In honor of Father's Day, Cameron Bernadsky talks about the joys of having a large family, the power of a supportive workplace and what parenting in a pandemic really looks like.

To many people, parenting 17 children probably sounds intimidating. And during a pandemic It could seem downright terrifying.

But for Cameron Bernadsky, an Account Executive at Ethicon, a Johnson & Johnson Medical Devices company, more truly is merrier.

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He and his wife, Kelly, always dreamed of having a big family and were blessed with the hearts and support to make their dream a reality by adopting 11 children, in addition to their six biological kids.

We sat down with Bernadsky to hear how they created such a unique, large and loving family, the ways they're navigating the new normal and the importance of a solid support system.

Cameron Bernadsky: 'Whenever I tell people that my wife and I have 17 children, they always ask the same questions: 'Where does everybody sleep How much is your grocery bill And how the heck do you all get around'

I laugh and say that I should own stock in a bunk bed company, because we have lots of them in our house in Springboro, Ohio. As for our grocery bill, it's definitely not small, but we budget. And when we're all going somewhere together, our family piles into an oversized van that seats 15, plus another vehicle, to get there.

Once those questions are out of the way, there are other things people are naturally curious about, like how and why we built such a large family, and if Johnson & Johnson, where I've worked for nearly two decades, has been supportive along the way.

'Our Only Thought Was: How Can We Not Take These Kids in'

Kelly and I were married for a year and a half when she became pregnant for the first time back in the early 90s. Happy as we were, carrying a child was tough on her body. She suffered extreme nausea, was put on bed rest and even required a home I.V. for hydration and nutrition. Still, when our son Max came into the world, we were overjoyed and definitely wanted more kids. Soon enough we found ourselves blessed with six beautiful children.

Unfortunately, the pregnancies never got easier for Kelly, so even though we wanted a seventh, it didn't seem like a good idea. Then a friend mentioned that he and his wife were adopting a daughter from China, and I wondered if something similar might be an option for us. When I floated the idea by Kelly, her response was: 'Let's do it!'

I knew Johnson & Johnson had an adoption benefit, which includes a reimbursement and paid time off, so it was a comfort to know that we'd have help covering some of the fees we would be facing.

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