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  1. Nation 367798241
  2. Woman, 82, tracks down and meets 96-year-old birth mother
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  5. By MARY ESCH Associated Press
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  7. February 5, 2016 — 5:46pm
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  11. Betty Morrell, left, and her birthmother, Lena Pierce, 96, are reunited at the Greater Binghamton Airport on Jan. 15, 2016.
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  13. Kimberly Miccio, AP
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  15. Betty Morrell, left, and her birthmother, Lena Pierce, 96, are reunited at the Greater Binghamton Airport on Jan. 15, 2016.
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  58. ALBANY, N.Y. — Eighty-two years after she was born to a teenage girl and put up for adoption, Betty Morrell finally has met her 96-year-old birth mother, thanks to the dogged persistence of her granddaughter during 20 years of searching.
  59.  
  60. And as a bonus, she has forged a close friendship with a sister she never knew she had.
  61.  
  62. "After my adoptive parents died, that's when I started looking," Betty Morrell said Thursday by phone from her home in Spring Hill, Florida. "Being that it was a closed adoption, it's like hitting a brick wall because you can't get any information."
  63.  
  64.  
  65. Morrell was born in 1933 in the central New York town of Utica to Lena Pierce, who named her Eva May. Social welfare officials took the baby away because Pierce, then 13, was herself a ward of the state. Eva May was adopted by a family on Long Island and grew up as Betty Morrell, an only child.
  66.  
  67. "I grew up a very happy child," Morrell said. "I was so content in the family I was adopted by."
  68.  
  69. She was in her early 30s when she started looking for information about her birth family. She had been told her birth mother had died during childbirth and was shocked when she eventually learned she was still alive.
  70.  
  71. Morrell's granddaughter, Kimberly Miccio, started helping with the search when she was 12.
  72.  
  73.  
  74. "My grandmother had been looking for a long time," said Miccio, 32, who now lives with her husband and three children a few minutes away from Morrell. "She had never tried through the Internet, so we started going through different sites."
  75.  
  76. It took 20 years, but the breakthrough finally came in September. Miccio got in touch with a distant relative of Morrell's through Ancestry.com, and that person put her in touch with Millie Hawk of Windsor, New York, one of Pierce's daughters.
  77.  
  78. "Kim and I got on the phone and called her," Morrell said. "I had found my baby sister, who's 65. We just clicked. It was like we had known each other all our lives."
  79.  
  80. Morrell learned she had four sisters and two brothers, and that her mother was alive and well, living in an assisted living apartment complex in Hallstead, Pennsylvania. That's about 20 miles from where Hawk lives.
  81.  
  82. "I rushed to my mother's house to tell her," Hawk said. "She just sat down in a chair and cried. She said, 'My Eva May, they found her?' It was just so emotional."
  83.  
  84.  
  85. Morrell and Miccio flew to Binghamton, near Hawk's home, last month. Hawk brought their mother to the airport.
  86.  
  87. "The minute I saw her come through the security door, I just got goosebumps," Hawk said. "Mother reached for her; Betty said. 'Mom.' They hugged and cried."
  88.  
  89. "There were a few tears, and shaking," Pierce said. "It sure was a joy to finally meet up with her. It's kind of hard when you have a child that you get separated from. I never wanted to give her up."
  90.  
  91. Since then, Morrell has been talking regularly with Hawk by phone and Facebook, and they're planning a get-together in Florida in the spring. She talks less often to Pierce. "Sometimes I have to remind my mother of who I am," Morrell said. "I say, 'I'm your long-lost daughter Eva May.'"
  92.  
  93. Morrell offers encouragement to other adoptees who have contacted her via Facebook, telling of their own searches.
  94.  
  95.  
  96. "I say absolutely don't give up. There's always something that will link it," she said. "It's a lot of work. It took me 50 years."
  97.  
  98.  
  99. Betty Morrell, left, and her birthmother, Lena Pierce, 96, are reunited at the Greater Binghamton Airport on Jan. 15, 2016.
  100.  
  101. Kimberly Miccio, AP
  102.  
  103. Betty Morrell, left, and her birthmother, Lena Pierce, 96, are reunited at the Greater Binghamton Airport on Jan. 15, 2016.
  104. More
  105.  
  106.  
  107.  
  108. Text size
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  146. ALBANY, N.Y. — Eighty-two years after she was born to a teenage girl and put up for adoption, Betty Morrell finally has met her 96-year-old birth mother, thanks to the dogged persistence of her granddaughter during 20 years of searching.
