([email protected])
Kyle Riker Kenyon
08.03.63
Single father
Military/Private Pilot
 
I started my family early - I was 16 when my now 19-year-old son Chase was born. I was in foster care at that time, and the chance of a teen father getting any say as to what happened to a baby born out of wedlock was "none", not with no one to back him up. The mother had few options as well, only one in fact.
However, in my case I do believe it was a one in a million chance - I was able to give the baby to a couple of my choosing. Because of this we had what was still almost unheard of at the time - an open adoption.
My two younger sons, Tristan and Laird, twins now 16, were born when I was 19. This is by the way one of 18 sets of twins in my immediate family (parents, 4 brothers, nephew).
In 1996 I became a foster parent to young parents. Teen parenting issues were always present throughout my life, and it seemed like the thing I wanted to get involved with. Teen parenting seemed to become a trend in my family - all of my siblings and I became parents at a young age (although two were not teen parents), and last year my 17 year old nephew also became a father. It's hard to say exactly why, for two of my brothers, and myself, it might have been the fact that we had no family while growing up.
When I first started fostering, the teens were both male and female. Over time I gained more experience with issues surrounding teen fathers. For the past year 90% of the kids placed with me have been male. For the most part they have been single parents.
Currently my family lives in N. California. My sons, now joined by adopted 12-year-olds Charley, Koty, and Vance, attend a private school in the community. It is December 21, 1998, and we have 6 teens living with us, as well as 9 children belonging to them. Their information is below.
Samantha, 18, mom to 1-year-old Jessica
William, 18, dad to 1-year-old Sarah
Thomas, 18, dad to 6-month-old Christina
Ian, 17, dad to 1-year-old Westley and 5-month-old Gabriel
Dallas, 16, dad to 7-month-old Ryan, 5-month-old Charlotte, and 1-month old Logan
Seth, 15, dad to 4-month-old Troy