______________________________________________________________________ Hello, I would praise JoAnne to the high heavens, she searched and found my son 3 years ago, in Ca. I now live in Fl. Well she found him in less than a month AND made the first call to break the ice for us. It was so wonderful after 38 years of searching. I gave him up or lose the other children cause of their father, it haunted me.. I now have my son his wife and new baby living with me all the family has welcomed him in to the family, as he was prayed for all of his life. Now then the kicker I donated Joanne just $100.00 and I still send her a dollar or more, when I can as I am on SS... And she also found for us the place to send in for our DNA test , which was $150.00 as we were in diff. states... he is truly my son and i am so happy and so loved.... I will never be able to thank JoAnne and Praise her enough. You have found the right person in your search. I truly love this woman. Good luck, Kathryn ______________________________________________ DEAR, DEAR, DEAR, JOANN: MY GOSH HOW DO YOU THANK AN ANGEL.. YOU ARE YOU KNOW, FOR FINDING MY SON FOR ME... THANK YOU OVER AND OVER AGAIN. WE JUST GOT OFF THE PHONE WE TALKED OVER AN HOUR CRYING ALL THE TIME.. JOANN HE LOVES ME HE REALLY LOVES ME, SAYS HE CANT WAIT TO COME HERE AND MEET US ALL, WAS EVEN TALKING ABOUT MOVING TO FL.... WOW! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU DID IT, YOU REALLY DID IT. I WAS READY TO WAIT SOME MORE YEARS, OF WISHING AND PRAYING.. WHEN I HAD THE ANGEL RIGHT HERE WITH ME, YOU... ALL ALONG! THERE HAS TO BE A GOOD PLACE IN HEAVEN FOR YOU JOANN, RIGHT NEXT TO GODS ARMS. I HONEST TO GOD DON'T KNOW HOW TO THANK YOU. JUST KNOW YOU WILL ALWAYS BE IN MY PRAYERS, THANK YOU FOR FINDING MY SON, I AM SO GRATEFUL FOR ALL OF YOU. AND YES I AM WRITING IN CAPS CAUSE I AM YELLING AT THE WHOLE WORLD..GOD BLESS YOU JOANN.. KATHRYN ______________________________________________ I really appreciate all of the e-mails welcoming me to the group. I can tell that I've found a group of people who will listen and understand. I do realize that finding my Bmom definitely makes me one of the blessed. But having only known her for 9 months before she passed away makes it very hard to tell most people how I feel. Their first thought is usually, how could I miss her, love her, so much after knowing her such a sort time. The last 9 months of my life have been filled with so many first for me. The first day we met she brought alone her niece, my cousin along. We always laughed about the way they looked at each other when I got out of my car and said "She's one of us alright, she walks just like us." Being told that I looked like my mom, talked like my mom, and even hold my head like my mom, are things I've never been told in my whole life. And I loved it. We lived within 15 miles of each other all of my life. I have 2 brothers who also live as close who didn't know a thing about my birth. No one did except my mother, but she never hesitated in taking me door to door to all of her family to say her favorite line, "I want you to met someone, this is my daughter Nancy." I've never felt so proud in all of my life, and I've never had so many strangers throw their arms around me and say, "I didn't know who you were but I sure knew you were family." Thanks again! Nancy ______________________________________________ Nancy...you make only one mistake in your email...you didn't know your mom for only 9 months...you knew her a lifetime. You were part of her and she part of you your whole life and because of that, you had a bond even before reuniting! You have every reason in the world to grieve. And to put it in perspective using a little of my own personal history, I only knew my son for 9 months before he passed away and I can tell you, there isn't a person out there that I love or miss more than him! Nine months is a lifetime sometimes. Don't ever let anyone tell you any different! Michelle ______________________________________________ Your right. We had a bond that most people would call impossible in such a short time. A bond that I would have swore there would never be before we met. One of the first things I told her was that I had a family, a good family and that I had had a good life. That I wasn't looking for a new or second family, just a medical history. That was 9 mos ago and I either talked with, visited with or ran around with her every day since until the day she died. I'm beginning to think that we have had a bond over the years I just didn't know that that was what the feeling I had was until we met. Nancy _____________________________________________________________ December 24th I went out and signed up on Joanne's site. On Saturday, December 27th at about 9:00 my phone rang and it was Joanne saying she'd found my daughter! I was in shock - this just didn't happen so quickly - I figured years would pass if I ever did find anything out! Part of me thought it was a scam but after we talked awhile I realized this woman was a 'for real' type person. While she'd found her she hadn't been able to get a phone number so was working on that by trying to reach her adopted father and her sister (who'd been adopted 2 years