Help me with Ancestry DNA!

[Bini]

I was gifted an Ancestry DNA kit and I just received my results back. It confirmed what I already suspected regarding my ethnicity -- I am 100% Philippines! Now, I am wanting to discover more of who I am but I'm not sure where to start because I'm adopted. To make things more complicated, my birth certificate does not list my biological parents because I was orphaned, so I literally have zero leads into finding close relatives. I did spend the $100 to unlock my matches and the closest relative is 4th Cousin; I looked at their family tree, and because I have no names to work with, it meant nothing to me. What does someone in my situation do?

[Guest MormonGator]

I'm adopted too! I went to my states office of vital records (I was living up north at the time) and they gave me the name of my birth mother. Does Utah have something like that? 

[Just_A_Guy]

Pshaw.  This is where you email the fourth cousin, and it turns out to be @anatess2, and you’re all set with as many family members as you can stand!  

Were you adopted in the state of Utah?  Asking the court to unseal the record is usually the first step, but the procedure for that varies from state to state.  If you were adopted from foster care, you might also try a freedom-of-information request from the DCFS-equivalent agency; but that’s sort of a long shot.

[Guest MormonGator]

16 minutes ago, Just_A_Guy said:

Pshaw.  This is where you email the fourth cousin, and it turns out to be @anatess2, and you’re all set with as many family members as you can stand!  

Were you adopted in the state of Utah?  Asking the court to unseal the record is usually the first step, but the procedure for that varies from state to state.  If you were adopted from foster care, you might also try a freedom-of-information request from the DCFS-equivalent agency; but that’s sort of a long shot.

Sidenote-I was adopted through Catholic Charities, and I had nothing but problems with them as an adult trying to find my birth mother. I'm not alone, they don't have a good reputation when it comes to adult adoptees. I'm very, very glad that there are other options  available for people in my circumstances. 

[Bini]

29 minutes ago, MormonGator said:

I'm adopted too! I went to my states office of vital records (I was living up north at the time) and they gave me the name of my birth mother. Does Utah have something like that? 

I was adopted in the Philippines. 

[Bini]

19 minutes ago, Just_A_Guy said:

Pshaw.  This is where you email the fourth cousin, and it turns out to be @anatess2, and you’re all set with as many family members as you can stand!  

Were you adopted in the state of Utah?  Asking the court to unseal the record is usually the first step, but the procedure for that varies from state to state.  If you were adopted from foster care, you might also try a freedom-of-information request from the DCFS-equivalent agency; but that’s sort of a long shot.

JAG, I was adopted in the Philippines. I was found by a local and brought into a small “hospital” in a very small town. There was never any record of my bio mother or father. The signatures on my birth certificate are of the doctor and his wife who took charge of me, is how I understand it. 

[Bini]

5 minutes ago, MormonGator said:

Sidenote-I was adopted through Catholic Charities, and I had nothing but problems with them as an adult trying to find my birth mother. I'm not alone, they don't have a good reputation when it comes to adult adoptees. I'm very, very glad that there are other options  available for people in my circumstances. 

Were you able to connect with your mum? 

[Guest MormonGator]

Just now, Bini said:

JAG, I was adopted in the Philippines. I was found by a local and brought into a small “hospital” in a very small town. There was never any record of my bio mother or father. The signatures on my birth certificate are of the doctor and his wife who took charge of me, is how I understand it. 

Wow. @Bini, I obviously don't know how you are feeling, but I do know how some adoptees feel generally. You are in my prayers, your situation seems very difficult. 

[Guest MormonGator]

Just now, Bini said:

Were you able to connect with your mum? 

Yup. Met my entire biological family. 

[Bini]

Should I just boldly start messaging people on there? Is that appropriate? I don’t have any good information to contribute to any of them... Short of messaging people and explaining my birth story, not sure where to begin... 

[Bini]

2 minutes ago, MormonGator said:

Yup. Met my entire biological family. 

Oh wow. That is great. I’d be happy finding anyone who is part of my immediate family or close to that circle... auntie, uncle, grandparents, siblings... parents 

[Guest MormonGator]

4 minutes ago, Bini said:

Should I just boldly start messaging people on there? Is that appropriate? I don’t have any good information to contribute to any of them... Short of messaging people and explaining my birth story, not sure where to begin... 

Telling you only what I did-

This was way back in 2006ish. I found a name that popped up in an obituary as a living descendant. I called the name out of the blue and said "Hi, I might be your grandson. Do you know anything about a child given up for adoption at birth in your family?" I was bold-but I had to find out. I had to. So I put aside manners. This was for me. 

2 minutes ago, Bini said:

Oh wow. That is great. I’d be happy finding anyone who is part of my immediate family or close to that circle... auntie, uncle, grandparents, siblings... parents 

I understand the desire, believe me. I had it for 26 years. I foolishly thought that finding my biological family would magically solve my problems and bring me everlasting joy and happiness. 

yeah, it didn't work that way. 😉

Edited February 5, 2019 by MormonGator

[Bini]

3 minutes ago, MormonGator said:

Telling you only what I did-

This was way back in 2006ish. I found a name that popped up in an obituary as a living descendant. I called the name out of the blue and said "Hi, I might be your grandson. Do you know anything about a child given up for adoption at birth in your family?" I was bold-but I had to find out. I had to. So I put aside manners. This was for me. 

