Wednesday 2 November 2022 09:40 PM Cheryl Burke says she was 'sexually abused' by an 'old, retired mailman' trends now
Cheryl Burke says she was 'sexually abused' by an 'old, retired mailman.'
The 38-year-old star - whose parents divorced when she was two because her father Stephen Louis Burke was unfaithful - explained that when she was a child her stepfather Robert Wolf had hired an elderly babysitter.
And the dancer alleged that while there was 'no intercourse' she was 'groomed' by him and that he became her 'definition of love' in her youth.
Heartbreaking story: Cheryl Burke was 'sexually abused' by an 'old, retired mailman.' The 38-year-old star - whose parents divorced when she was two because her father was unfaithful - explained that when she was a child her stepfather had hired an elderly babysitter
She was just a little girl: And the dancer alleged that while there was 'no intercourse' she was 'groomed' by him and that he became her 'definition of love' in her youth
She said: 'It wasn't intercourse. It was other stuff that happened, sexual acts, but I never physically felt hurt. There was moments... [where] it didn't feel bad. It was actually intimate.
'He was grooming me, and he was my definition of love. This is what love equaled, right? Seeing my father's infidelity, being abused by this old retired mailman, and I didn't really know what a "healthy" relationship is or was.'
Her father is Stephen Louis Burke and her mother is Sherri Burke. She later married Wolf.
The former Dancing with the Stars pro - who was previously married to Boy Meets World actor Matthew Lawrence from 2019 until 2022 - went on to explain that because there wasn't a 'stable father figure' in her life, she became 'brainwashed' at a pivotal moment.
Early days: Cheryl, left, with her mom Sherri and stepfather Robert Wolf
Such a difficult childhood: Speaking on Facebook Watch's Red Table Talk, she told host Jada Pinkett-Smith: 'There wasn't a stable father figure in my life. It's like
