Stolen newborn and mother are reunited 41 years later
May 28, 2015 0:29:31 GMT -5
Post by Shoshanna on May 28, 2015 0:29:31 GMT -5
'I was told my baby died': Stolen newborn and mother are reunited 41 years later
09:23, 27 May 2015
By Kirstie McCrum
Nelly Reyes was told that her newborn son had died of a heart condition in 1973 but was never shown his body
CNN Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
Warm Embrace: Travis used Chilean penpal sites and Facebook groups to track down his biological mum
A mum who was told her son died shortly after birth has been reunited with him - 41 years later.
The nightmare began for Nelly Reyes back in 1973 when she had her newborn son was taken from her.
And it ended, as these amazing pictures show, when the 61-year-old mum-of-six finally met son Travis Trollier in an airport they shared a hug that spoke a thousand words.
Spanish-speaking Nelly held a sign reading: "'Lovingly waiting for Travis, your mother Nelly and family", as her English-speaking long-lost son and his 10-year-old son and daughter, 22, came through the arrivals gate.
The emotional mum told CNN: "I'm going to hug him every day. I love him so much."
CNN Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
Big Hugs: Although Nelly and Travis speak different languages, their love was conveyed through a long embrace
Nelly, from Chile, gave birth when she was 19. But she was told by hospital employees that her son had been born with a heart condition and unlikely to survive.
When they told her that her baby had died hours later, she had not seen him, and she never received a death certificate.
What Nelly didn't know was that her boy had been stolen, and was adopted by a family in Tacoma, Washington.
To this day, no one knows who took Travis, with he and his adoptive parents thinking he'd been abandoned by his birth mother.
But when he celebrated his 40th birthday, the dad-of-two decided to track her down and find out what had happened.
Travis Tolliver Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
All Smiles: Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mum Nelly Reyes after 41 years apart
He explained: "I started by joining a pen pal web site and talking with people from Chile.
"I found out that babies were stolen from there unwed mothers in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s with a few here and there after the 80s.
"This really kickstarted my need to find my biological mother. I found a Facebook site Chile Adoption Birth Family Search.
"I gave them all the information I could find on my adoption. I want to say within three to four weeks they had found my mother."
Travis Tolliver Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
Family Reunited: Travis is now getting to know his family, including five siblings he'd never met before he turned 41
Travis discovered he is known as one of Chile's 'Children of Silence', hundreds or perhaps even even thousands of babies who were allegedly either stolen from their biological parents or given away during the dictatorship of Pinochet in the 1970s and 1980s.
Currently in Chile getting to know his four brothers and one sister, Travis is currently raising money for his family to join him there via GoFundMe after the imports distribution centre where he works as a supervisor denied his claim for family medical leave.
Now, he told CNN, he's going to concentrate on finding out more about his roots.
"Now I'm back here in my homeland I guess," he said. "I'm going to explore and see what the country is all about."
link
09:23, 27 May 2015
By Kirstie McCrum
Nelly Reyes was told that her newborn son had died of a heart condition in 1973 but was never shown his body
CNN Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
Warm Embrace: Travis used Chilean penpal sites and Facebook groups to track down his biological mum
A mum who was told her son died shortly after birth has been reunited with him - 41 years later.
The nightmare began for Nelly Reyes back in 1973 when she had her newborn son was taken from her.
And it ended, as these amazing pictures show, when the 61-year-old mum-of-six finally met son Travis Trollier in an airport they shared a hug that spoke a thousand words.
Spanish-speaking Nelly held a sign reading: "'Lovingly waiting for Travis, your mother Nelly and family", as her English-speaking long-lost son and his 10-year-old son and daughter, 22, came through the arrivals gate.
The emotional mum told CNN: "I'm going to hug him every day. I love him so much."
CNN Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
Big Hugs: Although Nelly and Travis speak different languages, their love was conveyed through a long embrace
Nelly, from Chile, gave birth when she was 19. But she was told by hospital employees that her son had been born with a heart condition and unlikely to survive.
When they told her that her baby had died hours later, she had not seen him, and she never received a death certificate.
What Nelly didn't know was that her boy had been stolen, and was adopted by a family in Tacoma, Washington.
To this day, no one knows who took Travis, with he and his adoptive parents thinking he'd been abandoned by his birth mother.
But when he celebrated his 40th birthday, the dad-of-two decided to track her down and find out what had happened.
Travis Tolliver Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
All Smiles: Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mum Nelly Reyes after 41 years apart
He explained: "I started by joining a pen pal web site and talking with people from Chile.
"I found out that babies were stolen from there unwed mothers in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s with a few here and there after the 80s.
"This really kickstarted my need to find my biological mother. I found a Facebook site Chile Adoption Birth Family Search.
"I gave them all the information I could find on my adoption. I want to say within three to four weeks they had found my mother."
Travis Tolliver Travis Tolliver has been reunited with his mother at 41 years old, after being separated at birth
Family Reunited: Travis is now getting to know his family, including five siblings he'd never met before he turned 41
Travis discovered he is known as one of Chile's 'Children of Silence', hundreds or perhaps even even thousands of babies who were allegedly either stolen from their biological parents or given away during the dictatorship of Pinochet in the 1970s and 1980s.
Currently in Chile getting to know his four brothers and one sister, Travis is currently raising money for his family to join him there via GoFundMe after the imports distribution centre where he works as a supervisor denied his claim for family medical leave.
Now, he told CNN, he's going to concentrate on finding out more about his roots.
"Now I'm back here in my homeland I guess," he said. "I'm going to explore and see what the country is all about."
link