prior to my daughter). We ended the conversation saying she'd be in touch. The evening of December 29th I received another call from her saying she'd connected with the sister and the sister was contacting my daughter at that instant and Joanne would call me back when she heard anything. Five minutes later another call from her saying my daughter would be calling me in 10 minutes. I was past shock at that point - I sat there with a death grip on the phone doing deep breathing until the phone rang. Remembering that moment in time still brings tears to my eyes...it was wonderful but not as wonderful as all the months have been since then. We discussed having DNA tests done but neither of us felt it was necessary. We both have the same fairly rare blood type. I'd contacted the social worker and asked if I gave her the names of my daughter's adopted parents she could confirm those were the people she'd been placed with. She said 'go for it' - and then said 'yes - you've found your daughter'. I know this social worker has probably told other's about Joanne now. I contacted Colleen Buckner to share the good news with her too and to alert her of Joanne's web site. I'm still blown away by the fact that in FOUR days over Christmas holidays Joanne gathered all the info needed to give me the best Christmas and New Year I've ever had in my life!!! She's given my daughter the mother she so much wanted to know, she's given me my daughter that I thought I'd never see and she's given my mom a granddaughter. If that's not an angel, I don't know what is. She and her 'troups' work miracles... Linda O'Connell _____________________________________________________________ JoAnne It's too bad that you do not have a testimonial page about your organization, because Frank and I would like to share our story for everyone to read. Hopefully it would help someone who is in the position we were in. Thanks to your great compassion, you have found my son. If it had not been for you, we would still be searching. We hired a search company called xxxxxxxx the first part of October. Three months later, we still have not heard anything from them. We've asked for an update and have received nothing. But you went to work on it immediately and found him. JoAnne, our son is a wonderful young man. We have talked to him several times and have e-mailed back and forth. I will be able, for the first time, to celebrate his birthday with him, and JoAnne, it will be his 40th. My husband and I, as well as our daughter and son are getting to know the newest addition to our family by e-mails and phone calls. Our daughter and son want to go with us to meet in him April, but, of course, I am having a hard time with that. I want him all to myself the first time! You do not know how much my health has changed since finding Ed. The stress of hiding my guilt of the situation has been lifted from my shoulders and it feels that I am 1,000 lbs. lighter. I am smiling more now, because it really didn't wreck my life like I thought it would. I truly thought I would be scorned and looked down upon by my husband and his family, but, I was wrong. They have been fantastic and very receptive to having a new nephew. My husband considers Ed our son. He is as eager to meet him as I am and call him "Son." Isn't life great and fantastic!!! Every day, my husband says, "Cut the garbage, how do you really feel about finding our son?" I finally had to get a thesaurus to get more adjectives for happy so I could talk to him. JoAnne, we don't know how to thank you for this miracle, but if any birthmother wants to e-mail us for a new outlook on life, we will be more than happy to e-mail them back and offer positive encouragement. I know that all situations are different, but we will try to help all we can. Lots and lots of hugs Janis and Frank Geist _____________________________________________________________ JoAnne, I signed your Dream Book and posted a message to the Adoption Database Support Group to others still searching - but wanted to send you a personal note of thanks. You spoke to Becky's birth grandfather and he called me yesterday. After speaking with him, I talked to Becky and she was totally overwhelmed that you had found her birth mother when we had been looking for so long with no success. She doesn't have a computer so she asked me to thank you SOOOOO much for her. We are both most grateful, as the medical information will help Becky's doctors treat her - and all adoptees have the right to know their heritage. Both Becky's birth father and birth maternal family appear glad to hear from her. I think they will all keep in touch but it doesn't appear to be a situation where there will be a lot of bonding. It doesn't matter. Becky has the answers she needs and the satisfaction of being able to put the pieces of the puzzle together and clearly see who she is. That is priceless. Thank you so much for being the special person you are! Lots of love and hugs - Jessi Winchester and Becky _____________________________________________________________ JoAnne Well my telephone call with my brother and sister-in-law was great. I was so happy I started to cry, but we talked about all the family members he didn't know about we