  147.  
  148. And as a bonus, she has forged a close friendship with a sister she never knew she had.
  149.  
  150. "After my adoptive parents died, that's when I started looking," Betty Morrell said Thursday by phone from her home in Spring Hill, Florida. "Being that it was a closed adoption, it's like hitting a brick wall because you can't get any information."
  151.  
  152.  
  153. Morrell was born in 1933 in the central New York town of Utica to Lena Pierce, who named her Eva May. Social welfare officials took the baby away because Pierce, then 13, was herself a ward of the state. Eva May was adopted by a family on Long Island and grew up as Betty Morrell, an only child.
  154.  
  155. "I grew up a very happy child," Morrell said. "I was so content in the family I was adopted by."
  156.  
  157. She was in her early 30s when she started looking for information about her birth family. She had been told her birth mother had died during childbirth and was shocked when she eventually learned she was still alive.
  158.  
  159. Morrell's granddaughter, Kimberly Miccio, started helping with the search when she was 12.
  160.  
  161.  
  162. "My grandmother had been looking for a long time," said Miccio, 32, who now lives with her husband and three children a few minutes away from Morrell. "She had never tried through the Internet, so we started going through different sites."
  163.  
  164. It took 20 years, but the breakthrough finally came in September. Miccio got in touch with a distant relative of Morrell's through Ancestry.com, and that person put her in touch with Millie Hawk of Windsor, New York, one of Pierce's daughters.
  165.  
  166. "Kim and I got on the phone and called her," Morrell said. "I had found my baby sister, who's 65. We just clicked. It was like we had known each other all our lives."
  167.  
  168. Morrell learned she had four sisters and two brothers, and that her mother was alive and well, living in an assisted living apartment complex in Hallstead, Pennsylvania. That's about 20 miles from where Hawk lives.
  169.  
  170. "I rushed to my mother's house to tell her," Hawk said. "She just sat down in a chair and cried. She said, 'My Eva May, they found her?' It was just so emotional."
  171.  
  172.  
  173. Morrell and Miccio flew to Binghamton, near Hawk's home, last month. Hawk brought their mother to the airport.
  174.  
  175. "The minute I saw her come through the security door, I just got goosebumps," Hawk said. "Mother reached for her; Betty said. 'Mom.' They hugged and cried."
  176.  
  177. "There were a few tears, and shaking," Pierce said. "It sure was a joy to finally meet up with her. It's kind of hard when you have a child that you get separated from. I never wanted to give her up."
  178.  
  179. Since then, Morrell has been talking regularly with Hawk by phone and Facebook, and they're planning a get-together in Florida in the spring. She talks less often to Pierce. "Sometimes I have to remind my mother of who I am," Morrell said. "I say, 'I'm your long-lost daughter Eva May.'"
  180.  
  181. Morrell offers encouragement to other adoptees who have contacted her via Facebook, telling of their own searches.
  182.  
  183.  
  184. "I say absolutely don't give up. There's always something that will link it," she said. "It's a lot of work. It took me 50 years."
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  289. Avatar for lakeelmo99
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  293. lakeelmo99
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  296. Feb. 6, 16
  297. 8:12 AM
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  303. One thing you can say about Betty she is persistent! I'm familiar with a similar story in my family unfortunately the recently uncovered "father" had passed and his kids from a second marriage wanted nothing to do with half brothers and sisters. So not even a picture or father's health history shared between siblings. Congrats to Betty on her happy ending.
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  323. Feb. 6, 16
  324. 8:27 AM
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  330. @lakeelmo99 That is a shame they would not share the health history. The half siblings from the father's first marriage were his first family. They are at least entitled to the health history - even if the second family wants nothing to do with them.
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  348. kennyrogers
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  351. Feb. 5, 16
  352. 11:02 PM
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  358. sometimes mothers would be happier not meeting the child given up for adoption. this seems to always be ignored.
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  362. 1grammarb Like Reply
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  370. Avatar for navynuke86
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  374. navynuke86
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  377. Feb. 6, 16
  378. 12:05 AM
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  384. @kennyrogers could be, but I've never heard of a story like that.
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  403. Feb. 6, 16
  404. 8:06 AM
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  410. @navynuke86 @kennyrogers Yes happens all the time many having moved on or too embarrassed to admit what they did as a teen. My family included.
