A woman whose unwed mother was sent to Australia and then gave her up as a baby has told of her joy at finding her long-lost British family after 60 years apart.
Suzy Frazer, 64, was given up for adoption after her pregnant mother was packed off from Portsmouth, Hants, Down Under to give birth to her in 1958.
Her mother Janet Hall had asked not to be contacted but determined Suzy broke the rules to track her down and found out she had two half-sisters and a half-brother through her father in the UK.
And she used a DNA search through MyHeritage.com to trace a cousin in Gibraltar who then put him in touch with her unknown two half-sisters and brother.
And Suzy has now been met sisters Sharon Day, 57, and Eileen Bond, 54, and brother Steve Bond, 61.
They had a recent emotional meeting after they all flew into Bangkok, Thailand, to meet each other.
Suzy Frazer (left), 64, has now been met sisters Sharon Day (centre), 57, and Eileen Bond (right), 54, and brother Steve Bond, 61
They had a recent emotional meeting after they all flew into Bangkok, Thailand, to meet each other
Suzy Frazer (pictured as a baby) was given up for adoption after her pregnant mother was packed off from Portsmouth, Hants, Down Under to give birth to her in 1958
Her mother Janet Hall had asked not to be contacted but determined Suzy broke the rules to track her down and found out she had two half-sisters and a half-brother through her father in the UK (Pictured: Suzy with sister Sharon)
Australian mother-of-two Suzy said: ‘I just feel loved now.
‘We would walk along and hold hands and cuddle each other.
‘There is nothing strange about it or uncomfortable about it.
‘It is just awesome. Me and Steve look alike.’
Her husband Tim, 60, said: ‘Suzy is now complete. She knows who she is.
‘She knows where she comes from and she had never known any of that.
‘It is complete life changer.’
Mother-of-two Eileen, of Brierley, South Yorks, said: ‘It is brilliant having an older sister.
‘It is just awesome. I am so made up.
‘We got on so well. It was non-stop laughter from the moment we met.
Pictured: Suzy with Eileen, Sharon and Steve holding a sign that says: ‘Ready to BOND. Thank you MyHertage.’
Her husband Tim (pictured), 60, said: ‘Suzy is now complete. She knows who she is. She knows where she comes from and she had never known any of that. It is complete life changer.’
Pictured: The four siblings wearing t-shirts that say: ‘It’s just a BONDing thing’
Pictured: Suzy hugging her brother Steve at the airport as they say goodbye following their Bangkok trip
‘I thought I would cry at the airport but I was just so excited to meet her.
‘There were tears however when we had to say goodbye.’
She added: ‘I was very surprised when she got in touch but then all doubts disappeared when I saw her.
‘She just looks like our sister Suzy who died when she was 19.
‘I didn’t doubt it for a moment as they both look so alike.
‘I love having a big sister. We lost one Suzy and gained another.
‘When we met up it seemed like we had known Suzy all our lives.
‘She fitted straight away in and we said the same things at the same time.
‘It feels amazing.’
Suzy’s mother Janet was put on a boat to Australia when she fell pregnant when she was aged just 19.
Mother-of-two Eileen(centre-right), of Brierley, South Yorks, said: ‘There were tears however when we had to say goodbye’
Eileen said Suzy looks just like her other sister Suzy (left) who died when she was just 19-years-old
Suzy’s mother Janet was put on a boat to Australia when she fell pregnant when she was aged just 19
Suzy went to see her mother Janet, who died three years ago, in 1991 in Narooma in New South Wales
She said: ‘There was an awful stigma around unwed mothers at the time.
‘My mum knew I was going to be adopted.
‘I don’t think her family thought Raymond was good enough for her as he was in the merchant navy.’
Suzy went to see her mother Janet, who died three years ago, in 1991 in Narooma in New South Wales.
The property manager said: ‘She had paid 50 dollars for me not to be able to contact her.
‘I was devastated.
‘There was a veto and a six-month jail sentence for breaking it but I did anyway and I went and knocked on her door.’
The mother-of-two added: ‘I rubbed her arm and said: ‘I don’t mean you any harm but I need to tell you that I’m your daughter’.
‘She started to cry and I started to cry. She told me that I was breaking the law and I told her to ring the police if she wanted you.
Suzy said her mother had paid 50 dollars for her not to be able to contact her and there was a veto and six-month jail sentence for breaking it but she did anyway (Pictured: Suzy and her sisters saying their goodbyes’
Pictured: Suzy, Steve, Sharon and Eileen ding their version of The Beatles Abbey Road cover
Pictured: The siblings and their partners going for dinner during their holiday to Bangkok
‘But she said no and said: ‘I have been waiting for this. I just wanted this day to arrive.’
‘She wouldn’t show me a picture of my father. Every album that she showed me there were photos missing.
‘Her husband had cut every photo up of my father. That was the only time she mentioned his name.
‘She said: ‘I forbid you to find him. I will tell you on my death bed. He is probably drunk in some corner.’
‘That is when I knew I had to take it upon myself to go and find my dad.
‘We got birth certificates and all sorts of things and Tim told me I should go and get a DNA search.
‘That is when we used my.Heritage.com and we found a cousin in Gibraltar who had also done a DNA search.
Suzy used MyHeritage and found a cousin in Gibraltar who put her in contact with her siblings (Pictured: Brother and sister Steve and Suzy)
Pictured: The siblings and their partners in Bangkok at the Nongnooch Tropical Garden
It is not known whether Suzy’s father Raymond knew Janet had had a baby girl as she never came back to the UK (Pictured: The family out for food in Bangkok)
‘He told me more about the family and that is when it all opened up.’
It is not known whether Raymond knew Janet had had a baby girl as she never came back to the UK.
Raymond became a milkman and settled down in Eastbourne, East Sussex, and was married to Deanna Bond, who is now 76, for 58 years.
He died 12 years ago aged 75.
Shop worker and mother-of-four Sharon, of West Dereham, Norfolk, said: ‘Mum was very upset when she found out about our new sister Suzy.
‘She looked at my dad’s photo and cried because she knew nothing about it.
‘Mum looked at his photo and said: ‘Why did you never tell me’.
‘She thought our dad had lived a double life but that’s just not true.
‘But now she’s happy. She was very happy for us all to go off and meet Suzy and make new memories.’
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