One woman who was given up for adoption searched for decades before finding the woman she believed to be her birth mother, but she then soon learned something else about herself: she had been switched at birth.
Children are a blessing and a gift from the good Lord above and should be treated as such. They add so much love and happiness to life. Welcoming a child into your home, whether through birth or adoption, is always a wonderful and joyous occasion that is worth celebrating.
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Diane Bazella, now 63, who learned she was adopted as a child, set out to find the woman who had given birth to her. That search that began when she was a 5-year-old came to an end in 2021. They two recently celebrated Diane’s birthday together in September, according to People.
Diane and her birth mother, 81-year-old Sherri Geertz, were finally reunited after decades apart. But like everything else good in life, finding her mother did not come easy.
The outlet reports that Diane, back in the 1980s, had managed to track down the two individuals listed as her mother and father on her birth certificate. For nearly 40 years, Diane believed she had found her biological parents. However, that turned out not to be the case.
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Even though she loved and enjoyed the time she spent with the woman listed as her birth mother, she had a feeling in her gut that something was off. She was curious as to why there wasn't more of a resemblance between herself and the woman listed as her birth mother.
The Woman Finally Found Her Birth Mother And Learned That She Had Been Switched At Birth
Then, in 2017, Diane invested in an at-home test kit. The report's findings matched what Diane had suspected. The people she believed to be her relatives were not on the report.
People reports that for the next four years, Diane began reaching out to the individuals on the report. She didn't have much luck. So, Diane tried once more, reaching out to a woman. Diane's luck had finally changed. That woman responded, and she turned out to be Diane's half-sister.
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Diane's half-sister confronted her father, asking him if he might have had a daughter with another woman in the 1960s. Turns out that he did have a child, a baby girl, with another woman. That woman was then known as Sherri Nordlie.
"Then all of a sudden, I realized everything I'd believed for all those years was wrong," Diane said.
The stunning revelation led Diane to consider something else: She had "been switched at birth with another baby at the hospital."
After learning about her birth father, Diane reached out to another person on her DNA report. This person also answered her. During their conversation, the woman mentioned that Sherri Nordlie was her cousin.
The Mother And Daughter Are Now Making Up For Lost Time
The outlet reports that Diane took another DNA test, which confirmed the woman now known as Sherri Geerts is her birth mother. The two started communicating soon after the test in 2021.
Now, Diane and Sherri talk constantly, fly out to see one another regularly and email once a day.
"We're definitely making up for lost time," Geertz said. "I never gave up hope that I'd find her someday."
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In addition to communicating and spending time with her biological mother, Diane has developed a relationship with the man she uncovered as her real father.
People adds that Diane's search has not come to an end. She is also hoping to find the woman she was switched at birth with on September 29, 1960.
"If she were ever to look for her birth mother, she would have found my real birth mother," Diane said. "But since she has never searched for her, we don't know who she is."
"Train up a child in the way he should go, and even when he is old he will not depart from it." – Proverbs 22:6.
Woman Switched at Birth Celebrates Birthday with Biological Mom After Decades-Long Search (Exclusive) https://t.co/CQbKDyIn7q
- People (@people) November 22, 2023
h/t: People
Featured Image Credit: Twitter.com/People