Today Kevin is twenty years old, studies math and computer science in college and plays piano and guitar. But when the one who would become one of his two dads found him, abandoned in a corner of the New York subway, he was a newborn wrapped up in a dark sweatshirt.
It was the evening of August 28, 2000: Danny Stewart, then, was 34 years old and was joining his boyfriend, Pete Mercurio, 32, to have dinner together. “I noticed on the floor, hidden against the wall, what I thought it was a dollHe told the BBC. “I looked at him once more, and that’s when I noticed his legs moving.” Danny couldn’t believe what he was seeing: who could leave a baby on the floor?
Hardly anyone had a cell phone then: Danny ran up the stairs looking for a pay phone to call the police. Then he went back to the little one, waiting for the agents. Once home, Pete told him, “You know, you will be somehow connected to that child for the rest of your life. Eventually, he will learn about the night he was found and may want to meet the person who saved him. Maybe there is a way we can find out where it goes and send him a birthday present. Every year on this date ».
Danny and Pete then returned to their daily lives: one to his role as a social worker and the other to the professions of playwright and web designer. But soon Danny was asked to attend a court hearing to explain how he found the baby. The judge, at the end of the session, said to him, “Mr. Stewart, we have a child who has been abandoned, and we want to place him in foster care as quickly as possible. Would you be interested in adopting it?».
Danny, shocked, replied, “Yes, but I don’t think it’s that easy.”
“I never thought about adopting a child,” she says now. “But, at the same time, I couldn’t stop thinking that I felt connected to him, and I felt that this wasn’t even an opportunity, it was a gift. How could I say no to this gift?».
Pete didn’t take it so well, but Danny, after a series of heated arguments, said to him, “I wish we were all three of us a family, I would like us to do it together, but if you are not ready, I understand it and I will do it, with or without you ». Pete remembers answering him horribly. Something like, “I wish you luck, single parent in New York.” Yet despite this, there was a part of him that desperately wanted to be the baby’s dad. And Pete humored her.
The adoption process began quickly, and on December 22 the two engaged they became Kevin’s parents (they named him after Pete’s brother, who died at birth). “My mom started crying when she found out,” Pete explains. “It was the way their baby, Kevin, returned. As a grandson, son of their gay son. ‘
Today Kevin is taller than his dads. He ran several marathons and danced with the National Dance Institute from 9 to 14 years. “He’s always been a respectful kid,” Pete explains. “He is empathetic and kind. He is an observer, he does not seek attention. A reserved person ».
Danny, now 55, explains: “My life has become much richer it’s full. It changed my vision of the world, my perspective, all my goals ». This is also confirmed by Pete, who has written a book on the history of his family, Our Subway Baby: «Just as it was inconceivable 20 years ago to think of becoming a parent, now it is even more inconceivable to think of not being one. I didn’t know that this deep level of love could exist until my son came into my life. ‘
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