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  427. mplsrn
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  430. Feb. 8, 16
  431. 8:25 AM
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  437. I have a friend this happened to, and she was crushed, wished she never searched for her biological mother.
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  456. Feb. 5, 16
  457. 8:06 PM
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  463. great story with a happy ending. Anyone facing a difficult choice needs to know there are happy endings.
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  467. 4Gregc02gopher68Mtkahanssen Like Reply
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  482. Feb. 5, 16
  483. 8:01 PM
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  489. I will never making the phone call to my great aunt. I told her who I was, and that my mother was her sister's daughter--given up for adoption many decades ago. There was a very long, very silent pause and then she said, "I have wondered my whole life what happened to her."
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  508. Feb. 5, 16
  509. 6:01 PM
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  515. Blessed.
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  534. Feb. 5, 16
  535. 4:58 PM
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  542. georginal17 :
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  545. My husband used to say, "In the good old days when everything was bad."
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  550. 1sadsadsad Like Reply
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  562. dahutys
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  565. Feb. 5, 16
  566. 3:39 PM
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  573. I'm really glad this story had a happy ending. But I wonder sometimes how many don't. The most extreme case I've heard about was a woman whose half-siblings were willing to give her info about her late father, but told her they had no interest in having a relationship with her. She wouldn't take no for an answer and ended up with a restraining order threatening her with arrest if she ever contacts them again.
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  578. I think if I knew someone who believed they'd found their birth family, I'd urge them to have a lawyer or counselor with experience in adoption cases do the contacting. Having an intermediary would give someone for support if the response was, "Here's my medical history, now don't ever contact me again."
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  583. 6mplsrnMtkaGregc02jane210 Like Reply
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  595. jane210
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  598. Feb. 5, 16
  599. 8:06 PM
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  605. @dahutys My grandfather's family was the same way. His wife had never known about my mother and getting any info, even medical info, never happened. I truly feel terrible that I was the one that told his widow the information. Sometimes, you have to see it from the other person's perspective. I never felt I had the RIGHT to know, because I didn't. Some people who give up children simply can't/don't want to remember how hard it was and I respect that. Seeing it as a right is WRONG. Be grateful the person gave you up. And respect their choice if they choose not to embrace you.
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  624. Feb. 5, 16
  625. 2:33 PM
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  631. Wonderful story
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  635. 9DonFreidgopher68hanssendrfrankt Like Reply
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  647. applejeff
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  650. Feb. 5, 16
  651. 1:15 PM
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  657.  
  658. PC or otherwise, the current term is 'making an adoption plan.' No birth parent wants to 'give up' a child for adoption. As an adoptive parent of two wonderful children, I can't even imagine what it would be like to part ways with a child through adoption, especially in a closed adoption situation, as ours were.
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  663. As some others noted on here, today's connectedness through the internet and with a little detective work by someone, we were able to make contact with the birth mothers of both of our children and now have semi-regular contact with them through Facebook, though they are in another country. We intend to return to their country of birth to allow them to connect with their birth mothers, which the birth mothers also want to do.
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  680. applejeff
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  683. Feb. 5, 16
  684. 1:19 PM
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  689.  
  690. Granted, in stories like this and probably many more in that time and now, the birth mothers didn't have a choice, so 'plan' may not apply.
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  694. 7exercisedonnakorenjane210boomerchick Like Reply
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  709. Feb. 5, 16
  710. 8:08 PM
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  716. @applejeff My grandmother's sister took my mother form her. My grandmother was sterilized by the "charity home" she lived in during my mother's gestation. That was her penance. She never had another child. And by the time my mother found her family, she had been dead decades.
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  728. Avatar for kn12345
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  732. kn12345
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  735. Feb. 5, 16
  736. 2:31 PM
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  743. @applejeff I gave away a child at 16 quite willingly. The only "plan" was to make it go away. I don't want children, period (got fixed to prevent it, too). I do not want a relationship with this person and will refuse contact if an attempt is made.
  744.  
  745. My mother's biological father is completely unknown; her mother went to her grave with that knowledge. Neither my mother nor siblings are interested in solving the mystery.
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  749. Report as inappropriate
  750. 3grammarbjane210dahutys Like Reply
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  765. Feb. 5, 16
  766. 8:10 PM
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  772. @kn12345 @applejeff Please see my comments above. I believe every birth parent has the right you describe. Some doors are meant to stay closed. The story is lovely, but I agree wholeheartedly with your decision.
