Famed Septuplets' parents to speak in Turner

TURNER -- Two of the most celebrated parents in the world will tell how faith has sustained their family when they speak Sept. 8 at the Oregon Christian Convention grounds here.    

Kenny and Bobbi McCaughey, father of the world’s first living and healthy suptuplets, will speak during the OCC’s Fall Rally, from 7 to 9 p.m. Their talk will follow a concert by “Rescue,” who will perform during the first half-hour.    

Since the arrival of the seven babies, the Mc-Caugheys have lived in an intense media spotlight. They have graced the covers of America’s leading magazines and are featured regularly by the nation’s most-watched news programs.    

Born and raised in the quiet, day-to-day routines of small town America, Kenny and Bobbi Mc-Caughey, who live in  Carlisle, Iowa, have seen dramatic changes in their lives. But the primary focus of daily living is more about who’s walking, first words, gettingthe laundry done, picking up hundreds of jars of baby food on the grocery run, and finding time to keep their marriage alive and healthy, than anything else.    

In the challenges also are the blessings.  The McCaugheys believe they have a lot for which to be thankful, not the least of which is their optimistic outlook on life.    

“I think we’re the last of the big families,” said McCaughey, “and a lot of people will be watching to see how we handle things, how we parent, and what it takes for a family to work together.”    

Part of that, he says, is common-sense survival, but all of it requires faith and their steady commitment, respectively, as a husband and father, and wife and mother.    

Volunteers, friends and family from the church and from their hometown still participate in regular rotation as caregivers for the septuplets, for their 3-year-old sister, Mikayla, and for their parents.  Kenny and Bobbi take Friday evenings for “date night” to give their marriage and relationship a weekly boost and time to grow.    

Their first book, Seven from Heaven, was released in November 1998 and appeared on the New York Times bestseller list.  Bobbi McCaughey last year wrote a second book, Celebrating the Wonders of Motherhood.    

For more information, phoneOregon Christian Convention  at (503) 743-2101 or e-mail orchrcon@teleport.com. The OCC grounds are at 5605 Jubilee Drive in Turner.