Jon Gosselin Shares Update About How Son Collin Is Doing at Bootcamp After Military Enlistment
Jon Gosselin shared an update about how his son Collin Gosselin is doing at bootcamp after he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps.
“I got some letters from him from boot camp, from Parris Island,” Jon, 46, shared in an interview with Entertainment Tonight published on Tuesday, August 22. “He’s doing super well, he just talks about, like, training. He said he doesn’t really have time to do anything [else].”
Jon went on to share that Collin, 19, became “super independent” after he lived “on his own a little bit during high school.” The former TLC personality added that Collin, who is one of the sextuplets he shares with his ex-wife, Kate Gosselin, “enlisted at 18 and he left when he was 19.” The father of eight explained that the decision “taught him to grow up a lot faster.”
In addition to Collin, Jon and Kate, 48, share twins Mady and Cara, 22, and sextuplets Hannah, Alexis, Aaden, Leah and Joel, 19.
Following their split in 2009, Kate was given custody of all eight of their kids in the divorce settlement. However, Jon later gained custody of Hannah in May 2018 and Collin in December of that year.
In July, Collin made headlines when he repeated his claims that Kate was abusive towards him and “sent [him] away” to a Philadelphia-based psychiatrist hospital called Fairmount Behavioral Health System in 2017.
“I was starting to tell people what was going on at home and, you know, she caught wind of that and had to put me somewhere where I wouldn’t be able to get the secrets out,” Collin alleged during Vice TV’s Dark Side of the 2000s about why he was sent away to the hospital. Meanwhile, Jon claimed that he spent $1 million to get Collin out of the institution.
Kate eventually denied her estranged son’s abuse claims while issuing a statement via Instagram on July 21. “I never wanted to do this; but I feel I have been backed into a corner and left with no choice. Although it saddens me to do so, I need to speak out now,” she wrote at the time. “My son Collin, whom I love with all my heart, has received multiple psychiatric diagnoses over the years. For the safety of myself, his brothers and sisters and for his own well-being, he was placed in a facility following the years of outpatient treatment which proved insufficient for his needs.”
The Multiple Blessings author explained that she sent Collin away “following one of his many attacks/outbursts.” She continued, “Fast forward to the present day, and following Jon’s removal of Colin from treatment, my son’s unpredictable and violent behaviors have sadly continued regularly towards Jon, Hannah and others around him.”
“Collin’s distorted perception of reality is one of the many issues that he always struggled with,” Kate concluded. “It’s sadly surprising when complete fabrications occur, and is just another heartbreaking facet of this fight.”
Following their claims, an insider exclusively told In Touch that Kate “needs to show some remorse” in order to reconcile with Collin.
“Collin is a very forgiving kind person,” the source explained, noting that Kate hasn’t shown “any signs of remorse.” The insider continued, “Instead Kate has attacked him to the public which for a mother is a type of verbal abuse. Anyone can see that.”