Actor Hill Harper, whose real name is Francis Eugene Harper, was a guest on "Good Morning America" on Friday, June 16, 2017. He was interviewed by co-anchor Robin Roberts. Before Harper talked about his upcoming movie, he talked about adopting a little boy and becoming a single dad. His 18-month-old son also appeared on the morning talk show with his proud father.
About the adoption
At 51, Harper beamed as he told Roberts how he wanted to become a father, but a friend convinced him that he could adopt even though he is not married. She suggested that he talk to someone she knew in an adoption agency just to find out what the process was.
He did talk to someone and thought no more about it until he received a call in November 2015 that a baby boy was going to be born to a homeless woman in three weeks. At first, Harper was caught off guard. Then after he talked to the birth mother, he made his decision to adopt the baby, and he hasn't regretted it for a moment.
In December 2015, Harper was in the delivery room when his son was born. He actually cut the umbilical cord. From that moment on, he and his son bonded. The adoption was just finalized in May 2017 even though Harper was a father to Pierce Hill Harper from the moment he was born.
Harper described the experience as the biggest blessing of his life. He says he is glad Pierce chose him to be his father.
Harper concluded that he didn't know he could love that deeply. He said he hopes his story will inspire others who might be considering adoption.
There are more single women adopting babies than single men. In fact, reports show only that only about 3 percent of single men adopt babies. The National Adoption Center says that one-third of its adoptions are by single parents, and most of them are women.
However, the number of single men adopting is steadily growing.
Hill Harper Is A New a Dad https://t.co/VbNYgvOIUI pic.twitter.com/tDLnnNgCTk
— Tara Staples (@Tara2672) June 16, 2017
About Hill Harper
Harper became well known when he starred in the role of Dr. Sheldon Hawkes as a medical examiner on the CBS drama "CSI: NY" from its inception from September 22, 2004, to February 22, 2013, when it went off the air after nine seasons.
Harper has a leading role in "All Eyez On Me" that opened in theaters the same day Harper appeared on "Good Morning America." The biographical film debuted on what would have been Tupac Shakur's 46th birthday. The movie is based on the life of the late musician who was killed when he was 25 years old. Harper had good things to say about the legendary rapper. He said the film is a beautiful story about a man who worked so hard and had done about 7,000 songs before he died at such a young age.