Sweet Video Shows You Don't Have To Be Blood-Related To Be A Parent

A teen’s graduation party turned into an ever bigger celebration when she asked her mom’s boyfriend to adopt her.

According to ABC News, 18-year-old Lauren Hernandez asked Joe Iosco, her mother’s boyfriend since Hernandez was just a year old, to officially adopt her at her graduation party. As soon as Iosco read the sweet poem Hernandez gave him and saw the adoption papers, he broke down in tears.

Hernandez told Babble that Iosco has been more like a father to her than her biological dad throughout her life.

“He paid for school supplies, clothes, food, Catholic schooling, cheer, and he put a roof over my head,” she said. “Joe and my mom have two daughters together, but he always makes sure I don’t feel left out. He tells people that he has three daughters; he makes it known how much he loves me and how much he cares about me.”

In the touching video that shows Iosco opening his gift, he shared a heartfelt embrace with his daughter. He told ABC News that both Hernandez and her mother, Sally, changed his life.

“As the years went by, I not only fell in love with Sally, but I fell in love with Lauren as well.”