A man sank to the ground and broke down in tears when his girlfriend’s daughter asked to be officially adopted at her graduation party.

Last weekend, friends and family gathered to celebrate Lauren Hernandez’s graduation.

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"He's been there for everything for me," Lauren told WBBM.

Joe unwrapped the box to find a framed poem inside, along with adoption documents that would make Lauren his daughter forever.

When he realized what was going on, he broke down in tears.

“I’ve wanted nothing more than to be her dad from day one,” said Joe.

The family said they were thrilled to make the adoption official.

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Members of the conversion crew take a break as the main scoreboard is lowered to the floor to be worked on as the arena gets ready for the next concert at State Farm Arena, Thursday, October 2, 2025, in Atlanta. The crew was working on creating a stage for the Friday, Oct. 3 Maxwell concert. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com