask the same question, but you worded it better!
That is such a good point. Let God be God, and life becomes much more peaceful and happy.
Yes, I read those comments and answers, and I was quite amazed that some people were so hateful. I’ve seen hateful reactions in public places to people with large families. Some people just hate children.
Now I understand. Thanks!
My grandmother and her sisters canned. I’ve never tried it. Gran thought I was a helpless modern flake ;-), and I’d still rather live on beans and rice than cut up a whole chicken!
If it’s about money, I think I’ve raised an obvious question. What does a GS-16 running a program that does more harm than good make per year? If he retires with 25 years in, what’s his health and pension cost for the rest of his life?
And how many of “him” are in *all* *those* *departments*? (Plus state, county, and city!)
In my state, the last figures I saw were that more people work for government than the private sector. And that was a few years ago before the economy got really bad. After a while the people in the cart are more numerous and heavy than the ones pulling the cart...
BTW canning fruit is EZ!!! I can fruit every summer and although it is some work I am always so glad I did. Fruit in the winter is expensive and not very good. I make all our jam too. Simple, no pressure cooker needed.
Well, there does come a point where one's principles would indeed preclude working for anyone government or not that isn't in line with those principles. I'll perfectly honest, and say that I don't know that I can articulate exactly where that line in the sound is drawn. Some examples are more obvious than others.
Let me say it again only I’ll be a bit more specific. We make less than $75K a year. We try to purchase older model cars for cash. I bake bread for my family to eat and we have a very simple diet. We rarely eat out, usually reserved for birthdays or special occasions. We don’t have cable TV and we don’t go on vacations. My kids are not spoiled. They work hard around the house and do odd jobs for their grandparents and our neighbors to earn spending cash.
It’s tight, yes, but we still manage to live a pleasant life, work and pray together, learn together and dream together. We are a very tight knit, unified team that sacrifices when needed in order to benefit others. We even manage to donate time, talent and treasure as often as possible. You really shouldn’t jump to conclusions.
There are positives both ways.
Talk about living your faith!! This couple walks the walk!!Kudos to them !!
The Heights is an Opus Dei School...
and their communities are very tight knit and supportive
“Unless someone can show me that this family has waived taxpayer money, this is not laudable.”
Define “waived taxpayer money.” Do you mean waiving AFDC and food stamps, or do you mean government schooling, or do you mean use of public roads? All of which are paid for with taxpayer dollars.
Of course, taking the moral stand that you have, I’m sure you’ll be doing the laudable thing and waiving any and all payments from the biggest welfare program in America - social security.
You *are* going to refuse social security payments aren’t you?
I can do basic cooking. I actually make a very good roast chicken and a better than average omelet, but I prefer to microwave. :)
What do you mena by not taking money from the state? Do you mean waiving AFDC and food stamps, or do you mean government schooling, or do you mean use of public roads? All of which are paid for with taxpayer dollars.
Of course I assume that you’re not going to take any payments from social security.
God Has Blessed....But You Probably Already Know That...:>)
I’m loving folks who have large families more and more, both here on FR and in my personal life.
I’d be willing to bet money that if I needed help of some sort those friends of mine with large families would be the first to pitch in prolonged assistance and encouragement.
The DINKS I know are the most spiritually, financially and time selfish people I know.
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