March 17, 1992 - all of America is Irish; the rivers are green and the beer is plentiful. Out of the blue, the telephone rings. It is a call most of us adoptees wait our entire lives for...a call from the person you've wondered about, dreamed about and cried about knowing who she is.
On that day many years ago, I was one of the lucky ones to get that phone call from someone asking me if my birthdate was May 30, 1967, and saying that my birth mother was looking for me. The person on the other end of the phone said she was a search angel and asked my permission for my mom to contact me. In shock, I waited for the next ring of the phone...to finally hear her voice and know that she was real. On the other end of the phone was my birth-mom, Gerri, who finally found her long-lost "baby girl Barnhart" as an adult. She got a shock herself discovering she was instantly a grandma, as well!
We were both graciously welcomed into each other's families which grew to be one and, now, our Christmas lists are miles long. This note is not only a Happy Anniversary note to my lovely mom and grandmother on my birth side, but also to my understanding adoptive mom who knows how important it is for every child or adult to know all their family and where they came from.
To all my fellow adoptee friends who are still searching...don't give up. Your journey will take you many places...sometimes to reunion and sometimes to heartbreak. But, trust me, *knowing* is so much better than forever wondering.
Love,
Kathleen
It is our hope that many wonderful reunions will result from this Story Board. However, if you just want to share information and for some reason a reunion seems out of the question, you can still add your story to this website. Your name and email address will remain confidential if you wish.
Peace to you and those you love,
Aunt Patty, Founder/Coordinator
Back To The Adoption Experience Homepage.
Some maternity homes operated above board; others were no more than baby brokers.
Over-crowding in orphanages in the east lead to the transport of hundreds of children to the midwest. Most never saw their parents again.
Read about these trains, the agencies who provided the young travelers, carrying few belongings and not knowing where they would end up.
Registration Day (Reg Day) an annual event to encourage and support. Any birth family member or adoptee can register at ISRR.net for free.
There are many search angels. Some work entirely for free, some work on a no find-no fee basis and others charge very reasonable rates. This page coming soon.
Free Search and support group links. Many groups work certain states, others work nationwide. Some are more active than others. You can join the groups which are best suited to your individual search.
I want to tell everyone about a new
and FREE genealogy social network that is available to all of you. You can send messages to
genealogists in more than 20 countries, find genealogists who read and speak other languages
and ask a genealogist in over 1600 cities to do a look-up for you.