‘The love was there’
Stratford woman trying to reconnect with long-lost brother and sister
For Frances Lamoureux, meeting her half-sister Mary Smith in person was a dream come true.
The sisters spent most of their lives not knowing each other before connecting through Facebook about three years ago, which led to the two meeting in a Halifax train station last month.
Although they had never seen each other before, the connection between the two was undeniable.
“We just eyed each other and we knew,” said Lamoureux. “There was no question (we were sisters).”
Smith said it was impossible to describe the feeling of seeing her sister.
“When I first wrapped my arms around her, it was like I knew her all my life,” said Smith, who lives in Montreal.
“The love, the connection,
everything was there.”
However, the two are still searching for the final piece in their family puzzle.
Lamoureux and Smith are
now working together to find their brother Joseph William Gerard and sister Claudia Ann.
The two know that Joseph was born on May 14, 1946 and his last known location was in Cornwall, Ont.
Claudia was born on Dec. 2, 1957 and was later adopted by a Charlottetown family with either the name Steele or Smith.
Lamoureux spent much of her life trying to reconnect with her past after being placed in a foster home with one of her sisters as a child. They both grew up unaware of their 12 other siblings, which included four other sisters, three brothers, four half sisters and a halfbrother.
It wasn’t until Lamoureux was married with kids when she met her mother and realized she had gone through the early part of her life unaware of many of her siblings.
Since then, she’s met or spoken to most of her sisters and brothers through a number of different methods and circumstances.
For instance, she first met her sister Theresa randomly while walking with friends in Lot 65 and noticing they shared a resemblance. Lamoureux also connected with her older brother Nelson several years ago when he called her from a Halifax hospital after being diagnosed with a brain tumour.
Lamoureux was able to meet Nelson for the first time about a month before he died.
“The only ones I haven’t met now are my brother Joseph and my sister who was adopted, that’s the void I’ve got,” said Lamoureux. “I need that closure.”
Lamoureux said she has filed papers with the adoption agency in hopes of finding her sister. The family also contacted police and even hired a private investigator to find their brother with no success.
After years of tracking most of her family down, Lamoureux is planning a reunion to bring all her sisters together in P.E.I. this August. It will be the first time she will physically meet with her other two half-sisters.
Although Smith said she feels blessed to have re-connected with her family, she’s holding out hope that they’ll still find their brother.
“I think that would be the final closure for all of us,” said Smith, who hopes that anyone with information will reach out to the family. “He needs to know he’s always been loved. Even if he’s gone, his children need to know his sisters and brothers have not forgotten him.”
Lamoureux asked that anyone with information regarding her lost brother or sister can call her at 902-566-4547 or email franceslamoureux065@gmail.com