Growing up in a conservative household in the state of Michigan in the United States, Corey Nichols knew he needed to keep his sexual orientation a secret from his family, particularly after hearing his father say “If any fag lived in this house, I would shoot them in the head with a shotgun.”

Corey had a strained relationship with his father, and claims he was beaten on several occasions as well being subjected to his father telling him that “gay people weren’t just sinners, they were sin itself and they were killed when they reached a certain age.”

When Corey became unwell and developed a fever, his parents ignored and refused to help.  His health steadily declined until he became delirious and began to have suicidal thoughts.  In a moment of desperation, he reached out to his friend Aubrey in the early hours of one morning.  Corey wrote to Aubrey:

“I am desperate. Things here are so bad, I want to slit my wrists. I am not kidding.”

Thankfully for Corey, at the same moment this message appeared on Aubrey’s computer screen, her mother Mindy noticed the distressing words written on the screen and immediately jumped into action.

Mindy and Aubrey went straight over to Corey’s house to pick him up, Mindy later says

“It was like I was possessed by someone else, I knew I needed to act, and to do something, but everything I did was against my nature and not how I usually act as a person.”

For the next few weeks, Mindy and her husband looked after Corey and helped to nurse him back to heath from the pneumonia which he had developed.  During this time they claim Corey’s parents not once contacted them to find out how their son was going.

Once his health had returned, Corey returned home and finally admitted to his Mother that he was Gay.  The response from his Father was as Corey feared, and Corey recalls

“He was yelling and screaming about how a fag was living in his home and he can’t believe the devil was in his presence, I locked myself in my room when my brother came home. The first thing my father did was tell him about how his brother was nothing but a worthless fag.”  

Corey goes on to explain his family attempted to break down his bedroom door. He then waited until they all fell asleep that night before leaving his family home and making his way to Aubrey’s house – a place he knew he would feel welcome.

Mindy and her husband Dale welcomed Corey with open arms, and only weeks later they submitted a court petition to legally adopt Corey.  Mindy and Dale’s love for Corey is obvious, with Mindy stating:

“I want the world to know that Corey is a beautiful human being, I want the world to see Corey’s pain and know it is not necessary. Sexuality is such a small part of who we are. First and foremost Corey is a loving, genuine, caring, intelligent human being.”

Since news of this story broke, Corey’s family has hit out claiming this story is a lie and have taken to Facebook to state their case.

Whatever the case may be, Corey is now living with a family who respects, takes care and most importantly loves him for the person that he is, as Mindy says “Our family fell in love with Corey for Corey… His sexuality did not change who he was. I also want the world to know that we are a family. I want people to understand that genetics are just science. Families are built from unconditional love.”