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  776. 1grammarb Like Reply
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  800. Feb. 6, 16
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  807. @kn12345 @applejeff Why did you get pregnant?
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  833. @applejeff Thanks for another positive story. It sounds like your children are fortunate to have you and birth mothers who are interested in contact. I wish the best for all of you.
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  837. 2Gregc02drfrankt Like Reply
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  852. Feb. 5, 16
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  859. Wonderful to read such heartwarming stories such as this!!
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  863. 8Gregc02gopher68drfranktPommedTerre Like Reply
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  878. Feb. 5, 16
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  885. Good thing abortion was not legal back then or this story would have ended at the bottom of a trash can in 1933.
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  889. 5drfranktfrogtownerA440johnlbinder Like Reply
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  911. @genericlogin In those days when a girl or woman chose abortion, she usually died as well. Those are the "good old days" that some long for.
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  915. 27dennismplsDonFreidexerciseRoseKBud Like Reply
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  937. @genericlogin It most certainly occurred, however.
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  956. Feb. 5, 16
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  963. Abortions were illegal, but that didn't stop desperate women from resorting to desperate measures. My grandmother nearly died from a self-inflicted abortion in 1935.
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  967. 1Mtka Like Reply
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  982. Feb. 5, 16
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  989. An old friend of mine was adopted as an infant and is now 68. About 5 years ago he gave me his birth mother's name, his birth date and where she lived in 1947. I wasn't able to find anything then since women's names tend to change when they marry. Last week I found that info on my desk and decided to try it again. I've been on Ancestry.com for years, but the 1940 census was released last year and all that new data is there. It took me about 4 hours to track down his birth mother, three half siblings, grandparents and great grandparents on his mother's side. I found all of his mother's high school yearbook pictures, her wedding picture and her name, address and phone number. His mother is still alive near his hometown but, for some reason he decided not to get in contact. Hopefully he'll change his mind because I'm sure she wonders what happened to him.
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  994. 9gopher68drfranktwardnjunegetacluetarget Like Reply
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  1009. Feb. 5, 16
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  1016. @Gregc02 Or maybe she doesn't. Read statement above. You don't know the circumstances of his birth. She may want to see him, she also may have moved on and would choose not to re-open an old wound. I found both circumstances when I located and contacted my mother's birth parents.
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  1020. 6mplsrngrammarbGregc02sailing64 Like Reply
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  1042. agree. it's always better to mind your own business.
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  1046. 2grammarbRoseKBud Like Reply
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  1061. Feb. 6, 16
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  1068. @kennyrogers then maybe you should practice what you preach
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  1072. 1Mtka Like Reply
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  1087. Feb. 5, 16
  1088. 10:43 AM
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  1094. Openness in adoption is a gift. No shame, secrecy or lying. Everyone deserves the right to know where they came from, and when we remove the stigma associated with adoption I guarantee everyone will be happy for the connection. I have never met a birth mom who did not think about her child every, single day. I don't know an adopted person who has not wondered about their birth parents. And I've known hundreds of both.
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  1099. 19DonFreiddonnakorenEdinaLEdrfrankt Like Reply
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  1121. @barlando1 Now you have, virtually anyway! I don't think about it every day, and I am 100% against fostering a relationship should an attempt be made.
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  1126. 6grammarbsailing64martytoilMolly1958 Like Reply
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  1148. @kn12345 @barlando1 Adopted kids should get the chance to meet their "roots". A long-term relationship with the birth parents isn't always feasible or wanted. It is a case by case situation for both the child and the birth parent. All the counseling we went thru when adopting recommended OPEN adoption....as it provides the kid with knowing their roots or true identity. Once it's all in the open, both sides can decide if/when they want to pursue a long-term relationship. What's most important to keep in mind.....is the adopted child's needs.
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  1152. 2Gregc02EdinaLE Like Reply
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  1167. Feb. 5, 16
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  1174. @kajoigh @kn12345 @barlando1
  1175. Nope, not interested.
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  1180. 2martytoilMolly1958 Like Reply
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  1195. Feb. 5, 16
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  1202. @kajoigh @kn12345 @barlando1 If you choose an open adoption, then that is fine. But for birth parents who placed children for adoption under state laws that promised them privacy, that promise should be kept. People place children for adoption for may reasons, often deeply personal and private. The decision to place a child for adoption can be very painful, even traumatic. Adoptees do not have the right to contact their birthparents, disrupt their lives and make demands upon them. Adoptees do not have the right to re-traumatize a birthparent, just to satisfy their curiosity or fulfill a desire to know about their family roots. If you placed a child for adoption under a state law that did not require disclosure of your identity, it is terrible betrayal to force -- or even pressure -- you to reveal your identity.
