I became a father at 17. I had no roadmap, no real plan—just a determination to figure things out as I went. Somehow, I did. And in the process, I raised the most remarkable daughter I have ever known. So when two police officers showed up at my door on the night of her graduation and asked if I had any idea what my daughter had been doing… I was completely unprepared for what came next.
I was 17 when my daughter, Ainsley, came into the world. Her mom and I were one of those high school couples who believed in “forever.” But reality caught up with us fast. We split up before Ainsley could even say “Daddy.”
