A 60-year-old Phoenix-area woman who was placed for adoption at two months old recently met her biological siblings for the very first time.
Lori Starr was able to meet her siblings thanks to the website 23andMe. She said she was overjoyed at meeting her three brothers and three sisters. “I think it was the biggest smile on my face that has ever been there,” she told AZ Family. “I was so happy.”
Though Starr’s biological mother has already passed away, she was able to discover some of the circumstances surrounding her adoption. “Nobody knew that my birth mother was pregnant with me. She already had four children,” Starr said. “She got pregnant with me, but her husband had died. And back in the 60s that was a no-no to get pregnant out of wedlock so she didn’t tell anybody she was pregnant except her best friend.”
While she was elated to meet her siblings, Starr also noted that she had a wonderful life with her adopted family. “When I was 10 years old, I would never have even thought of looking for my birth family because I was so happy with the people who raised me,” she said. “They were wonderful people who gave me a wonderful childhood.”
It was through the encouragement of her adoptive parents that she decided to start looking for her biological family. She used information from 23andMe as well as social media to eventually connect with a brother, which then led to her discovering the rest of her siblings. As it turns out, they all lived in Arizona and were able to meet for the first time during a backyard party.
Starr’s siblings appeared as happy to meet her as she was them. “Pleasantly surprised, we have another sister,” said one of her brothers.
“I’m excited for her because now she’s going to be a part of this great big crazy family,” added a sister. “We laugh and have fun and just so — blessed —yeah, that’s a good word for it.”
“The birth family that I have met today, it is better than wonderful,” Starr said. “Definitely.”