talked about mom and how ill she is, we talked about each others children and now we are trying to set a date to meet each other but its going to be hard because we live 10 hours away from each other. Mom can't handle car rides even to the store. So we will have to work on that. When I went to mom today I cried and I think she knew before I even said anything but she is going to write him a letter and she is kinda upset because she can only give him his fathers name and knows no other info. I told her not to stress that I would help him search if he would like me to. JoAnne I really can't thank you enough. You are a very super person and if there is anything that I can do to help others seach Stacy _____________________________________________________________ Hi JoAnne after hearing that the reunion story on the adoptee dying of leukemia that you and Marlene reunited will be on the 'Today Show', I had to post to tell you how thrilled I am. YOU will be representing the "Adoption Community"!!! I can think of no one more qualified to do this show. You are the absolute Queen of Finds and your help and the support of your database has been the inspiration for many of us who own our own groups and help others today. I am beholden to you for many things that I have learned from you in the past year. I remember when I used to write to you and ask you how to become a search angel and tell ny friends I wanted to be just like you. I still do!!! I know that you will be a true "ambassador(ess)" for all in the adoption community, and feel you will do your best to get the message to everyone of the plight of the adoptees and birthfamily, especially for the medical issues!! Thank you for being a true inspiration and role model for all of us. Hugs, love and gratitude, Sherry _____________________________________________________________ Hi Jo, Just to let you know just how much I appreciate the time you given me to express my grief/loss of my Mother to you...you have never shut me off, even in the middle of your own crisis moving the groups around...I don't know what would become of me, had I not found the friendship I have with you to shed my many tears to...I know you understand, you've been there yourself. Not only did you find me for my son, but I've also found you to be a most loving, understanding human being, whose heart you wear on your sleeve...I know Lori is and has been your guiding hand and strength and I hope one day, I too, will be able to say the same about my Mom.. you've given me more love, support and your valuable time when I should be getting this from my own family. With that being said, you are my family... I actually found a sister/friend in you that I truly treasure and respect. Thank God for you...and for letting me (adopt) you. :)) May there never be anything that comes between the two of us, I know I couldn't afford to lose another family member...although we are miles apart and never met, I feel as though you are right here with me..not in the physical aspect, but in your voice when I call..I feel your absolute empathy and sincerity..May God Bless and Keep You Safe Always... *wonder if Jo will let me emulate her someday* LOL hugs/love, Lucille _____________________________________________________________ My name is Donna and I want to say a HUGE thank you to JoAnn. I have been actively searching for my birthson and birthdaughter for 4 years. They have been out of my life for 26 years. On Friday of last week, a lady named Sherry joined another group that I am in. I welcomed her to the group and she replied, privately, that she thought that she could help me. There was something about my daughter's name that struck a chord with her. She contacted all the groups that she belongs to and when she contacted JoAnn, JoAnn said that the name was familiar to her also. JoAnn went to work and by Saturday night, around 1am, she knew they had my daughter. The call was placed on Sunday morning at 11am and Sherry found out that the number was no good. She contacted JoAnn again and, once again, JoAnn was back at work. She made contact through someone else and had my daughter call her. I was speaking with my daughter by 11:45am! The reunion was a sweet one and very emotional. Thanks to JoAnn my family had one of the most wonderful days of our lives. I cannot believe that someone would help another person to that extent. JoAnn knew nothing about me, yet she wanted to help find my daughter. And she found her! JoAnn is certainly my angel and I will be forever grateful to her! Hugs:) Donna _____________________________________________________________ Donna, I'm so happy for you! Like I say, I'm not so sure I believe in the angels they taught about in church...there are real, human angels walking around among us and one of 'em is Joanne!!! I wish you the best! Martin _____________________________________________________________ Thanks to Jo-Ann, I'm meeting up with my brother and sister (and birth parents, too), this weekend. All the questions I've had my whole life have finally been answered (most, anyway). This group is fantastic and I think I've just discovered the definition of an angel. I never believed in Angels before, but they do exist--they're just