It is a universal assertion that there is absolutely nothing that can beat a mother’s connection to her child. That bond is magically unifying and ultimately unbreakable, and no matter the number of years that separate a mother from her child due to any unforeseen circumstance, the mother will never let go of the chance to reunite with her kid again. This is the story of Heidi Russo, a woman who is desperately making efforts to reunite with her son whom she gave away for adoption decades ago.
Heidi is the birth mother of popular American football quarterback, Colin Kaepernick, who has made several headlines for controversially protesting police brutality in America by kneeling down on the football pitch when the national anthem is being sung. Even though many fans know Teresa Kaepernick as Colin’s mother today, not many know that she is actually his adopted mum and that his real birth mother is Heidi.
Who Is Heidi Russo?
Not much is known about the early life of Heidi Russo and where she was born or where she grew up. Some reports have said she was born in 1969 but it has proven impossible to verify the authenticity of this assertion. Her parents have been identified as Phyllis and James Zabransky.
Despite the lack of information on Heidi’s life including where she had her education, we do know that she is an American woman and that she is a certified nurse living and working in Denver, a city in Colorado, US. She became popular when she started seeking to have a relationship with her son, Colin Kaepernick, the famous American football star, whom she gave away for adoption after having him.
Facts About Colin Kaepernick’s Mother
Since she became known as the birth mother of Colin, the public has begun to search about Heidi and about what really happened many years ago when she parted ways with her son. Here are some facts you need to know about Heidi Russo.
1. She Gave Birth To Colin In 1987
Heidi Russo gave birth to Colin Kaepernick on the 3rd of November, 1987 in Milwaukee, a city in Wisconsin. When she got pregnant with the baby, her partner at the time who was an African-American man, separated from her even before Colin was born.
Essentially, Colin was born to a single mother and has not met with his birth father till this day. However, Heidi had the support of her parents who stood by her during the trying period when she was pregnant with Colin.
2. She Gave Him Away For Adoption Soon After He Was Born
Heidi Russo gave Colin away for adoption when he was just 6 weeks old. A man identified as Rick Kaepernick and his wife, Teresa Kaepernick, decided to adopt the boy and signed the necessary papers. At the time, The Kaepernicks already had two older children identified as Kyle and Devon; however, they decided to adopt Colin because they had lost two other sons who suffered from horrific heart defects.
After adopting Colin, Mr Rick Kaepernick who used to live with his family in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin moved away from the city to California.
3. She Is Now Desperate To Have A Relationship With Colin
Many years after Heidi Russo gave him up for adoption, Colin Kaepernick became famous in the US as an American football player of repute. He started his exploits from high school, displaying pure skill and stamina on the pitch. In fact, he was once voted the Most Valuable Player in high school because of his skills. He continued his exploits at the University of Nevada where he was often looked upon as one of the best players. Professionally, Colin has also shown class and determination on the field as his fame kept growing.
As a mother, Heidi started to follow and monitor her son’s success and celebrity status which was increasing every day. Even though she was not in touch with the young man, having lost contact when she gave him up for adoption, she would go to watch him play and cheer him on from the stands. Naturally, she began to yearn for some form of relationship with her son.
However, her move to establish a solid relationship with Colin has not entirely worked out well. Colin is not excited to be in touch with his birth mother and has majorly kept away from her, determined not to ruin his relationship with the Kaepernicks. Today, Heidi has accepted her fate and now only supports him from afar and hopes he changes his mind and gets more in touch with her someday. It is known that she follows him in social media and often comments on the posts he makes on his pages.
4. She Disagrees With Colin
The fact that she has been seeking for ways to get Colin to relate some more with her has now stopped Heidi from criticizing her son when she feels he has done wrong. In 2016, Colin sparked controversy when he decided to protest police brutality by either refusing to stand up or kneeling down during the national anthem which is sung before games. His actions got many people divided; while some supported him, others bashed him online.
On her part, Heidi decided to criticize Colin. Taking to her Twitter page, she explained that Colin could have found other ways to stage a protest and not to disrespect the national anthem. She then asked him to be smarter when doing things like that in the future.
However, Colin’s adopted family, the Kaepernicks threw their support behind him and even wrote a statement to that effect.
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5. She Has Given Birth To Other Kids
After having Colin in 1987, Heidi remained alone for a while before she finally got married to a man called Heath Russo. Sources say she now has three children with her husband.
