Ed Smart, the father of kidnapping survivor Elizabeth Smart, has revealed he is gay.

Smart came out in an emotional letter to friends and family via Facebook Messenger announcing that he would be leaving his wife, Lois, and the Mormon church.

“I have recently acknowledged to myself and my family that I am gay. The decision to be honest and truthful about my orientation comes with its own set of challenges, but at the same time it is a huge relief,” he wrote in the message obtained by NBC News.

He added, “As an openly gay man, the Church is not a place where I find solace any longer.”

The Salt Lake City, Utah, native also revealed he has known for years that he is gay but chose to stay in the closet until now.

“I remember at 12 [years old] realizing that I was different,” the 64-year-old father of six told Radar Online on Friday. “So I think that was specifically when I really determined that was the case.”

While the move was difficult and came as a shock to friends and family, Smart is happy with his decision to come out.

“I feel very relieved,” Smart said. “I think that there are so many like myself that have remained closeted for the better part of their lives and debate on whether or not it’s something that they want to do because it is so hard. It is so life-changing.”

His daughter, who is now 31 and married with three kids, responded to the news in a statement, saying of her parents, “While I am deeply saddened by their separation, nothing could change my love and admiration for them both. Their decisions are very personal. As such, I will not pass judgment and rather am focusing on loving and supporting them and the other members of my family.”

Elizabeth was kidnapped from her Salt Lake City home at knifepoint when she was 14 years old in June 2002. She was held captive by Brian David Mitchell and his wife, Wanda Barzee, for about nine months at a camp in the woods where she was repeatedly raped by Mitchell before she was discovered in Sandy, Utah, about 18 miles from her home.

Barzee was sentenced to 15 years in prison but was granted early release in 2018, while Mitchell was sentenced to life in prison.

Since her abduction, Elizabeth has been an advocate for missing persons and victims of sexual assault.