1969. 50 years. Fifty years of wondering who her birth mother was.
She hired me to try to find her.
All this woman had to start the hunt with was an old court paper which she believed MAY have her mother’s name on it. She assumed so as the attorney of record was known to have worked with young women many, many years ago.
Finding a birth mother who has not wanted to be found can be difficult on its own. Finding a young women from 1969 who may have given birth to a baby girl and put her up for adoption can be daunting. Many life, not to mention, name, changes can happen to a person in 50 years.
With faith in my 20 years of investigative experience, and a myriad of contacts, I accepted the job, with the caveat that we might never find this woman’s birth mother.
Considering the small number of facts we had to draw from, we started with a few assumptions. Those being that the young, unwed mother may have been between the ages of 16 and 19 while carrying her baby. This led to a comprehensive search of school records. In addition, I reached out to a valuable source and was able to find information that told us the mother was actually 26 at the time she gave birth. We were fortunate, also, to discover a possible address from all those years ago.
That along with additional information my client was able to uncover, we were fortunate to discover the identity of her birth mother. Sadly, the near-80-yr-old woman had passed away, so a reconciliation was not possible, much to the disappointment of a daughter hoping for a miracle.
A happy ending was found, though, as we were able to locate the sister of my client’s birth mother. Upon learning of this story, the new aunt was thrilled to welcome her niece into the family. Hours were spent in conversation and many pictures of family, both lost and found, are still being joyfully shared.
This particular case brings me happiness and pride as the odds were definitely against any reunification. However, when even the smallest lead is doggedly followed, every resource is used, and perseverance and collaboration are plentiful…miracles can happen.
