Collin Gosselin, 19, thanked many people in his life after he graduated from high school, including his dad Jon Gosselin, 46. But one person who Collin didn’t mention whatsoever was his mother Kate Gosselin, 48, whom he’s estranged from. Collin shared his belated graduation post on June 21, and acknowledged his dad Jon, Jon’s ex-girlfriend Colleen Conrad, and his sister Hannah Gosselin, 19, for always being there for him. He snubbed both his mom and his six other siblings that he lives apart from in his post.
“I want to first thank my amazing sister, Hannah, for standing by me and supporting me, she is my number 1,” Collin wrote in his Instagram message, alongside photos of the teen at his graduation. “I would like to thank my dad, who has taught me so much about running into hard times and moving past them, about resilience. Thank you dad for always supporting my decisions, and having my back when I bite off more than I can chew,” he added.
Collin then thanked his dad’s ex — who was a mother figure to him when she was dating Jon — “for rooting for me day in and day out.” He continued, “When you think of someone you want by your side, you think of Colleen. And as I’ve told her many times, she is my motivator for being successful in this world.” Collin also gave a shout-out to his Army Junior ROTC instructors, and revealed that he’s studying mechanical and industrial engineering in college.
Since 2018, Collin and Hannah have been living with their dad, and have no relationship with their mom or their siblings. Collin and Hannah are two of the sextuplets along with Aaden, Joel, Leah, and Alexis. They also have older twin sisters, Cara and Maddy. Collin addressed the family friction in an interview with Entertainment Tonight last November and revealed that he has “not spoken with my siblings in probably five or six years now.”
“I haven’t reached out to them, they haven’t reached out to me,” Collin told ET. “I want to respect their space and their time and respect how they feel about everything, so I’m kind of just waiting for the day that they reach out,” he added. Collin also confirmed he stopped talking to his mom after she sent him to an institution over his alleged behavioral problems.
After Collin opened up about his strained family relationships, a source told HollywoodLife that Jon was “so proud” of his son “for having the courage and the strength to stand up and speak his truth.” The insider also revealed that Collin shared what he did on his own, and Jon didn’t try to convince him to talk about their family.