Mmmm…I was able to get some basic info about my adoption from the state of South Dakota back in 2006 or so. Using that info, I then filled out a form requesting that my adoption files be released to me and I had to write a letter explaining why I wanted the info. The judge sent me a letter saying that the state would grant my request. I burst into tears and danced a jig around the apartment!
His secretary told me on the phone that I was really lucky to have the form and my letter go to that particular judge. There were 2 circuit court judges, and the other one didn’t believe in opening adoption files, so it was just by sheer luck that I happened to get that one. The other one was on vacation. I have an opinion or two him, but that doesn’t matter anymore, at least not to me. Sadly, it may to others.
I wrote a thank you note to him after I located and contacted my birth mom.
btw, to those who don’t agree with the practice of being able to reconnect with birth families…I had already decided that I would not let her know who I was until I had done some research about her current life. But it turned out that on a genealogy website I found a cousin who was looking for any relatives of his family. I wrote and explained who I was without giving any particulars. I said the last thing I would want to do is disrupt her life in a negative way. He said he’d call her first and find out if she wanted contact, and called her right then. She did, he gave me her number, we talked and met in person within a week of my birthday. She had never kept me a secret from her family and had always wondered if I was even alive because she heard I had a heart murmur at birth. She said she always set aside time on my birthday to simply think about me.
That was the letter that gave me the most joy.