By Nicole Murray Ramirez
The “American Family” has greatly changed over the years and in honor of this month’s Father’s Day, the LGBTQ San Diego County News salutes some of the community’s outstanding and loving fathers.
May all the rest of the fathers in our local LGBTQ community have a wonderful day celebrating their fatherhood!
Note: All photos provided courtesy of the fathers.
Joseph Anthony Bustamante
Joseph Anthony adopted his now 8-year-old son, Daniel Orlando, who many of you have seen lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance at both the Bayard Rustin Honors and the Harvey Milk Diversity Breakfast this year.
Being a father is the greatest joy of my life. 24 years ago when I decided to get clean and sober, I had a dream list; on that list was having a son. As circumstances would have it, one day I was faced with an opportunity and without hesitation or even thought, I knew it was my time to step up and let this beautiful baby boy in. My life has never been the same.
It is one of the hardest, most rewarding, gracious and proudest things I’ve ever done. It truly does take a village. I would not be able to do it without the help of my God Partner Russell King, my mom, and all of my friends who walk beside me. Lil Daniel is smart, funny, kind, loving, an old soul, full of life and most definitely keeps me on my toes. Being his father has given me the greatest opportunity to heal some of the deepest points of my life. We are both so fortunate. I am forever grateful
Johan Engman
Steadfast LGBTQ Ally and successful businessman Johan and his beautiful wife Yasmin (owners of 24 local restaurants, including the Breakfast Republics and Fig Tree Cafes) are proud parents of River (5) and Sienna (3).
My wife and I have been together for 8 years, married for 5-1/2 years. I definitely have a busy schedule, but making time for my family is always a priority. My wife is amazing, we are a great team. We travel quite a bit with our kids. Before having River and Sienna, we made the decision that we’d travel with them from the beginning and now they are very much used to it. I’m eternally grateful to have such an amazing wife and kids.
Kyle & Snapper Escobar-Humphries
Kyle and Snapper have been together for 22 years and married 10 years. They are the proud parents of two teenage children, Denmark (15) and Demirae (14).
Denmark and Demirae were both adopted as newborns and are biological siblings. They are currently finishing their sophomore and freshman years, respectively, in high school.
While Kyle’s family lives locally, we all travel yearly to North Carolina to visit Snapper’s side of the family.
Our family really enjoys the different holidays together and have created many family traditions through the years. Many may say that Denmark and Demirae are lucky, but we say we are the lucky ones and have the honor of being called “Dad.”
Robert Gleason and Marc Matys
Robert and Marc are well known and respected civic leaders in both San Diego and our LGBTQ community. They have been together 32 years and married 15 years. Their now handsome teenage sons are Max (18) and Chase (16).
We always wanted to be parents and even talked about it on our first date in 1992. It wasn’t as common then, so it took us a few years to put things in motion. The days our kids were born were among the very best of our lives. We are so grateful for the opportunity to be dads and for the surrounding community that has helped raise them.
Tyler Hodgson
Tyler is the proud father of Theodore (4).
Being a parent is an incredible journey filled with love, challenges, and unforgettable moments. As a single gay dad with split custody, I’ve embraced every aspect of fatherhood with joy and dedication. Adopting my son was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made, and watching him grow and thrive fills my heart with pride and happiness. Each day brings new adventures and strengthens our bond, reminding me that family is defined by love, not just by who we are, but by how deeply we care for one another.
Allan and Christopher Pfeil
Allan and Christopher have been together 23 years and married 11. Their children are Jaxon (5) and Aria (3).
When Christopher and I first started dating, having kids just looked out of reach. As we did more research and educated ourselves on different possibilities, it slowly became a reality. After so many years in school, two marriages and coming from decades of involvement with the LGBTQ+ community, I had finally met someone with whom I was ready to build my family with. We were both more mature and had enjoyed exploring our sexuality and being single, so we felt ready to start our family.
Raising our kids has been the most rewarding and biggest accomplishment of our lives. They have developed so fast into kind and amazing human beings. It takes a village to raise a family. Our family and friends are very involved in our children’s lives. When possible, we still try to carve out time for date nights and some time for the two of us to connect and have fun without the kids. We also love to take trips and have fun adventures that include the kids. I cannot imagine our lives without them.
Romeo and David Precido-Camacho
Romeo and David Precido-Camacho are active members of the community and highly involved in the Imperial Court de San Diego. Romeo adopted Elijah (now 20) when he was 2 years old. He adopted Jesus (now 22) when he was 14.
We’ve taken the young teens to many LGBTQ events, including Imperial Court festivities, and they were very involved. We remain close to the boys.
Ken St. Pierre and Keith Black
Ken has lived in San Diego for 20 years and Keith was raised in San Diego, graduating from La Jolla High School. Our girls are Adeline (6) and Everleigh (5).
Ken is the president and group publisher of Modern Luxury San Diego. Keith is the founder and creative director of “Rose & May, A Bespoke Content House,” named after our two daughters (Rose and May are the girls’ middle names).
Our family lives in Harmony Grove in North County. Our girls are involved in dance, softball and Girl Scouts.
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