He grew up without a father and had a strained relationship with his mum. But in recent years, House Rules contestant David says he’s become close to both parents. And he has one person to thank: his wife Chiara.
David’s mother, Julie, was just 17 when he was born.
“It was hard on my mum,” David explains. “She had just got out of school and was trying to find herself.
“My nan raised me a lot, which was hard on her too – I was rebellious.”
David didn’t have any contact with his father, Ken, until he was 15.
“He came to see me and I basically told him to eff off. I said, ‘Where have you been my whole life? I don’t want to know you.’
“He tried to contact me a few times after, but I didn’t give him a chance.”
David says he tried to live with his mum, but they didn’t get along.
The House Rules contestant ended up in a youth refuge.
“I was one of these kids who was very lost,” he explains.
Years later, David moved to Perth and met Chiara. She couldn’t understand why he didn’t speak to his family.
“She goes, ‘Well, this isn’t going to be right – we’re going to get married and have kids, and I want your family around.'”
With Chiara’s help, David got in contact with his parents. As a result, they both came to David and Chiara’s wedding and have been a part of the lives of their three children – Seth, eight, Taya, six, and three-year-old Ellie Mae – since.
“I owe it all to Chiara,” David, 38, says of the reconciliation. “She’s helped me create this beautiful bond with my mother and father.”
House Rules airs Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 7:30pm and Sunday 7pm on Channel 7.
