Johnte Ware ascribes to the belief that it takes a village.  While she may not have read the New York senators book, she lives the philosophy daily.  This thirty-something pharmacy tech at Wal-Mart has a village of her own.  She is mom to 12 children ranging in age from 20 to 2. 

Johnte knows that the decisions which led her to parenting this brood might not meet with universal approval, but for her, it is about providing a nurturing environment.

The oldest of eight children while growing up in Des Moines, she became a care giver to her siblings at a very early age,  and at a very early age, she choose to begin caring for children of her own.  By the age of twenty she was parenting three while struggling to balance the demands of motherhood, schooling and work. 

With a saintly perseverance she carried on, attending DMACC, working several jobs, giving her children love, and sharing life with her closest sibling Leachell who was raising a brood of her own. 

And then tragedy struck, Leachell, by then a mother of six to match Johnte’s six, was taken due to complications from a miscarriage. The loss of her beloved sister stunned Johnte, but she was resolved to soften the blow for her nieces and nephews.  She could not bear the thought of her sister’s children being parceled out to foster care.  So she did what came naturally, she brought them into her home, and became their mother.

With a calm that belied her age and her challenges, a faith that would not be shaken and a little help from friends and neighbors inspired by her dedication, she continues to provide a loving home.  Despite the obstacles, she remains focused, “My only concern is raising good Christian men and women”, she says.  “That’s all that really matters”

On her income, adequate housing is hard to come by, and home ownership is a dream.  Currently the family lives in transitional housing, woefully small, with three bedrooms to house 12 children and Johnte. 

This year, through a partnership with the Ankeny Circle of Faith, and Greater Des Moines Habitat for Humanity, Johnte will find the keys to her dream.  And with those keys she will unlock the door to a brighter future for her little villagers.