A husband and wife who fostered over one hundred kids throughout decades of marriage passed away just weeks apart.

67-year-old Barbara Newell and her 72-year-old husband Allan had been married for 48 years. During this period, the couple fostered over one hundred children, including those with disabilities.

Sadly, the UK-based couple died just weeks apart. While Barbara died from a lung disease, her husband passed away just weeks later after contracting the novel coronavirus and succumbing to COVID-19.

The couple is survived by three kids, five grandkids, two great-grandkids, and over one hundred foster children.

As their family revealed, Allan cared for his wife during her final days despite suffering from underlying health conditions himself.

Shortly after her death, the grandfather collapsed and was rushed to the hospital where he was diagnosed with COVID-19.

“We couldn’t be there for him, we couldn’t see him, we couldn’t visit him. The last time I saw him, he was in the back of the ambulance saying ‘I’ll be back in an hour,’” daughter Jude Greaves-Newell recalled.

“We are just a bit lost. As a family, we come together to hold each other and we talk to each other. We can’t do that now, we are all in these different places and we can’t come together and look after each other.”

As the daughter explained, only a few people could attend the funeral whereas their family “can’t grieve properly” due to lockdown.

“They were great parents. I would not have been able to become a nurse without them. They opened their home for lots and lots of people. They were just kind people. It is heartbreaking to lose them both so close together,” Jude added.

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