Exhibit 01 — Feb 4, 2014
His name was
on the form.
Eighteen days after Christopher Emanuel registered as his daughter’s father, a private investigator served him at his door: she had been born, and placed for adoption in another state. Because he had registered, he had the standing to fight. He won her back.
“My daughter was stolen from me. I asserted my rights. My rights were stripped of me.”
Christopher Emanuel — ABC Nightline, 2015-09-15
The Eighteen Days
A form he did not want to sign, a daughter he was not told about, and the days between them.
- Exhibit 01February 4, 2014
He puts his name on the South Carolina Responsible Father Registry.
He had resisted it. Registering felt like an act of war against someone he loved. His half-sister and her friend found the registry and pushed him to file.
- Exhibit 02February 11, 2014
His daughter is born. Nobody tells him.
- Exhibit 03February 22, 2014
A private investigator serves him at his home in Aiken: his daughter has been placed for adoption. She is already in California.
Eighteen days after he registered. Had he not filed that form, he would have had no standing, and no notice.
- Exhibit 042014–2015
He contests the adoption. DNA confirms paternity. He wins custody of his daughter.
The exact date of the final order is not something he has published — and so this site does not print one.
- Exhibit 052015
He founds the Sky Is The Limit Foundation, named for his daughter.
“Being a parent – being a dad, being a mom – is the most important job under God. Mothers are important, too. Mothers speak life into who we are and what we can become.”
Christopher Emanuel — Post and Courier, 2022-02-13
On the Record — Video
In his own words, on camera.
TEDx Talks — No Cap – Think Big! (TEDxYouth@AikenHighSchool)
See all appearances →Verified
The parts of the record you can check.
Featured on OWN (Oprah Winfrey Network), 'Honoring Our Kings: OWN Celebrates Black Fatherhood', alongside fathers including Dwyane Wade and Kevin Hart.
Post and Courier, 2022-02-13
Has presented on fathers' rights in adoption alongside law professors from Syracuse University and the University of South Carolina School of Law, and the attorney who drafted the Responsible Father Registry.
skyisthelimitfoundation.com — CLE faculty listing
Featured speaker at the University of South Carolina Law School, Syracuse University School of Law, Colgate University, the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition, the SC Head Start Association and the SC Early Head Start Association.
True To Your S.O.L.E. biography
Has helped more than 100 fathers register on state father registries.
WIS-TV, 2019-07-30
A hallway at Aiken High School bears his name.
Post and Courier, 2022-02-13
National trainer with the One Circle Foundation (The Council for Boys and Young Men).
One Circle Foundation, 2022-09-26
Press
The story has been told before. Here is where.
- The AtlanticA Father's Struggle to Stop His Daughter's Adoption2015-07-07
- ABC News / NightlineA Father's Fight to Win Back His Daughter Secretly Put Up for Adoption2015-09-15
- The New York TimesSingle Fathers Should Get Notice About Adoptions2014-06-13
- WACH FOXSC man wins custody of his daughter after she was adopted without his permission2021-02-16
- WIS-TVSC father working to educate others about Responsible Father Registry2019-07-30
- Post and Courier12 Black Leaders to Know: Christopher Emanuel2022-02-13
Book Christopher
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