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Simone Biles’ birth mother, Shanon Biles, wants to reconnect and reconcile with the Olympic gymnast.
In a lengthy interview with the Daily Mail Tuesday, Shanon explained how her drug and alcohol abuse cost her her children.
Shanon — who still lives in Columbus, Ohio, where Simone, 27, and her sister, Adria Biles, 22, were born — recalled losing two of her three daughters first to foster care and then to adoption by her father, Ronald Biles, 75, and his wife, Nellie Biles.
The couple brought the girls to live with them in Houston when Simone was just 6.
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Shanon’s two eldest children — daughter Ashley Biles-Thomas, 34, and son Tevin Biles-Thomas, 29 — were taken in by Ronald’s sister.
At the time, Shanon was struggling with addiction, which led to significant financial and legal problems.
“It took me six years before I saw my children again. I was respecting my dad to let the kids transition. He felt that was the best thing for them,” the 52-year-old told the outlet.
“It was hard to give up my kids, but I had to do what I had to do. I wasn’t able to care for them. I was still using, and he didn’t want me coming in and out of their lives when I wasn’t right.”
However, since 2022, Shanon has managed to stay out of trouble and now works as a cashier at discount grocery store Save-A-Lot.
“I am a recovering addict and will always be an addict. But there’s a way [to recovery],” said Shanon, who is currently clean and sober. “You have to learn to stay away from people, places and things. Change your routine and live your life. Live your best life.”
Shanon insisted that she is “not the person [she] used to be,” going on to describe herself today as a “loving person” who would “give you the shirt off [her] back.”
Though she has Simone’s “direct number,” she “won’t use it.”
Source: https://pagesix.com/2024/08/13/parents/simone-biles-birth-mom-begs-olympic-gymnast-for-forgiveness/