Tools For the Dig

The last time that I left off, I'd just received the information about me having a sister. At the time that I was born she was about 11 or twelve. This information would be vital as I searched.
 My adoption was a closed adoption. My birth records, including my original birth certificate, were legally sealed. I have never seen nor owned my original birth certificate. So, I was starting my search from scratch. From my research I found out that I needed my non-identifying information. This is paper work that gives descriptions and other limited information about me and my birth parents without disclosing their names. I was adopted through the Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services. I would need to apply for my non-identifying information through them. My goodness. On January 11, 2016 I spent an entire morning being tossed around through Mecklenburg County DSS until I landed in Family and Youth Services. They not only handled current adoptions, but they also helped in adoption reunions. Here is where I met Dee*. Dee was the social worker assigned to my case. She informed me on how to apply for my non-identifying information. All of the paper work had to be notarized and sent in with a copy of my license. I was so excited. I was now going to get some clues, and maybe even some answers. I sent my application in, and I waited...
As I waited for my non-identifying information to come back, I just could not keep still. *Dee, the caseworker, told me that my information could take 3 to 6 weeks to arrive from the state capital (Raleigh, NC). I was on edge. I was excited and anxious to see what I could find out. I was hoping for something that I didn't know. In the meantime, I reached out to a friend who had been adopted as well. She was actively doing her own search. She became a safe harbor for me. She supplied me with information and wisdom in ways that I would have never imagined. We don't live in the same state, but her shoulders were right there for me to cry on. I am so thankful to God for Lorena. She suggested that I do a DNA test kit. For the first time, I was about to connect with DNA relatives. For the first time, I was about to connect to my immediate ancestors. And, for the first time, I was about to see their connection to me. I was no longer going to be the "only" ancestor that my children had. I was going to see myself as a part of a continuum. That nearly blew my mind. So, in March of 2016, I submitted a DNA test kit to Ancestry.