On January 14, Officer Nicholas Quintana of the North Las Vegas Police was on his lunch break when an ‘ominous’ call came.
“Trying to enjoy my lunch and this urge, this abrupt urge, that’s the best way I can describe it, came and I ended up going to the call,” the cop told FOX5.
He drove to the scene at Osaka Pearl Street, where a woman was arrested for reportedly shooting her husband. Even more shocking, the couple’s five children were in the house while it happened.
Quintana’s heart broke for the kids—aged six to 17—who lost their parents under such traumatic circumstances.
“Wow. That’s sad. That’s extremely sad because now these kids are going to go to Child Haven,” he said.
The police officer also felt connected with the orphaned children because he went through a similar experience. When he was just a boy, Quintana’s father lost his life at the hands of another family member.
He knew what it felt like to lose a parent in such a tragic manner, so he wanted to go the extra mile for these kids and help them in a big way.
Quintana wanted to foster all of them.
“These thoughts like, ‘Hey, take the kids in,’ and I’m like, ‘What?'” he remembered thinking while at at the scene of the unfortunate event.
When he finished his shift later that day, he came home and told his wife, Amanda, about the incident and his desire to take the children in. Quintana knew the siblings would likely be separated under the foster care system, and he didn’t want that to happen.
Naturally, Amanda was reluctant about the idea, but her husband convinced her to meet the kids, believing she might just fall in love with them. So she did.
Three days later, they drove to Child Haven, where Amanda met the children and got the chance to talk to them. Two days later, they all went home as a family.
“I look at the kids and I say, ‘Hey, look, the reason why we’re here is because I had a thought,” Quintana recalled.
“I’d like to take every single one of you. I’d like to take you in our home.’ And the 16-year-old gasped for a sec and said, ‘Really?’ and I said, ‘Yeah,’ and of course, the oldest one says, ‘All of us?’ and I said, ‘Every single one of you.'”
Quintana said he has always wanted to be a father because he didn’t have one growing up. He wished to love a child the way he hoped his father would love him.
From being a family of two, the Quintanas instantly became a family of seven. It’s definitely a huge jump that involved a lot of adjustment, so the North Las Vegas Police Officers Association set up a GoFundMe for the family to help cover their growing expenses. So far, it has raised over $69,000.
Quintana says the experience of fostering the kids has been “humbling” and “amazing.” He said that there are so many “different emotions and so many different things, adjectives to describe it all.”
As challenging as everything is, Quintana is happy with their decision.
“I think about every single last one of them from the oldest to the youngest,” he said. “Now, I’m not just thinking about these decisions for my wife, now, I’m thinking about it for my wife and our kids, our kiddos now.”
The Quintanas enrolled in fostering classes to earn their fostering licenses and receive some financial help. Until then, they are paying for their expenses using their own money.
The Quintanas need all the help they can get now that their family has expanded. Show them your support by donating to their GoFundMe and spreading the word about their beautiful act of kindness.
Click on the video below to learn more about this amazing story.
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