Stephanie Lebo has publicly praised her stepson Collin Gosselin for releasing a memoir about his childhood.
Lebo, 39, who is married to Collin’s father Jon Gosselin, shared her support in an Instagram post on Friday alongside photos of Collin holding his book, a screenshot of its placement on the outlet bestseller list, and her own signed copy. The 22-year-old former reality star’s book, “In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood,” was released earlier this month.
“Collin, you are changing the world, and I hope you truly understand that,” she wrote on Instagram. “You’ve turned some of the darkest chapters of your life into something that will help others. You spent so many years fighting to be heard, and now the world is listening.”
Lebo continued her message by emphasizing Collin’s inherent worth. “You are kind, intelligent, strong, and so incredibly loved. You are SEEN. You are HEARD. And most importantly, you have nothing left to prove to anyone. You never had to earn love, kindness, or a place to belong. You deserved them all along. ❤️”
She added that an “entire village” stands behind Collin, and she is “beyond honored to be part of it.”
“Keep shining, Collin. The world is listening, and I couldn’t be prouder of you! 🥹❤️,” Lebo concluded in her post. “I love you… WE ALL love you.”
The public endorsement from Lebo comes as Collin’s allegations against his mother, Kate Gosselin, have intensified family tensions. In the memoir, Collin claimed Kate was physically and emotionally abusive throughout his childhood. Kate has vehemently denied these allegations and has suggested that Collin suffers from mental illness.
Collin has been estranged from his mother since 2016, when Kate sent him to live in a behavioral health institution at age 11 for alleged behavioral issues. Jon Gosselin removed Collin from that facility in 2018 and ultimately obtained legal and physical custody of him.
Collin and his sister Hannah, another of the sextuplets, have lived with their father for several years. Collin has not spoken to his other siblings in a decade.
“I love them very much, and I want them to know that what was done to us as children is not normal,” Collin shared earlier this month.
The Gosselin family first became public figures through the TLC reality series “Jon & Kate Plus 8,” which documented Jon and Kate raising their eight children — twin daughters and sextuplets including Collin — from 2007 to 2017. The couple separated in 2009, and their divorce played out amid continued media attention.