all in human form. THANKS! Many hugs, Martin (most, anyway). This group is fantastic and I think I've just discovered the definition of an angel. _____________________________________________________________ I WANT TO THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME TO FIND MY SON!!!!! I met him this last weekend . It was wonderful for EVERYONE! THANK-YOU YOU ANGEL!! proud bmom susan skubiak123@yahoo.com _____________________________________________________________ Subject: I talked to Jim...............IT IS HIM !!!!!! Hi Leah Just spoke to Jim a few minutes ago. He is calling me tonight at 7 to get your number, etc. He is in CA. He has been trying to look for his birth family since he has been 11 yrs old. His adoptive parents have been supportive of his search as well. He says that California has all of his records screwed up big time, but that he fact was born 01/26/63. He is MORE than EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He is ECSTATIC !!!!!!!!!!! Isn't it great.........and Meemaw had a big hand in this too!!! She is going to do backflips when she gets a copy of this message too. LOL Hugs, JoAnne OOOHHH MY GOD...I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS...my mom is flipping we are flipping, she wants to know, call us here at our house...my house, yes...409-xxx-xxxx...his time 7 or ours? GOD BLESS YOU JOANNE AND MARLENE, WE LOVE YOU LOVE YOU LOVE YOU...I am totally in awe...i should get off and open the phone lines can you im me? GREAT BIG HUGE HUGS,LEAH AND WANDA _____________________________________________________________ Thank you so much for your help!! I can't say enough about it, really. It went great-he was so nice! My birth mother was not ready to talk to me yet but I am sending a picture and they want to try to get together over the holidays. I am getting married in 3 weeks and it is such a load off my mind that my life is in perfect order now, thanks to you. I grew up an only child and now learn I have 6 siblings of various age range, and 6 nephews! Again thank you-Tammy _____________________________________________________________ Joanne, my goodness you have been a busy girl haven't you? You're going to be on TV? How exciting! I want to see it. Can I? Where and when will it be televised? Congratulations! The girl whose birthmom you found over the weekend is Trisha Deviney. Her bmom lives in Montana and is from Washington State. She is so thrilled and so happy. She said she and her bmom spoke for over an hour and a half and bmom said all the things she always wanted to hear. I am so happy for her. When she told me that her bmom was happy to hear from her I just cried. Thanks to you, you angel you!!!!! IF you ever retire the adoption world is gona lose one of it's most caring and successful angels! Keep up the excellent work Joanne. Always, Linda _____________________________________________________________ I have to agree with you all. I had searched on and off for 11 years. I joined JoAnne's database and she found my birthmother in @ 2 weeks. I want to do some thing to show my appreciation. BUT nothing I can think of is enough to fill the happyness and joy she has given to many stangers over time. I know we store up treasures in heaven by good works we do on earth. All I can say Is JoAnne is going to be loaded. Thank You from the bottom of my heart JoAnne. I know there are alot of search angels out there too, thank you all. We really appreciate you too!! Keep up the AWESOME work!!!! Trish _____________________________________________________________ I am posting to let the group know that I am thrilled to have Judy in my home. Her daughter has charmed the pants off my family, she calls my parents "Gamma and Ganpa" and climbs on my dad's lap to escape her teasing cousin (my son). The reunion was perfect...except for the camera man. I specifically told Joanne and the camera man that Judy didn't want to speak and he put the camera 1 foot from her face and asked her questions anyway. I regret the decision to have a camera there at all and feel that I should have canceled the idea when Judy asked not to be interviewed. I should know by now that the media isn't known for its delicate handling of private affairs, lol! By the way, I didn't get to see the interviews, were they on tv already? Does anyone have a copy? I can call the station and ask for one, I suppose. (Judy got even, however. It is my birthday today and when we went out to eat this weekend, she told the waiter that it was my birthday and could they do something to embarrass me....I love having a sister!) Other than that, it was wonderful! The twenty people waiting started clapping and my two friends were crying, more than Judy and I combined! I hugged my friend and told her to "suck it up" ha! What was really funny to Judy and I was how everyone clapped and hugged us and were so excited about our reunion....and then they left us to carry two pieces of luggage, a two year old, a diaper bag, a stroller with a sleeping boy and a car seat out to my van all by ourselves.... ahhh the fleeting-ness of fame, ha! We have had a nice time and are enjoying one another. I thank the person who posted the website "theultimates.com" for me on this