Being a foster parent means making a change in a child’s life. These people are compassionate and caring and always ready to open their hearts and homes to minors in need of love and kindness.
Lamont Thomas from Buffalo, New York, has devoted the last 20 years of his life fostering children. Speaking to Good Morning America of the time he welcomed the first child, this amazing man says, “In the beginning, I was helping out some friends. They had lost their child to the system. I went on and got certified and became a foster parent. I haven’t stopped since.”
Believe it or not, Lamont has fostered more than 30 kids, five of which he officially adopted. So with his two biological children, Anthony and LaMonica, he became a father of seven.
The first kid Lamont adopted is Michael Thomas. He’s now 27 and recalls the time he became part of the family.
“He was my third foster home and it ended up being my forever home,” Michael said. “He [knew] my biological parents.”
“Lamont never turned [a child] away,” Michael added. “They either aged out or went back home to their own families.”
With seven kids to take care of on his own, Lamont knew he was done adopting, but then he came across a very special case that made him change his mind.
Five siblings aged 5,4,3,2 and 1, who were children of one of Lamont’s foster kids were placed in foster homes themselves. Lamont was sad the kids got to experience their parent’s fate, and his heart tore apart when he learned Zendaya, Jamel, Nakia, Major, and Michaela were separated. Not only they were taken in by four different families, but they were also in four different cities.
Sadly, that meant one thing, that they wouldn’t be raised together.
That’s when Lamont stepped in. He just couldn’t let the siblings spend their childhood without being by each other’s side so he re-certified as a foster parent and adopted all of them.
Some of his older kids had moved from the house already and had families on their own, so Lamont knew he was making the right decision as he could devote all his time to the new addition to the family.
“I was fighting to keep back the tears,” he said of his adoption day with Judge Lisa Rodwin. “Every day I think about it, my eyes swell up. All that we endured to make this happen, it was something.”
This incredible single dad was now a father of 12 children. He knew things wouldn’t be easy, but he was willing to give it a go.
“They bring new energy to me,” Lamont shared. “They’re lovable kids, very affectionate. They deserve to be raised as siblings, and that was my fight.”
Leaving Hollywood for her starry-eyed megastar, she finds that love is all you need
Barbara Bach, famously known for her role as Bond girl Triple X, wasn’t waiting for James Bond to come to her rescue; instead, she was on a quest for her own prince charming—rock legend Ringo Starr, also known as Sir Richard Starkey.
Now at the age of 77, Bach reached the zenith of her career when she starred in the 1977 film The Spy Who Loved Me, where she portrayed Anya Amasova, a complex character who was both the love interest and a rival to the charming yet womanizing 007, played by Roger Moore.
In a candid 1983 interview with People, Bach didn’t hold back her opinion about her character’s relationship with Bond, referring to him as “a chauvinist pig who uses girls to shield him against bullets”. Moore himself agreed, stating in a 1973 People interview: “Bond, like myself, is a male chauvinist pig. All my life I’ve been trying to get women out of brassieres and pants”.
Before landing her iconic role in the Bond franchise, Bach had appeared in several Italian films, including Black Belly of the Tarantula, where she shared the screen with fellow Bond actresses Claudine Auger and Barbara Bouchet.
Bach’s portrayal of the KGB agent Anya Amasova not only solidified her status as a beloved Bond girl but also opened doors to numerous opportunities in her acting career. Following her Bond debut, she starred in Mad Magazine Presents Up the Academy (1980) and Caveman (1981), where she worked alongside Ringo Starr, who played a Neanderthal vying for her affections. Interestingly, the movie’s script contrasted sharply with their actual relationship, as they only became romantically involved towards the end of filming.
In a revealing Playboy feature from 1981, Bach noted: “A lot of garbage has been written about us, none of it interesting. The truth is, we weren’t together until the very end of Caveman. Working, we got along fine, but we each had other people, our respective friends. Then, all of a sudden, within a week—the last week of shooting—it just happened. We changed from friendly love to being in love”.
In a 2021 interview with the Irish Examiner, Starr reminisced about their first encounter at Los Angeles International Airport in 1980. “I love the woman. I loved her from when I first saw her at LAX”, he shared. “I’m blessed she’s in my life, that’s all I can ever say.”
Starr, renowned as the drummer for the legendary band The Beatles, was once part of a performance at New York’s Shea Stadium in 1965, where Bach was present. However, she revealed that she wasn’t an ardent Beatles fan, attending the concert with her sister Marjorie, a passionate follower of the band. “I liked [Bob] Dylan, Ray Charles, and the Rolling Stones”, Bach remarked in a People interview from 1981.
Bach’s sister eventually married Joe Walsh, the Eagles guitarist, who later performed with Starr in the All-Starr Band. Just months after John Lennon’s tragic death, Bach and Starr tied the knot on April 27, 1981, with notable guests including Paul McCartney and George Harrison.
Their journey together hasn’t been without challenges. Just before their wedding, the couple survived a near-fatal car accident, which prompted them to vow to stay together. Starr remarked: “We decided we wouldn’t spend any time apart. So far the longest break was five days, and that was too long. I want to live every minute with Barbara”.
The couple also took a significant step together in 1988 by entering rehab, emerging sober since then. Celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary in 2021, Starr shared a nostalgic wedding photo with the caption:, “It was 40 years ago today The love of my life said yes yes yes”.
Starr and Bach’s love extends beyond their personal lives; they also have a blended family, with Starr having three children from his late wife Maureen Cox and Bach two from her former marriage to Augusto Gregorini. Together, they run the Lotus Foundation, which supports various causes, including animal welfare, substance abuse, homelessness, and cancer research. Starr donates all proceeds from his art sales to the foundation.
There’s no denying the deep affection shared between Barbara Bach and Ringo Starr, a bond that remains as strong as ever. As Bach expressed: “I love the man, and that’s it”. Starr echoed her sentiments, saying: “There’s no escape… I think I love Barbara as much (today) as I did (when we met), and I’m beyond blessed that she loves me and we’re still together”. Their inspiring love story continues to resonate, and fans eagerly anticipate what they will accomplish together in their charitable endeavors and personal lives.
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