Robyn's Story

For more than seven decades I worried and wondered, who my birth father was.
The only fact I knew for sure was that in 1944 my mother met an American GI, who was on leave in Australia, before heading up to New Guinea. I was born early the following year - 1945. I grew up with my mother (who never married) and my Granny.

In those days to be an unmarried mother was a disgrace and therefore I grew up with an inferiority complex. The only information my mother would tell me was his name (which turned out to be false) and that he also had unusual teeth and for me to stop thinking about him, because when she had tried to contact the name she had been given, that man denied I was his child. My life then proceeded in the usual way, schooling, a successful career in nursing, marriage and 2 lovely sons.

I would add here that I tried to search for my father but was unable to give a birthdate or a place of birth in the US, so the National Archives were unable to help me due to insufficient information, I also researched the site Fold 3 with no success. I then gave up for quite awhile and thought I would never find him.

Fast forward to 2017 and with encouragement from my husband and family, decided to try DNA. I took a test with My Heritage and the closest result I received was a cousin twice removed in California US. This kind man and his father were very interested in how we could be related, so after hearing my story, they did find that I was connected to their family ancestry, but could not connect me up with any family. So everything went flat again, I then knew for sure I was looking with an incorrect name.

I pressed on and thought that now I am on this 'TRAIL', I will keep going and found the GI TRACE website and the wonderful Sally Vincent, who asked me to do a DNA test with Ancestry.

It has been a year now and this wonderful lady has found my birth father, who has sadly past, but now I have his correct name, also an Aunt - his last surviving sibling, 2 adoptive brothers and 6 first cousins, plus my 2 extended cousins. This lovely family clan have welcomed me and my family with open arms. His dear sister, my Aunt Winnie, wishes she had known of me before this time. I am busy now catching up for lost years with lots of mail and photos plus phone calls, although our accents both ways are taking a bit of getting used too!!!!!

Sally, thank you sooooooooooooooooooo much, you are one special lady.

To my fellow searchers, all I can say is have faith and never give up.

If I can help anyone please feel free to contact me.

Robyn daughter of Preston Coleman, Oklahoma, US Military.