website, that is how I found my sister. Also, looking at her is like looking in the mirror..I still cannot believe God could make TWO such stunningly beautiful women, but, there it is! :-) Thanks to all, Jennifer Thank you Jen!!!! The reunion was awesome to say the least. Even my daughter got emotional at the airport reunion and she didn't know anybody till that evening. Heck, even people at the airport were crying. It's funny because other than a sign I had made and it was taped inside a file folder (which was closed till I got to the gate - the ink will run when tear stained) to display to Judy when she got off the aircraft that said...... The Adoption Database reuniting Jennifer and Judy after 24 years apart We'd talked to a few people in the airport who asked a few questions and why "Channel 13" was there. You know how they have these big pillars at the airport.....well my daughter said it was like being in school and playing the game "pass it on". She said you could see people leaning to tell the one sitting next to them, then that one telling the next one and it just kept going. She saw heads bobbing in the same direction just like a wave, and as far back as she could see. LOL I know I was shocked at all the comotion (the applauding and hollering) as Judy and I (carrying her 2 yr old) walked down the ramp. The TV station did a short interview with Judy after she arrived, as they had already interviewed Jennifer. The anxiety was very intense as the plane was 45 min. late to begin with. Even my daughter was a nervous wreck. She said she is glad she went though because it was awesome to just be there and a part of it. I recommend attending reunions in your area if you get the chance. It is well worth it. This is the type of thing our adoption lawmakers should be seeing just before they make some of the decisions they decide on. Hugs, JoAnne _____________________________________________________________ HELLOOOOOOOOOOOOO ALLLLLLLL!!! lol I finally reunited with my VERY HANDSOME SON , ERIC!! lol AND there was only ONE bad thing ---- it didn't last long enough!! LIFE IS WORTH LIVING AGAIN!!!!!! LOL OKAY YOU WONDERFUL ANGEL-- JoAnne---here's the low down I arranged a bbq. There was myself my sister SANDY, my mother, and brothers-RICH, MIKE and his girlfriend,RON and his girlfriend, AND JIM and his wife and children. WE WERE ALSO BLESSED to have Eric's mother,father and two sister which by the way were also adopted by these two VERY LOVING PEOPLE NAMED LINDA AND REID! My sister SANDY and I had met with ERIC and his family the night before so as hard as it was for me to step back, i felt it was good to do so my family could spend time with him.I have four rolls of film to develop that was taken in this very short but sweet time!!! IT WAS WONDERFUL!!!! And even though my family and my son's family just met --it felt like we were ONE family! I could FEEL the LOVE in the air.!!! I now live in louisianna and my family and ERIC and his family are in WISCONSIN which is where I WILL BE LIVING BY THE END OF THIS WINTER! I CAN'T THANK YOU ENOUGH JoAnne!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I PRAY THAT EVERYONE'S REUNION WILL BE AS HEAVENLY AS MINE HAD BEEN. GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!! VERY HAPPY AND PROUD BMOM SUSAN _____________________________________________________________ Hello Everyone and thank you. I have found my son that I have searched for 25 years for. That search ended yesterday. I have so many people to thank. You were all great. Now I need to give everything I own to these 3 women Nancy, JoAnne, and Grace. Without their help I would still be dreaming. I am grateful. JoAnne made the call to confirm (thank you). I was not prepared for what followed, as I am sure JoAnne was not either. I found that my son had been in an automobile accident that left him paralyzed and in a wheelchair. To make things worse he is ill and has leukemia. I am hoping that the parents will want him to contact me so I can possibly help him if he needs a bone marrow transplant. If it is "God's will" then it will happen. Please keep him in your prayers. This is the greatest group of people and I am forever indebted to you all. Good luck with your searches and if I may help anyone I will be here and try to live up to the rest of the groups expectations. My hope is that you all are successful in your searches for your loved ones. God Bless my never to be forgotten angels, "Nancy, JoAnne, Grace" you found the missing piece to my heart. Teresa _____________________________________________________________ Dear JoAnne, I am sitting here suffering the initial effects of a very heavy, last chemo treatment. My blood count was so low they were considering not doing the treatment, but since it was my last, they went ahead with it so as to not slow down the port removal surgery and then the radiation therapy. Needless to say, I have felt better than I do tonight. I made it over to my computer, read your email, and now my physical status is no longer important. Thank you. You have been the best medicine I could possible have gotten tonight. You are truly an angel. This is the most peace I have felt regarding my son since he was taken from me. God bless