He believed that it was simply a thoughtful gift, but the 23andMe testing kit Dan purchased for his girlfriend would soon reveal a horrifying secret about their relationship that no one could have anticipated...
Happy Birthday
Matilda and her boyfriend Dan had been dating for a few months when he decided to buy her a unique gift for her birthday. Rather than going with flowers or jewelry, Dan chose to present his girlfriend with a DNA testing kit. They had no idea how this would impact their lives...
It Changed Everything
Matilda did not know very much about her family history, so Dan's gift was a pleasant surprise to the 22-year-old. However, when she received the results a month later, the young couple would have to reevaluate everything about their relationship...
Mysterious History
Matilda didn't know much about her family history. Her mother was adopted and her biological father was not in the picture. Matilda was primarily interested in doing a 23andMe kit for health purposes. She wanted to know if there were any hereditary illnesses that ran in her family.
Two Kits
Dan was also interested in the health aspect of DNA testing, so he purchased a matching kit for himself. On Matilda's birthday, Dan presented her with the gift, and she was ecstatic. Matilda couldn't wait to learn more about her family...
The Waiting Game
Dan and Matilda both provided their saliva samples and mailed the kits the following day. Matilda was looking forward to her results, but Dan wasn't expecting anything out of the ordinary...
The Results Were In
About one month later, their results had been processed and were sent back. Matilda eagerly searched through her genetic relatives, since her mother was the only member of her immediate family to whom she was biologically related. That's when she noticed something strange.
Strange Coincidence
Matilda turned to Dan and said that it looked like she had a nearby relative with the same name as him. Dan wasn't too surprised since his name was relatively common. Then, he opened his own results...
Horrifying News
Dan's face fell as he browsed the page. Matilda asked him what was wrong, but all Dan could do was motion for her to come over and look at what he had found. That's when Matilda saw that her name was featured on his results page.
They Were Related
It was then that Matilda realized she and Dan were related in some way. The two began to panic. Determined to find out whether or not this was factual, Matilda decided to do some research about her father's side of the family.
She Learned the Truth
Matilda's digging led her to find out that someone had put together a genealogical report of her father's family that dated back to the 1500s. Based on their research, as well as the percentage of DNA that she and Dan shared, Matilda learned that she and Dan were second cousins, related through her paternal great-grandmother Katerina.
Their (Obvious) Fate
Clearly, Matilda and Dan couldn't stay together. The pair decided to end things amicably. Matilda later said that her ex was a "great guy" and that she still cared for him deeply, but thankfully, that didn't stop the couple from going their separate ways after this information came to light.
They Weren't the Only Ones
As it turns out, DNA testing kits have both torn people apart and brought them together. This was the case for two women working together at a Connecticut bar who learned something surprising thanks to 23andMe...
Coworkers and Best Friends
Julia Tinetti and Cassandra Madison met in 2013 while they were working at the Russian Lady Bar in New Haven, Connecticut. It wasn't long before Julia and Cassandra found out they had something in common—both women were born in and adopted from the Dominican Republic. Even more, interestingly, they both had a tattoo of the country's flag.
Growing Closer
After that discovery, the women hit it off, and a friendship developed naturally. They spent all their time together, going out for drinks and dinner whenever they could. They even started dressing alike.
The Papers Said It Wasn't True
Julia and Cassandra's coworkers began to comment on how they looked like sisters. However, when the ladies compared adoption papers, their documents didn't align. The papers said they were from two different cities with different last names, as well as different mothers.
They Began to Drift Apart
Despite the information they had been given, Julia and Cassandra knew that something was amiss. They felt a connection there. Even so, the two women began to drift. In 2015, Cassandra moved from Connecticut to Virginia Beach, Virginia, but she and Julia stayed friends on Facebook.
An Important Gift
Three years later, Cassandra's adoptive mother gave her a 23andMe DNA genetic testing kit from Christmas so that she could learn about her background in the Dominican Republic. Cassandra did not know that you could find relatives through the kit...
She Wasn't the Only One
Meanwhile, in Connecticut, Julia's childhood friend Molly was about to put together a missing piece of the puzzle. Molly had been adopted from the Dominican Republic as well, and her adoptive mother was close with Julia's adoptive mother. The girls grew up together in New Haven...
Were They Related?
Molly began comparing her own adoption paperwork to Julia and Cassandra's. Molly then discovered that she and Cassandra had the same last name and the same woman listed as their mother. She believed that they could be half-sisters...
Getting Closer
Molly and Julia were adopted on the same exact day in close proximity. Cassandra, Molly, and Julia believed that Molly's paperwork had been mixed up with Julia's back in the Dominican Republic. A DNA test revealed that Cassandra was Molly's third cousin...
She Needed Answers
DNA testing allowed Cassandra to get in contact with her biological father, who still lived in the Dominican Republic. Cassandra's biological mother had died of a heart attack in 2015. Cassandra traveled to the Dominican Republic, seeking answers from her birth father.
Would He Admit It?
When she arrived, Cassandra met her birth father and her siblings. Years earlier, Julia had told Cassandra that her birth family was impoverished and couldn't afford to take care of her, which is why they gave her up for adoption. Cassandra had to know if her father had given up Julia as a baby...
It Was Time
"He said, 'It was just a difficult time for your mom and I. So, I don't like to talk about it. I don't like to think about it,'" Cassandra recalled. When her father admitted that he did place a baby girl up for adoption, Cassandra knew it was time for Julia to take a DNA test.
They Were Sisters
Julia relented and took the DNA test, which came back in January of 2021. The results proved that Julia and Cassandra were, in fact, biological sisters! Their parents had nine children together, but Julia and Cassandra were the only ones put up for adoption.
A Long Journey
Although Julia was over the moon about finding her biological family, the news was a lot to process for everyone involved. "This is the type of thing you see on TV," she said. "Finding my biological family just wasn't a thing for me. I grew up with a great family, so I just kind of left it to what it was."
Their Story Inspired Others
Julia stated that other adopted individuals have reached out to her and Cassandra about their amazing story. To Julia, that meant more than anything else. She and Cassandra agreed that it's important to remember not all stories like theirs have had a happy ending...
Rethinking the Family Tree
After 38 years of marriage, prolific writer and autism advocate Liane Kupferberg Carter relented to her son's constant begging and took a 23andMe test. The results sent the whole family on a tailspin when Liane discovered that she and her husband Marc were related. Thankfully, as third cousins, there was no real risk of intermarriage, but it was still quite a shock.
Dr. Donald Cline
23andMe played an integral role in the arrest of Dr. Donald Cline, a fertility doctor in Indianapolis who used his own sperm to impregnate women in the 1970s and '80s—even when the woman requested him to use her husband's sperm rather than a donor's. Since 2014, two dozen children have found each other thanks to the DNA testing kit, bonding via a Facebook page.
A Long Time Coming
Aaron long didn't meet his girlfriend Jessica until 12 years after their daughter was born. Aaron had sold his sperm for money in the 1990s and discovered that he had various children after posting his results on 23andMe. Aaron's children included an 11-year-old girl named Alice who introduced him to her mother. Aaron and Jessica hit it off, and the rest is history.
Return from the Dead
Jenelle Rodriguez only knew that her biological father had died in a car accident before they could meet. However, after connecting with her father's niece via 23andMe, Jenelle learned that she had been given up for adoption shortly after she was born. Now Jenelle and her biological father Frank text every morning.