Schools
SNAPSHOT: Fired Coach Welcomes New Addition to Family
The lawsuit against the Charter Oak Unified School District also moving along as Stein says he will continue to fight for a world free from discrimination.
"Team Stein" welcomed a new addition recently to the family, with the adoption of a baby girl.
Mitch Stein, the former water polo coach from Charter Oak High who alleges he was from his job because he is gay, welcomed Tuolumne to the family.
The adoption, however, was not without a few problems.
The baby was allegedly born addicted to methamphetamine, because both biological parents were drug addicts and the baby suffers from heart and lung issues.
"She … was born with a condition called meconium aspiration, which caused pulmonary hypertension," Stein said. The baby spent four weeks at Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and two weeks at Children's Hospital Los Angeles.
Having to take care of the baby and her ailments was taxing on Stein, his partner Hugo Horta and Stein's daughter Devynn, but things are improving.
"If anything this 'drama' with Tuolumne's birth has brought our family closer together … my family wants to make sure Tuolumne grows up in a world were everyone is treated the same and free from discrimination," Stein said.
The story was featured in the Huffington Post.
The lawsuit against the Charter Oak Unified School District is continuing, with the discovery phase of the lawsuit. The pre-trial is scheduled for July 9.
Stein said the LGBT members in the district won a major victory recently when the Charter Oak governing board voted to include changes in their board policies, adding sexual orientation to their non-discrimination section May 24. Stein said it shows that the efforts to stand up to discrimination are having an effect.
Stein's story continues to make headlines. The firing was talked about on Good Morning America.
What was really surprising to Stein was the presence of an online petition at care2.com. The petition was started by a young woman whom Stein does not know. The petition seeks justice for Stein and has garnered over 14,000 signatures since it launched June 28.
Even though being this "out" for Stein and his partner is difficult, he feels it is necessary because "This fight is bigger than just us and if we don't stand up and fight who will?" Stein said.