you. On another note, I hope your daughter is doing alright. I would like to know her first name so that I can include her in my prayers. God bless you. CJ _____________________________________________________________ Hello, I wanted to write and congratulate everyone on these recent finds! This is WONDERFUL! I am SO happy for each and every one of you! I also wanted to remind you of something. We ALL know how much JoAnne does for this group and all of us as individuals. (God Bless you Jo!) But, I think we forget sometimes all that her help really does entail. I know from experience, that before she will send you contact information, she must make a million (exaggeration! LOL) phone calls to make sure she is giving you the correct information. Can you imagine what her phone bills must be like???? I don't even want to consider it! LOL Wouldn't it be nice, if we did something special for her every once in awhile? Like maybe $5 here and there to her Paypal acct. to defray the cost of those calls. JoAnne, don't reprimand me for writing this letter! I and SO many others TRULY appreciate you and this is just one of those little ways to show it! ((((MANY HUGS)))) Lisa J :) _____________________________________________________________ Thank you JoAnne for ALL that you do for us. You are such a Beautiful Soul, and because of you alot of us are whole again. There is a special place in Heaven for you. I love you .... Marsha Bailey _____________________________________________________________ Thank you, Joanne, You are responsible for bringing me together with my son, and that's priceless. When I returned from the doctor's office on Saturday, there was a voicemail waiting for me. Andrew identified himself, then said I would probably remember him from when he was much younger and gave me his birth name. He left his phone number and his website, where he had posted pictures of himself and his life. I sat down and was overwhelmed. It was the same overwhelming feeling I got when I was told I had cancer, but instead of being negative it was positive. I use that comparison because of the way news of this proportion takes away your breath, your reasonable thought process and even your ability to even stand up. So there I sat, on the couch, completely overwhelmed and afraid to believe it was true. I went to my computer and pulled up the web site Andrew (who lives in Florida) had given me. That may not seem like the first response many would take, but please remember that up to that moment, I was under the impression that another Andrew (who lives in Ohio) was probably my son. When I received this young man's picture (Ohio Andrew), I just couldn't connect…he had no resemblance to me or the father of my son, but I was told that there was a strong possibility that he was my son and we (his adoptive mother and I) have been investigating with the courts to find out if he was truly my son. There was a sizable burden that came with Andrew from Ohio. He is autistic and non-verbal, and of course I took the blame on that one. I assumed that something I did while pregnant had caused him to be autistic. I've been living with this since the holidays, wondering if/how I was to blame. I had made the decision that I would be his advocate if his adoptive parents should pass before I did. He is now in a care facility because his adoptive parents can no longer care for him. So, I went out to Andrew's (from Florida) website and wow - I could see the resemblance! So I called him. What a wonderful hour or so we spent on the phone! He read to me the document his adoptive mother was given describing me and my life. I can remember sitting in the judges chambers telling the judge exactly what Andrew was reading back to me. The judge also had added some personal observances. I had found my son! We talked non-stop, but I can only remember bits and pieces of the conversation. I was still in shock. Here's the best news of all, he was looking for me. I had several concerns that I'm sure others also have. My first was that he was not told he was adopted. I was so afraid of bursting into his life and causing a problem with his adopted family. That is what has kept me silent for so many years. I did not want the responsibility of disrupting his relationship with his family. In 1969, things were handled very differently and there was a chance that he had not been told he was adopted. Another concern I had was that he didn't want to get to know me. Well, all of those worries were unfounded. My son knew from early childhood that he was adopted. In addition, he was looking for me! He does want to form a relationship, which is the best news of all! We have emailed several times, and after talking to him on the phone, I feel like I have known him for years. I was not uncomfortable with him at all, even though this was the first time we talked. I feel like I have a bridge through time with Andrew. But the most important thing to me was that I was finally able to tell him about the circumstances surrounding the adoption. I had planned on having Andrew, and had been trying to get pregnant. When I was about 8 months pregnant, I was abandoned by his father, and had no where to go. My parents were too embarrassed