Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
DAVENPORT, Iowa — When Abbey Donohoe and Paula O'Brien met four years ago, they instantly clicked. People mentioned they looked alike. They joked they were sisters. Come to find out, it's not far from the mark.
Donohoe, 29, was adopted as a newborn baby. O'Brien brother, it turns out, is Donohoe's birth father. But they didn't know that until last week.
"When I was a little girl, one of my older brothers and his girlfriend gave a baby up for adoption," O'Brien said on KWQC. "It really had an impact on me and for years, I had hoped to find her."
O'Brien's parents had prayed they would find their first granddaughter one day. They always observed her birthday and had plans to find her.
O'Brien, who was 10 years old when Donohoe was born and adopted, shared her feelings and a link to a blog about adoption one day on Facebook.
"On Sept. 19, 1982, my very first niece was born and given up for adoption. I know it wasn't an easy decision for my brother to make, but it was the right one for that baby girl. Hope you can take a moment to read this & be thankful for the selfless sacrifice of adoption. I know many families whose hearts are full because of it."
Donohoe, who has always known she was adopted, saw the post, recognizing the date as her birthday. She sent a personal message to O'Brien looking for more details on this baby. They soon realized their relationship.
"It was just a surreal," Donohoe said. "Did I really just accidentally find my birth family?"
"All I had to do is say one line to my mom and she lost it," O'Brien told QC Times. "She said, ‘I've prayed for this day. It's a miracle.' "
Donohoe's adoptive mother is supportive, and will meet O'Brien this week.
"She definitely wants to meet people and be involved, too. If I'm happy, she's happy," Donohoe said.
And those jokes about being sisters?
"The fact that this person has been right before my eyes for four, five years is just amazing," O'Brien said. "It feels like I got a little sister. This is not a niece, we're closer than that. The beauty about it, too, is that we are so alike and get along so well. It's a huge blessing."
