Life-long family search delight
A Scarborough woman who grew up in a care home has finally confirmed who her father is – and discovered that a childhood friend was actually her half sister. After more than five decades, Cara Jane Farrar-Peterson says she finally feels like she ‘belongs somewhere’.
Cara says she’s always felt like a ‘lost soul’ but after appearing on ITV’s The Jeremy Kyle Show she now knows who her father is. The 52-year-old
‘I’ve never had an identity, I’ve never had a birth certificate or really known where I came from... I finally feel like I belong somewhere’
grandmother, who lives in Clark Street, has only recently got her hands on her birth certificate and was shocked to find a different man’s name printed as her father.
Growing up in a care home with her sister Melanie, Cara said she had a tough childhood.
Melanie’s dad Michael never accepted Cara as his daughter too
– but now he has welcomed her with open arms after the DNA results were revealed.
It also means she now has a half-brother and a half-sister
– who she was actually friends with as a child.
Cara went to school with her half-sister Karen when they were around 12-yearsold.
“I’ve always been a bit of a loner,” said Cara. “But Karen would defend me and we always got along really well. It’s like we always had a connection, even though we didn’t know we were actually sisters.”
Cara, who volunteers at a charity shop, contacted the show after finding a different man’s name on her birth certificate and producers brought her to the studio for filming the next day.
The 52-year-old said: “I’ve never had an identity, I’ve never had a birth certificate or really known where I came from. I now know that my sister’s dad is my dad and Melanie is my full sister. I also have a new half-brother and half-sister.
“My mum hid it from me all that time. There’s a different name on my birth certificate but he’s not my father.”
Cara appeared on the daytime ITV show with her sister Melanie Webb, who lives in Keighley, after her son found her birth certificate while creating a family tree.
She’d previously tried to access the certificate but was told her mum, who married six times, had told them she was adopted and they couldn’t pass on the record.
Presenter Jeremy Kyle praised the sisters for their strength and the bond they share and was pleased to announce to them that they were full sisters.
Cara added: “It’s changed my whole life. It wasn’t just that it confirmed Melanie was my full sister – it wouldn’t have changed anything between us if she wasn’t, but now I know who my dad is.
“I just can’t explain how I feel. The show, the people were wonderful – I’m so grateful. I just feel like after 52 years I finally know who I am.
“It has affected my life really badly. All I ever wanted was my mum and dad.
“I went to see him and he gave me a beautiful necklace. He was so happy. I don’t want anything from him, I’m just so glad I have a family.
“It’s just indescribable. It’s just changed who I am, I always felt like a lost soul and I finally feel like I belong somewhere.”