In the summer of 2000, Danny Stewart never imagined becoming a father. At 34, he lived in New York City with a good job in social care but still in a tiny apartment. He had been with his partner, Pete, for just over three years; they were serious but did not live together. Parenthood was not on his radar.
One August evening, after finishing work late, Danny hurried to a dinner reservation with Pete. Rushing toward the turnstile at Union Square station, he noticed a bundle of clothes in a corner. Seeing it move, he stopped in his tracks. He walked over, peeled back a dark sweatshirt, and saw a newborn baby, with the umbilical cord still attached.
“I was in shock, my heart racing,” Danny recalls. He sprinted up to the street, found a payphone, and called 911. “I found a baby,” he blurted. Rushing back to the platform, he crouched next to the baby, stroking his head to comfort him. The baby pulled a face. “OK, you don’t like that,” Danny said. They stared at each other.
It felt like hours, but only a few minutes passed before police arrived. Danny gave a statement and went home for a large drink. He and Pete talked all night, wondering why the mother left the baby and why she chose that location, in the heart of gay New York.
After a short media frenzy, life returned to normal. Twelve weeks later, Danny was asked to testify at a court hearing because the mother could not be found. To his surprise, the judge asked if he had any interest in adopting the baby. The idea had never crossed his mind, but instantly he desperately wanted to say yes. He told the judge he needed to talk to his partner, but in his own mind, he had already decided.
Pete was furious. They had never discussed starting a family. They were in debt, and there were a hundred reasons why bringing a child into their lives seemed unwise. But Danny was convinced.
Pete agreed to visit the baby in foster care with Danny. As soon as Danny saw him, he took the baby in his arms. “Remember me?” he said. Pete says that when he held the baby, every morsel of resistance instantly evaporated. They left that house united.
They were called back to court on 20 December and granted custody. “How would you like him for the holidays?” the judge asked. They bought parenting books, read them cover to cover in 24 hours, and Danny moved into Pete’s flat.
They named him Kevin. Pete had an older brother named Kevin who died before he was born, and his parents always said he had a guardian angel named Kevin watching over him.
Taking baby Kevin home was incredible but terrifying, as it is for any new parent; but unlike most, they had just a day to prepare. For weeks, they took turns sitting up around the clock to ensure he was still breathing.
They wanted Kevin to know he was wanted and loved, so they wrote a story for him about how they became a family. He made them read it over and over and took it to school.
When Kevin was 11, New York legalized same-sex marriage. They told Kevin they would like to get married. He said, “Don’t judges marry people?” and suggested the judge who asked if they wanted to adopt him. They were delighted when she agreed to officiate.
Not everything has been easy. As a teenager, Kevin had many questions about his birth mother. He wanted to put up posters in the subway, and they noticed him looking at strangers’ faces to see if they resembled him. He has since made peace with the situation.
Pete wrote a memoir, and they turned the story they wrote for Kevin into a children’s book with a short animation. They want other children to understand there are many ways to become a family.
Now, Kevin is an incredible young man, and they are tremendously proud of him. He works out of state as a software developer but still enjoys spending time with his dads. Even 26 years later, they can’t quite believe that, by some miracle, they were given the privilege of being part of Kevin’s life. “How lucky we are,” Danny says.
