Three months ago, my wife and I made national headlines after helping a young trans man escape an abusive home.
The backlash was brutal. We received death threats. The right-wing media called us kidnappers. Every armchair lawyer in America weighed in on our dastardly plans. His mother, the source of his pain, continues to push a tired narrative rooted in control, not care.
I’m thrilled to report that this weekend, we drove to Denver to unite this young man with his birth father. A man the boy had never known, hidden from him by his mother. That man turned out to be kind, loving and overjoyed to welcome his lost son. His other boys embraced their new brother without hesitation. Even a grandmother stepped forward, warm and thrilled to meet the grandson she had never had the joy of meeting. It was clear they were and always had been a family.
And none of it would have been possible without the people of Durango. In those first hard weeks, our community showed up with over $3,000 in donations. That support allowed this brave young man to fight for legal independence, reclaim his identity and pursue what had been taken from him.
For now, he’s staying in Durango to finish school. But he does so with the knowledge that he is no longer alone.
This was never a scandal, just a rescue, a reunion and a community that stood tall.
Thank you, Durango.
Vivian Smotherman
Durango
