Zaya Wade, daughter of NBA legend Dwayne Wade, is one year older!
On May 29th, the Gemini officially celebrated her 17th birthday with well wishes from Wade and wife Gabrielle Union.
“Seventeen🎉 @zayawade“, the couple simple captioned a series of photos on Instagram.
As a model, influencer, STEM advocate, entrepreneur, and much more, Zaya has been influential in taking the lead in speaking out in order to create a safe space for those in the LGBTQIA+ community. Zaya herself came out to the world as transgender at the age of 12-years-old.
“Being my full authentic self feels like freedom,” Zaya said previously in a preview clip from the Logo30 series that was shared exclusively TODAY back in 2022. “Being out and open and truthful about who I am to myself and others is just freeing. It’s a beautiful feeling to have and hold and to be able to share with the rest of the world.”
Although Zaya and her family have had to face a lot of hate along this new journey for all, that hasn’t stopped Zaya from coming into her own and shining, while living her full truth. Encouraging others to do so as well, since she was 14-years-old, the influencer and her father have been working on a new endeavor, the Translatable Project.
According to its official website, the Translatable Project is “… a safe space for LGBTQIA+ youth to express themselves and is a resource hub for their parents, families, and support systems.” The digital platform, once blossoms, will provide LGBTQIA+ youth the opportunity to share their “art, poems, photography, thoughts, suggestions. Uncurated, raw expression – doodles and scribbles” will also be welcomed.
In addition to the creative and introspective aspect of the platform, the site will also be a space for both Wade and Zaya to share their own content as well as an educational resource center for families.
“She didn’t ask for this extra excitement in life,” Wade said recently about his daughter, as he accepted an award from the Elevate Prize Foundation at their annual Make Good Famous Summit.
“She just wanted to be a kid and do kid things and live her life and be selfish and worry about herself. That’s what you’re supposed to do at her age, worry about you. But she’s thinking about a larger community, and so I’m damn proud of her as a father.”
In addition to Zaya, Dwayne Wade also shares 22-year-old son Zaire, with ex-wife Siohvaughn Funches. The NBA Hall of Famer is also father to five-year-old daughter, Kaavia James, with whom he shares with his wife, Gabrielle Union.
Happy Birthday, Zaya! We cannot wait to see what truly amazing things the future has in store for you!
Photo: Dwayne Wade Instagram; Gabrielle Union Instagram, Kaavia James Instagram