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  1206. 4grammarbsailing64martytoiljane210 Like Reply
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  1228. @kajoigh @kn12345 @barlando1 Nonsense., Their true identity is the one the adoptive parent gives them.
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  1232. 2sailing64martytoil Like Reply
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  1247. Feb. 5, 16
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  1254. @dknsspo @kajoigh @kn12345 @barlando1 yes, very well said.
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  1273. Feb. 5, 16
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  1280. i think, in maybe some small way, it breaks the heart of an adoptive parent, and you should refrain from looking.
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  1299. Feb. 5, 16
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  1306. @kn12345 @barlando1 And I completely respect that right.
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  1341. Thank you for a positive, heart-warming story. I'll be smiling all day.
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  1346. 30exerciselindn1frogtownerGLJ33 Like Reply
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  1361. Feb. 5, 16
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  1369. "There were a few tears, and shaking," Pierce said. "It sure was a joy to finally meet up with her. It's kind of hard when you have a child that you get separated from. I never wanted to give her up."
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  1374. I'm sure it was traumatic for a 13 year old to give up her baby, but it was the right thing to happen. Her daughter grew up in a stable, loving family. And her adoptive parents got to love and raise a child.
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  1379. My brother and sister-in-law were able to adopt and raise two children due to similar birth circumstances.
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  1383. Report as inappropriate
  1384. 12DonFreidexerciseBrooniejee7654 Like Reply
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  1399. Feb. 5, 16
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  1406. @antigone11 Adoption is a gift, and openness is the best possible option for a child. No wondering and guessing...just honesty and more people to love you.
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  1411. 12EdinaLEBrooniedcerkvenikMtka Like Reply
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  1433. 13 years old- there wasn't much to do in central NY state back in the day...
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  1477. @mdmac2704 You don't know the circumstances, and neither do any of the rest of us. Thirteen-year-olds aren't able legally to give consent.
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  1481. 26DonFreidexercisembrottsailing64 Like Reply
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  1504. @mdmac2704 The 13 year old mother was a ward of the state. I'm guessing she was raped, either in an orphanage or in a foster home.
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  1506. I'm glad the story has a happy ending; no sarcasm was needed.
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  1511. 35DonFreidexercisembrottdonnakoren Like Reply
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  1533. @Mtka @mdmac2704 or most likely, it was a couple curious young teenagers? I'm sure a high percentage of readers on here were sexually active in their teenage years.
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  1571. Feb. 5, 16
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  1578. @stepchild She was 13 when the child was born. There is a good chance she was 12 when she got pregnant.
  1579. All who were sexually active at the age of 12 raise your hand now.
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  1582. Report as inappropriate
  1583. 3mbrottGregc02jane210 Like Reply
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  1598. Feb. 5, 16
  1599. 8:21 PM
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  1605. @stepchild @Mtka @mdmac2704 Not at thirteen, I wasn't. And as one reader pointed out, 13 is THREE YEARS too young to consent.
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  1609. 3mbrottGregc02Mtka Like Reply
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  1633. Feb. 5, 16
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  1640. It was not unheard of for very young girls to get married at the turn of the century. They were mostly either the very rich and powerful making dynastic ties, or the very poor and rural. Everyone has heard the examples from Mormon history also.
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  1645. 1DonFreid Like Reply
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  1667. @kennyrogers The article says nothing about the 13 year old being married. And 1933 is closer to mid-century than it is the "turn of the century."
  1668. Many people had to give up their children after the crash of 1929 because they could not feed them. And there were not a lot of rich people around in 1933.
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  1680. Avatar for Sharon1313
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  1684. Sharon1313
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  1687. Feb. 5, 16
  1688. 8:37 AM
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  1694. One of the best things to come out of the invention of the Internet ... the ability to connect. I found a half-sister the same way.
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  1697. ****NOTE: THERE ARE 67 COMMENTS ON STAR TRIBUNE WEBSITE TO THIS POST BUT SITE STOPPED RESPONDING WHEY TRYING TO LOAD****
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