Jerry Windle was a gay man who was single and just wanted to raise a child. He had no clue his son would become a worldwide inspiration when he adopted Jordan in Cambodia.
Jerry Windle was a middle-aged single man whose life had been in disarray some twenty years earlier. He made the decision to shift careers and relocate from California to Florida after learning of his mother’s passing.
For years, he had yearned to become a father. He had been attempting to adopt a kid, but there were very few adoption opportunities—especially for a gay man who is unmarried. While waiting at the doctor’s office in Florida, he casually perused a magazine article that would change his life forever.
The magazine article detailing the adoption story of another single homosexual man from Cambodia gave him hope again, in spite of all the challenges he had encountered while seeking to adopt.
Jerry’s Path to Parenthood
Jerry called an orphanage in Cambodia as soon as possible, and the agency provided Jerry a picture of a young boy named Pisey, which translates to “little darling” in the local language. The optimistic dad was certain that small infant will become his son.
He requested that a picture of himself and a necklace be sent back to the child in his reply. Jerry asked the agency to tell the youngster that he is his father and that they would be sending someone to pick him up.
The unmarried man came to the nation to start his fatherhood journey months later. They fell in love right away when he held baby Pisey and gave him the name Jordan. Jordan was barely sixteen pounds when he was a sickly two-year-old.
Jerry had no idea how long the infant would live. “I assured him that I would exert every effort to ensure that he would never have to endure suffering once more. As a dad, I would do all in my power to give him every chance,” Jerry remarked.
Jerry was able to return his son to Fort Lauderdale, Florida in June 2000, five months after he began the adoption procedure. He had no idea that he had adopted a potential athlete.
Jordan’s Amazing Capabilities in Diving
Jordan fell in love with diving when he turned seven. The tiny child was allowed to leap off a diving board while attending an aquatics summer camp. The man in charge of the program told Jerry he had to get his son involved in the sport the next time his father dropped him off.
Jordan might succeed as an Olympian and possibly a national champion, according to the camp organizer. Jerry registered his kid for classes at an aquatic summer camp, allowing his son to pursue this new interest.
Jerry was unfortunately unable to attend his kid compete because of COVID-19 regulations. But Jordan remained unfazed by that.
His love for diving was further stoked when, just two years later, he achieved his first junior national championship, an uncommon accomplishment. Jordan put in a lot of work to improve his diving technique. He went back to his birth country of Cambodia to take part in a diving demonstration when he turned sixteen.
He even had a conversation with a few of the kids whose lives and talents he had impacted. “It was amazing to be able to communicate with them, using a translator, and explain my background and how my father helped shape who I am now,” the adopted youngster remarked.
The Road to the Olympic Games
Jordan represented the United States of America with pride at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, six years after the life-changing event of returning to Cambodia. Twenty-one years later, he became an Olympian diver, realizing the dream of his camp commander.
The young man was eager to flaunt his tattoo of the flag of his birth country, Cambodia, and vowed to always represent that nation in his heart. Jordan has previously attempted to qualify for the Olympics twice but was unsuccessful. He qualified for Tokyo by finishing second in the 10-meter platform dive on his third attempt.
Jordan wished to encourage people with this chance. “[There will] be] a lot of people and a lot more eyes on me, but it just excites me to be able to give my best performance and demonstrate that, hopefully, all of this hard work will pay off,” he said.
Jerry was unfortunately unable to attend his kid compete because of COVID-19 regulations. But Jordan remained unfazed by that. He said that he still intended to enjoy the Olympics.
I’m going there to have fun, show off a little, and put up a show for everyone; it doesn’t really matter if he was there or not. My goal is to accomplish that, and I hope to make him proud in the process.
On June 12, 2021, in Indianapolis, Indiana, Jordan Windle competes in the men’s 10-meter platform final in the US Olympic Trials. Getty Images is the source.
Additionally, Jerry’s son promised to remember him when competing. Jordan said that he didve “purely” for his father since he was aware of how much the man enjoyed seeing him perform when asked why he did it.
The man’s son believed he wouldn’t be where he is now if his father hadn’t made the sacrifices he did and offered him love and support. The Olympian expressed gratitude to Jerry for all of his achievements and mentioned the amazing and continuous journey he and his father have taken together.
On June 12, 2021, in Indianapolis, Indiana, Jordan Windle competes in the men’s 10-meter platform final in the US Olympic Trials. Getty Images is the source.
In fact, the father-son team co-wrote the book “An Orphan No More: The True Story of a Boy.” The book is a great read for the whole family because it uses animal characters to illustrate the power of love.
Jerry permanently altered Jordan’s life the moment he pledged to provide his son with every chance. Jordan’s tenacity and willpower never cease to inspire.
Jerry is pleased of his son’s achievements even though he was disappointed to miss the Olympics. Jordan honored his father, one of his greatest fans, on social media this Father’s Day.
What Father’s Day message did Jordan want to send to Jerry?
Jordan posted two pictures to Instagram on June 18, 2023. The first one was of him as a little boy, enjoying the holiday season while sitting in his father’s lap. In the second photo, the young child was grinning and raising his hands while Jerry held a much smaller Jordan in his hands.
The athlete expressed his love and bestowed a joyful Father’s Day greeting on his father in the caption of the photo. He promised to visit Jerry soon and told him to go “have some fun” in the interim, saying that the parent should be happy for all of the effort he put into helping others.
This tale about a single gay father who adopted a little girl with Down syndrome despite being turned down by 20 families might be of interest to you if it made your heart sing. The whole story is available to read here.
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