I grew up with more love that I could
ever, ever dream or ask for, but it wasn't the norm.
My mother suffered from severe mental illness.
She was ultimately diagnosed with schizophrenia
when she was in her early twenties.
My father was suffering from alcoholism
and so neither of my parents, though they wanted to,
could actually take care of me on a day to day basis.
So, I initially lived with my grandmother and grandfather,
my mom's mom and dad and then I ended up
living with my aunt and uncle.
I don't believe she would've had a lot of guidance
down there where she was living
when she was small 6, 7, 8 years old.
My mother was never violent and never cruel to me,
but her disease made it impossible for me
to know when she would have an episode,
what day she'd be feeling particularly bad
and I was just a kid.
It really started to become very, very stressful.
So, the decision was made by all of the family
that it would be best if I moved in full-time
with my Aunt Kathy and Uncle Eddie
and that's exactly what I did.
That's Gretchen when she was about six years old.
My wife and I, we loved having Gretchen around
for the weekend especially in the summertime
and naturally she wanted to come and live with us
and my wife was overjoyed about that.
After school she'd come down to the barber shop
and she liked to help out around here
and she would grab the broom
and she'd sweep up the hair after a customer.
So, she could stay busy for three or four hours
till we went home.
I hung out, I talked to the customers.
He was so proud of me, always.
He would play backgammon in his barbershop,
watch TV, there was a little TV there.
It just made me feel so light and so safe
and it gave me an escape.
I don't think it was an Uncle Eddie's plan
for me to go live there and become his kid.
But, he was there, he was dad, he was every single day.
Even when I first wanted my very first hair salon,
I went to him first and I said, "How do I do this?"
And he said, "Your aunt and I are gonna help you.
"We're gonna take our loan on our house
"and we're gonna support your dream."
There's no way I would have been able to access
my full value as a person and my full potential without him.
As far as I'm concerned,
Gretta is my daughter and she always will be.
My mother and father has since passed on,
as has my Aunt Kathy.
I love my mom and dad.
I love the memory of them.
I love that they were mine,
but I could never ever tell you
that it was the same relationship
that I have had have had with my aunt and uncle.
I just couldn't and to think for a man
who never planned to have his own kids,
now he's got my two guys jumping all over him.
He is it, he is Uncle, Grandpa Eddie.
There's no other story to be told.
It's the very best, most magical story of my life.
I wouldn't change a thing.
You know how much I love you.
I tell you always, I love you.
But, just the story of my life now, what I realize,
what you did, you had no idea I was coming along
and you gave me safety and security and love.
Awe.
So, I have a gift for you.
I hope it's a (indistinct) gift.
Get ready.
This is for you.
I'll help you.
These are actually papers for you
to legally adopt me, as your daughter at 51.
For it to make it official
because I want our family story that is so beautiful,
so amazing and so different to be history
because it's history, you did it
and you never ever asked for a label.
You never asked for credit, nothing.
So, if you'll have me after a lot of fumbles,
I would love you to being my dad officially
'cause you are, you've always been.
I didn't know what was in the box, I swear.
I'm chocked up a little bit right now,
but it's overwhelming to know
that she's officially my daughter.
He has to sign the papers Rach.
I think that's a yes.
Papers doesn't mean anything
because she was always, always my daughter.