Adoptee Finds Brother and Father

“Adopted at birth, she had been searching for her biological family  her entire life. Thanks to unsealed adoption records and Facebook, she found her brothers and father, who all thought she was dead.

“My dad and mom has separated at the time and mom wasn’t able to take care of me, so she gave me up for adoption and didn’t tell my dad anything about it. He asked her when they got back together, where is the baby she said that she died at birth,” she says.

That baby did not die at birth, but was actually adopted. With her new parents [Keri] Abercrombie moved to Utah and it wasn’t until her senior year in high school that she would make her way back to her birth place, Rockford, Ill.

It would still be over 20 years before she could reconnect with her biological family, who was in Rockford the entire time.

Her unsealed adoption paperwork led to her path of discovery.

“They unsealed my records as of 2011, I got the birth certificate of when I was born and it had my mother’s maiden name on it,” she says.

From that point Abercrombie searched through more documents and found her mother’s death certificate. With that information she found her mother’s grave that had a tombstone with her father’s name. A quick search on Facebook lead her straight to her brother.”

“”I found him on Facebook and I wrote him and I said I think I’m your sister,” says Abercrombie.”

“Keri opened up, telling her brother how they were related. It wasn’t long before she was introduced to their father, who is now 75 years old. They met last Christmas for the first time.

“Since then he came here in April and seen me and met all of my kids and grandkids.”

Keri made a recent trip back north for a family reunion. She’s met several aunts and uncles on both her mother’s and father’s side of the family.

Looking back at old photos, she says she wishes things were a little different but is thankful for the time she has with her new family and encourages others to never give up.”

Phenix City woman finds her father after over 40 years

[WTVM 8/8/13 by Curtis McCloud]

REFORM Puzzle Piece