For 75 years, he thought he was an only child — until a document helped him reunite with family he never knew he had
Adoptive children often become curious about their biological parents as they grow older. In most cases, closed adoptions prevent adopted children from discovering their roots. According to CNN US, 75-year-old North Carolina resident Dixon Handshaw knew that he was the only child of his adoptive parents. Handshaw was born in Buffalo, New York, in 1949 and was adopted by a couple when he was 3 months old. His parents were transparent about his adoption, but he had no knowledge of any biological siblings.
“I’ve never met anybody who shares my DNA,” Handshaw told the CNN affiliate, WHAM. “I always wanted to find them but New York State sealed the pre-adoption birth certificates and it was impossible to find out." However, following the passage of a 2019 law, original birth certificates of adopted New Yorkers were unsealed and Handshaw received his birth certificate in August 2024. He came to know about his biological father, Robert Romig.
“The first thing I did when I got my father’s name was Google him and up pops his obituary,” Handshaw recalled. “Not only was I shocked to see that I looked exactly like him but I immediately knew that I had all these brothers and a sister.” Although Handshaw had no idea why he was put up for adoption, he came to know that his father was a graduate of Cornell University's physics department and his mom was the secretary of the department. Handshaw's biological mother did not have any more children but Romig settled down with a woman in Rochester. The woman had three sons of her own and Romig adopted three boys later on.
The couple also had five biological children of their own. Handshaw had more than 50 relatives he had no idea about and he eventually met them after getting in touch with Gary, one of Romig's adopted sons. “I chose Gary as the one that I would call because I knew he was adopted and I was adopted and so I thought he would be empathetic to my situation,” Handshaw mentioned to the news outlet. “I got a phone call and I didn’t recognize the number. I hardly ever answer the phone if I don’t recognize the number. But for some reason, I answered it,” Gary shared his side of the story with ABC News. “And he said, ‘Hi, my name is Dixon. Are you Gary Romig?’ I said, ‘I am.’ He goes, ‘I’m your brother.'"
When Gary received the picture of Handshaw, he immediately spotted the resemblance Handshaw had with their Romig. Then Handshaw flew to Rochester, New York to meet some of his half-siblings before Christmas. “All my life, I dreamed about having siblings somewhere,” Handshaw revealed. “This is my Christmas miracle.” Handshaw, who had no children of his own, felt welcomed by his newfound family, cousins and their children. “It was wonderful,” he added. “I have never felt such an outpouring of unconditional love as I had from my new family.”
He couldn't spend the 2024 Christmas with them but he intended to spend more time with his half-siblings in the future. Handshaw also quipped that they had planned to go camping in the summer and they started a group chat too. “I had great adoptive parents. They were wonderful. I love them and I miss them but I always wanted siblings and now I have them,” Handshaw told CNN. “I thought one or two would be great. I got six!”