From the Beginning
Up until now, the only mother that Deland ever knew was Adelle Comer. She, along with her then-husband A.C. McCullough, adopted Deland when he was only six weeks old. At the time, Adelle was living in a three-bedroom house in Youngstown, Ohio, with her husband, a popular radio host at the time, and their young son, Damon.
Photo by Ruddy Roye / ESPN
The couple had just tragically lost their second son, Alex, to an intestinal birth defect at just 28 days when they received a call from an adoption agency in Pennsylvania. The couple had been serving as foster parents for some time now, and after the death of their newborn son, Adelle and A.C. were ready to adopt. The adoption agency informed the couple of a six-week-old baby that was looking for a new home.