I understand the desire, believe me. I had it for 26 years. I foolishly thought that finding my biological family would magically solve my problems and bring me everlasting joy and happiness. 

yeah, it didn't work that way. 😉

That is why I wouldn’t meet any of them. Haha. I just want to find them online and complete my family lineage. 

[Guest MormonGator]

Just now, Bini said:

That is why I wouldn’t meet any of them. Haha. I just want to find them online and complete my family lineage. 

Smart woman. 

[Sunday21]

33 minutes ago, Bini said:

That is why I wouldn’t meet any of them. Haha. I just want to find them online and complete my family lineage. 

If you just want to complete your family linage, why not do your adopted parents? Or your husband’s? Or my family? I have lots! 

Edited February 6, 2019 by Sunday21

[Bini]

37 minutes ago, Sunday21 said:

If you just want to complete your family linage, why not do your adopted parents? Or your husband’s? Or my family? I have lots! 

I’m wanting to find relatives and complete my biological family tree. 

[classylady]

3 hours ago, Bini said:

Should I just boldly start messaging people on there? Is that appropriate? I don’t have any good information to contribute to any of them... Short of messaging people and explaining my birth story, not sure where to begin... 

That is what I would do. I would email them and explain the situation. Right now, there may not be a close family match, but more and more people are getting their DNA done and, who knows, a close family match might just show up on Ancestry in the future.

Best of luck to you, Bini. I’m hoping you can get some good results and that it won’t take years and years.

BTW, I did my DNA with Ancestry. I have a lot of close matches, sister and 1st cousins, 2nd cousins, etc. it’s fascinating. I’m thinking that this may be a fairly new idea in the Philippines and not many people have started to request their DNA from there yet. Plus, the cost could be a deterrent. I wanted to do mine years earlier but could never justify the cost. My kit was also a gift. 

[Bini]

34 minutes ago, classylady said:

That is what I would do. I would email them and explain the situation. Right now, there may not be a close family match, but more and more people are getting their DNA done and, who knows, a close family match might just show up on Ancestry in the future.

Best of luck to you, Bini. I’m hoping you can get some good results and that it won’t take years and years.

BTW, I did my DNA with Ancestry. I have a lot of close matches, sister and 1st cousins, 2nd cousins, etc. it’s fascinating. I’m thinking that this may be a fairly new idea in the Philippines and not many people have started to request their DNA from there yet. Plus, the cost could be a deterrent. I wanted to do mine years earlier but could never justify the cost. My kit was also a gift. 

Good points made! Thanks  

[askandanswer]

7 hours ago, MormonGator said:

I foolishly thought that finding my biological family would magically solve my problems and bring me everlasting joy and happiness. 

But then you found thirdhour.org

 

[askandanswer]

Welcome back @Bini lovely to see you again.

I vaguely recall a news item from I think within the last 12 months where a (I think) major California cold case of a multiple rapist or murderer or maybe both was solved by looking through the DNA data on ancestory websites. Somebody else could probably provide you with better information than me, but the case was so unusual and newsworthy that I suspect a lot has been written about this particular approach to finding individuals. There are bound to be multiple articles about it. These two articles, selected at random, might give you a start. These are only newspaper articles, but I suspect that somewhere there is likely to be a more detailed description of the process the police used, and it might offer some clues as to how you could go about doing something similar. 

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-golden-state-killer-suspect-20180426-story.html

https://www.vox.com/2018/4/27/17290288/golden-state-killer-joseph-james-deangelo-dna-profile-match

[anatess2]

15 hours ago, Bini said:

I was adopted in the Philippines. 

The documented channels is more than likely not going to work for you.  In cases like these in the Philippines, your best shot is to go to that town and that hospital where you were adopted and start interviewing the entire town.  This is about the only way one can find things like these in the Philippines.  The good thing is... somebody giving up their baby is rare in most parts of the Philippines unless you were born in the Southernmost regions or in regions close to a US military base.  Chances are, a lot of townsfolks would remember the "tale of the baby left at the hospital". 

And yes, @Just_A_Guy is right... there's a good chance you're going to find a cousin and that will give you an entire clan of relatives who all look like you!  It's amazing how sometimes, seeing a bunch of people with your features kinda gets you to make a lot of sense.  Like, oh, that's why I'm allergic to seafood...

Edited February 6, 2019 by anatess2

[NeuroTypical]

BTW, Hi Bini!  Good to see you!

[anatess2]

Oh, and Bini... flights to the Philippines on EVA Air from certain parts of the US (IAH in Houston is one) is running for about $700 round-trip in March!

[Bini]

1 hour ago, anatess2 said:

The documented channels is more than likely not going to work for you.  In cases like these in the Philippines, your best shot is to go to that town and that hospital where you were adopted and start interviewing the entire town.  This is about the only way one can find things like these in the Philippines.  The good thing is... somebody giving up their baby is rare in most parts of the Philippines unless you were born in the Southernmost regions or in regions close to a US military base.  Chances are, a lot of townsfolks would remember the "tale of the baby left at the hospital". 

And yes, @Just_A_Guy is right... there's a good chance you're going to find a cousin and that will give you an entire clan of relatives who all look like you!  It's amazing how sometimes, seeing a bunch of people with your features kinda gets you to make a lot of sense.  Like, oh, that's why I'm allergic to seafood...

I've been looking through the pics of my matches and I'm not seeing any resemblances but that would be a head trip to find someone who looks like me!

[Bini]

1 hour ago, NeuroTypical said:

BTW, Hi Bini!  Good to see you!

Thanks! I'm in and out, in and out