In an interview with Showtime's Headliners, former NBA superstar Dwayne Wade talked about what it's been like to raise five kids, including his adopted nephew Dahveon, three children from a previous relationship, and a daughter with his wife Gabrielle Union-Wade.
Wade said the key has been in all the lessons he learned from his own father, Dwayne Wade Sr., an incredibly youthful-looking man who taught him to love and accept his kids, as well as other kids in the community without a strong father figure.
As reported on Fatherly, Wade said in the interview, "I'm just a mirror image of the way he loved us." Wade said he's come to educate himself on the children he's raising and has had to "lose some friends along the process, but I never wavered on loving my kids and trying to find space to get the chance to understand them."
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Wade and his 15-year-old transgender daughter Zaya have been in the spotlight since Wade spoke about Zaya in a speech receiving the President's Award at the NAACP Image Awards. Wade spoke about how much he admires Zaya for handling public scrutiny. More recently, the family made a big change: moving out of Florida due to the state's increasingly hostile policies against transgender communities.
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In the same interview with Headliners, Wade said his family "would not be accepted or feel comfortable there."
Father's Day is coming up; don't forget Dwayne Wade and his dad's close relationship. And make sure to show your own kids some love, too.
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