Mom Reunited With The Son She Gave Up For Adoption As A Newborn 33 Years Ago

Melanie Pressley was reunited with her son she hadn’t seen for the past 33 years because she gave him up as a newborn. The woman, now 51, shared that they met through the 23andMe site that confirmed how they were genetically compatible.

Melanie went through teen pregnancy at the age of 18. The situation did not look good for her and her son’s future.

Thirty-three years ago, Melanie found out that she was pregnant with her then-boyfriend. She insisted on keeping her baby, but the father threatened her that he won’t be involved in the son’s life ever as a father. The woman despaired and decided to still have the baby and give him up for a complete family that could give him all the love she couldn’t.

Melanie wasn’t financially independent either, which added to the reason she decided to let him go. She gave birth to the baby on June 17, 1988, and despite it being illegal, held her son in her arms moments before he was taken away by his adoptive parents.

She had only pictures of that moment taken by her sister to hold on to for more than three decades.

Pressley went on with life and found herself married with three children now. But she never forgot and yearned for her first son all those years. Memories about the little baby boy in her arms would come back every June 17th.

Her son grew up as Greg Vossler, and he learned since he was young that he was given up for adoption.

He recalled, “Maybe when I was nine or ten or somewhere in that age group, they shared with me the story that I had been adopted and that the woman who had given me up for adoption thought I might have a better life elsewhere.”

Greg grew up well and had his own family when he began to think about his biological parents again. He took a DNA test in 2018 and submitted them to 23andMe. His main reason was to learn about his family’s medical history. But he never imagined that his half-sister, Rachel, was looking for a trace of him on the same site.

Rachel’s excuse was similar to Greg’s, but her purpose was clear: to find Greg.

Days later, they were notified that they were very likely biologically related. The possibility had Melanie’s hope up as she texted Greg and asked about his birth. He confirmed that he was born on June 17th, and Melanie knew she had found her boy.

Their emotional reunion happened 33 years later, in June 2021. Greg took his family to meet Melanie in Ohio. He recalled the moment, “Everyone is emotional, everyone shakes hands or share hugs. ‘I’m your half-brother, your half-sister.'”

“And her older sister, who helped let Melanie take that first photo, walked over and grabbed my face. For the first time in 33 years, she saw me.”

Melanie never regretted her choice. She was proud of how well the Vossler raised him into a great man, father, and husband.

Now Melanie’s goal is to be able to meet Greg and his big family in Virginia. She shared, “As you get older, you get a little wiser, but there is no shame in giving someone up for adoption. There are loving couples who cannot have children and would like to raise a child.”

Melanie knew she had given her son the best life, and there was nothing shameful about her decision.