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Once An Orphan

by Jasmin

Personal Journals

Season 2

Incest Faces: Aziza's Law

Aziza was just 8 years old when she remembers being touched by her biological father for the first time. By age 16, she was carrying their first of five children and he got on one knee, asking her to be his wife. Homeschooled with little to no interaction to what normal life was, she didn't have much to compare this behavior to. Our generation appreciated music by The Fugee's, not knowing the video director behind the infamous, Kiling Me Softly, was softly killing the innocence of his daughter.

What Does the Mirror Show Me? Brown Girl World

@GenieJoniqua is a child advocate and author. In her book titled, What Does the Mirror Show Me? Brown Girl World, she talks about her young life of being exposed to sex by her parent and being sexually abused by her brother. Now an advocate for young girls who are being victimized, she found her voice in becoming theirs. On Instagram, she's @joniquathegenie, showing what it looks like to put your boots to the ground and fearlessly fight to protect young girls who are now living the life that caused her trauma. This is her story and her fight.

Tarcia Smith's Adoption Story

Host of @theadoptionjourneypodcast and co-founder of The Black Adoptees Meetup, Tarcia Smith sat down to share her own adoption journey with me. Tarcia started talking about her story as a "ted talk", thinking she would share her story and be done. What she thought and what God wanted were two different things. Not knowing what this would become, she's spoken with adoptees from ALL OVER THE WORLD, leading her to connect with Dr. Kathy Garland. The two of them would start a movement. As an adoptee, we dig and investigate until we can't anymore and in her own work, she discovered parts of her story, that were true and different from what she was told from her biological mother. HA! So often, we believe our adoptive families are the ones who tell lies and keep secrets, but....the truth prevails. Subscribe to @theadoptionjourneypodcast to see and hear so many stories of adoption and find out how many ways we connect.

The Redemption of Bobby Love

He was young and poor growing up in Jim Crow south. A 13 year old Walter Curtis Miller had eyes for clothes and nice things he just couldn’t afford. When his father passed away, leaving his mother to raise the kids on her own, the only thing that mattered were their necessities. Young Walter wanted more and knew he could get it. Even though getting it meant stealing from time to time, he put his plan into action. What he didn’t know was that his new career wouldn’t last long before he was caught and incarcerated. With his criminal life starting at 13 years old, it finally caught up to him by the time he was a 19 and prison became his home. From a few small thefts, pick pocketing to grand larceny, steel bars became his front door. He was doing his time until he couldn’t take it anymore and figured out a plan that would make him a fugitive of the law. Escaping from a crew work assignment, Walter ran through the woods, got to the Greyhound bus station and headed to New York. On the ride, his new identity became Bobby Love. Bobby Love made New York home. He made an honest living, met and married his beautiful bride, and started a family with four children. Life was good for the first 38 years in New York but what happened next? On a cold January morning, NYPD and the FBI came looking for Walter Curtis Miller. Completely shocked, Mrs. Love had NO clue of the life her husband left behind.

Part II of From Hidden to Healed with Alicia Williams: Finding Out at 53 Years Old

Outside of her reunion, the continuation doesn't get much better. Alicia continues to heal, learn, grow and teach. What's she's learned as an adoptee AND an adoptive mother will help all adoptive parents in the process. For starters, let's not rewrite the narrative of who the child came from and what they should know.

From Hidden to Healed: Finding Out at 53 Years Old

A wife, a mother, a grandmother, a Michigan native, an entrepreneur and above all, a God-fearing woman, Alicia Williams has done it all. From serving as a board member of the National Association of Adoptees and Parents, Alicia works diligently to support and advocate for this community. As an LDA (Late Discovery Adoptee), she has learned the importance of being vocal and advocating for such an overlooked community. As an adoptive parent herself, she later learned some "do's and don't" of adoption. So much of her views came later after she realized her husband knew about her adoption before she did herself, but when gifted with a DNA test for Christmas to do more research of the family tree, you learned your tree is not at all connected to the tree you've always known about. This could only mean one thing-your DNA test results are wrong because, for sure, if you were adopted, you'd know before the age of 53.

Empowering Cuts: Changing Lives One Cut at a Time

Josh Santiago, founder of Empowering Cuts, was a troubled teen himself. In and out of jail from 12-24 years old, he was released with a changed mindset of "doing something right for the first time in my life." After earning his license to barber, he began to initially serve the Philadelphia homeless community, by providing free haircuts to homeless men. From this, he attracted the attention and has since traveled the country, serving the homeless community all over. Josh founded the non-profit organization, Empowering Cuts, to help change lives one cut at a time. While his work became popular by serving "family" in need, he also helped his own mother get clean after a nearly 40 year addiction. Now, almost a year clean, she's able to do things for the first time with her children and those who love her most.

A Journey of Resilience

Patrice Hudson is an adoptee hoping to find truth. Adopted at a young age, she, like most adoptees had questions and sought after learning who she really was and who she came from. Afraid that her adoptive parents didn't want her to ever learn the truth, she remained silent until she decided to speak out loud and document her adoption story. Adopted with a biological brother, she had some DNA connection, but she lost him. With that, she almost lost hope and herself, but the journey isn't over. For herself, brother, niece and nephew, she is moving forward with her journey of resilience.

They Lied but DNA Told the Truth: Finding Out at 46 Years Old

For fun, Janeen Jackson decided to take a DNA test with her brothers at 46 years old. However, what was initially thought to be fun, turned out to be a devastating discovery, as she found that she was no match to her brothers. So, this test must be a scam for people to get money. Believing to have the resemblance of her grandmother, the thought of adoption never crossed her mind. Not only did she learn she was adopted at 46 years old, she also learned she was mixed race. A white Jewish father and a Black mother was something that never walked through her thoughts. She missed out on her culture, roots and family and lived in a lie for the first 46 years of her life. But why? Was it too hard to be honest with the sweet baby? The hurt she processed turned into a children's novel titled, Hello, Sweet Baby. A motivational speaker, author, pianist, blogger and so much more, Janeen began to learn all of what makes her who she is today. She learned where her talent and creativity came from. She found her biological parents through DNA testing. She found siblings. She got the story and learned so much about why she was placed, fostered and adopted. To purchase her book, you can visit her blog or website. This is a personal story, written about her personal experience in finding out she was adopted later in life. www.janeenjackson.com www.mixedupdiary.com hellojaneenjackson@gmail.com

From Trauma to Truth

Kimberly Ann held in so much beginning at a very early age. She was introduced to her mother, who was born with down symdrome, but didn't know why her grandmother was raising her. When she later learned she was a product of r*pe, she was filled with emotions, wondering who her biological father was and how he could do something like this to such a vulnerable human being. Filled with hurt, she had to navigate life not knowing. Through tears AND laughter, she became her mother's voice and at 37 years old, continues to put in the work to find truth. Someone knows what happened in Palm Beach, Florida 38 years ago. On TikTok, she's @hustleherdigital or Kimmy's World. She's telling her own story, in her own way.

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