"I thank you for being my reason to live," Eddie Bolden told his family Sunday

Father Who Was Wrongly Imprisoned for 22 Years Sees His Son Graduate College: 'Thank You for Being My Reason to Live'

For the last 22 years, Eddie Bolden sat in an Illinois prison, convicted of killing two men.

The only hitch: He didn’t do it. It was just this year he was exonerated of the crime, and this week he was freed, just in time to see his son Dom graduate from college.

Get push notifications with news, features and more.

“I was anxious to see him walk across the stage,” Eddie told the South Bend Tribune. “I can’t stop crying.”

“This is a very important day,” Dom told the paper. “I can’t put it in words. It’s a great feeling.”

• Need a little inspiration? Click here to subscribe to the Daily Smile Newsletter for uplifting, feel-good stories that brighten up your inbox.

Eddie maintained his innocence since he was convicted. Susan Carlson, a private investigator who died in 2013, uncovered three witnesses not interviewed by Eddie’s defense team, who provided a compelling alibi for him. A judge ruled that the evidence they introduced was credible enough to have led to his acquittal two decades ago, if jurors had heard it, and overturned his conviction.

Eddie saw Dom and his other son Antonio frequently – thanks to the efforts of Dom’s mother, grandmother and aunt – and spoke to them regularly on the phone.