to have their unwed daughter return home, so the made arrangements for me to enter Booth Memorial Hospital's program (run by the Salvation Army) for unwed mothers. I had a pretty difficult labor (about 48 hours) and gave birth naturally (not by choice!). The doctor was not present until Andrew's head and shoulders had arrived, so I tore pretty extensively. It took about a week in the hospital for me to heal from the stitches and during that time I took care of Andrew (feeding, bonding). When it was time to leave, my parents told me that I would not be able to take Andrew home and that they had made adoption arrangements. I was devastated to say the least. When I said goodbye to Andrew, I knew that he would never know how much I loved him or wanted him. I've been carrying this with me for 33 years, and yesterday, Andrew's telephone call released all of this heartache. I was able to tell him what happened, and for me, there is no greater gift than to know that he is healthy, happy and knows the circumstances of his adoption. Andrew and his wife are planning on making a trip to Ohio to meet me in June. I am done with the chemo and I had my last radiation treatment this past Tuesday. I have five years of oral therapy ahead of me, but my success ratio looks very good. I feel like my life has made one big U-turn in a wonderful direction. In talking with Andrew, I found out about some of the similarities that run through our lives. He has a horse farm, and I have always been into horses. He has several other pets, and I am an animal lover. He is a computer programmer, and I am interested in computers. He had his own business, as did I. He has asthma, so do I. I'm sure that we will find out more about each other as our relationship develops - this is just all so wonderful. Joanne, I hope you get a sense of how grateful I am from this email. The work you are doing is priceless and the lives you touch - well, you're an angel. Thank you. C Burhenne _____________________________________________________________ I'm going to let my little sister set the pace on this wonderful time of reunion for us. After all these years of separation I don't want to take any chances of going to fast. Even though my very first idea was to get in my car and drive over over there, meet her face to face right then and there on the spot. It is so hard waiting for the time that I can look into her eyes and get to physically hug and hold her in my arms once again. And yes , I do agree that Jo Anne is truely one of God's special angels placed here on earth doing his work of helping to reunite lost members of families. Linda _____________________________________________________________ It’s Paula, (a.k.a. Erin Day).   I really appreciated your phone call tonight to let me know that my birthmother wishes to contact me!  It’s so exiting to finally begin this journey!  I will patiently await any new information, after all I’ve waited 37 years to get this far! You have done so much already, no matter what happens at this point, you have touched my life and my sister (Elizabeth’s) life in a profound way.   Thanks again,  Hugs, Paula _____________________________________________________________ May I suggest that you take this day to step back, and recognize how wonderful you are. Thank you for everything that you are and do. There are angels on earth and you are the best! Sandy P. _____________________________________________________________ JoAnne, I'm a fairly new member to the group,but in the short time I've been on, you and others have done more for me than anyone on any of the other sites.I just wish I could meet you because I can tell you are a wonderful peron and very UNSELFISH.The hours you must spend searching for people you only know through the group.I had been a member only part of a day,when you were already working on my search & sending me info you had found. I don't know the trials you are going through right now,but that doesn't matter; I know you are hurting. You are definitely right about one thing, No matter what you are going through, God is ONE that you know is always there and loves you more than anyone could possibly love. Many times we don't understand why, but some day we will. We all love you and will keep you on our prayer lists. Stay strong. God Bless, Sherry _____________________________________________________________ The Adoption Database - This is the best... There are SO many links and SO much information. Maybe I'll get some sleep another day. :-) So far, I've jumped around for hours, finding things and places I wouldn't have known about otherwise. Oh yeah ...I just began today!...and I'm still grinning!! Carla Victoria (birthname) _____________________________________________________________ Hello Everyone, I just wanted to take a minute to tell you that I'm really impressed with this group. I've belonged to several other support groups over the past year, but this one is by far the best. Thanks so much for letting me be a part of it! There is actually real support here. People interacting, and actually helping each other. I just really appreciate what I see. Jan _____________________________________________________________ More Testimonials on Page 2