Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson wasn’t always a man of God. He told The Christian Post in 2013 he lived a “sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle” during the early years of his marriage to his wife, Miss Kay.
The couple had three sons (and later had a fourth) when Kay became a Christian. Phil kicked her and the boys out of the house, and the couple was separated for a while.
Phil and Kay eventually reconciled, and Phil became a Christian as well. But right before he devoted his life to his faith, Phil had an affair.
Little did Phil know that the affair resulted in the birth of a child, a daughter. As the next 40+ years passed, Phil raised his sons, founded Duck Commander, and starred on Duck Dynasty.
It was Phil and Kay’s eldest son, Alan, who first learned about Phil’s long-lost daughter, Phyllis. She wrote him a letter saying she believed Phil was her father, and was wanting to connect. She had also contacted another one of Phil and Kay’s sons, Jase.
Alan and Jase approached Phil with Phyllis’ claims, and he agreed to a DNA test. The test showed there was a 99.9% chance he was Phyllis’ father.
Father and daughter finally met last year. In an interview with I Am Second, Phil recalled what it was like when he saw Phyllis for the first time:
“I put my hands on her face and I looked into her eyes to see if I could see a little of me in there,” Phil said. “And I did. And I thought ‘welcome aboard.’ A daughter I didn’t know I had. She was lost, but now she’s found.“
Since then, Phil and Phyllis have been making up for lost time. She and her family moved to Louisiana, and have been getting to know all of the Robertsons.
Phyllis got the chance to celebrate her first Father’s Day with Phil on Sunday (June 20). She wrote about what the day was like, saying:
“Tony @tonythomasart and I went to church with Dad @officialphilrobertson and Miss Kay @officialmisskayrobertson then went to see my niece get baptized @campchyoca. Dad taught me how to make crawfish au gratin. Delicious and memorable Father’s Day, the first one I’ve ever spent with him.”
Phyllis also posted a photo of her and her dad.
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If you’d like to learn more about Phyllis’ story, watch her interview with I Am Second below.
We’re so glad she was able to connect with Phil after all this time. It must have been so special for both of them to be able to spend Father’s Day together this year.