Stephanie Hughes says she always wanted a sister, she just never knew she had one until she was 30 years-old.
In the summer of 2019, Hughes' mother Renee revealed a secret to her – that she'd been forced to give up a baby girl as a teenager in the 70s. Hughes decided to buy a 23andMe DNA kit. Within two weeks, she says she found out that her half-sister was out there.
"Within two weeks, it connected my sister and I as niece and aunt, but I saw her birthday and DNA and knew who she was, but I just rested on it," Hughes said. "I didn't want to intervene."
What Hughes didn't know at the time was that her half-sister knew all her life that she'd been adopted.
A Clarkston woman learns a decades old secret from her mom. That revelation and a genetic test led to the sister she’d always wanted. See their story tonight at 5 on Action News @wxyzdetroit pic.twitter.com/fPGN28PuD5
— Anu Prakash (@WXYZPrakash) February 20, 2020
Two years ago, Hughes' half-sister completed her own 23andMe DNA test so her profile was in the system. Just weeks before Christmas, that half-sister whose name is Jamie, reached out.
"She was hoping I could help find her birth family, not knowing my mom was her birth mom," Hughes said. "She sent me a picture and my dad and I didn't even need the DNA at that point. We knew who she was."
Hughes messaged Jamie, a mother of four, and shared the news. Three days after Christmas, Hughes surprised her mom with Jamie, the daughter she hadn't seen in 42 years.
It turns out Hughes' half-sister grew up just minutes away from her. They also learned that Jamie's daughter went to the same elementary school where Hughes and Jamie's mom worked as a school aide.
"So, it was Merry Christmas! Here's your first daughter," Hughes said. "Oh, and you're a grandma. Oh, and you had you're granddaughter in your class."
An incredible ending to a story that started 42 years ago. They'd always been family, but now they're finally together.
"it's just nice to say that you never know when you take a test what you're going to find," Hughes said.
Hughes added that she and Jamie talk all the time and soon they all plan on getting together with their mom and Jamie's adoptive parents.
