How Did He Find Me? - an Adoption Story: A Memoir

By Leona Casey Signor

This is the story of a small-town girl raised in a secure, happy Catholic home.

Following in the footsteps of two great-aunts, she entered the convent at an early age. The semicloistered community proved to be a challenge to her health. She was forced to return home in order to heal from her ordeal in an overwhelming and strict environment. Upon returning home, she was ill-prepared to face life in the outside world.

Its temptations proved to be too much for her. When she met a handsome young air force officer, she fell in love. As a result of this mating, she became pregnant. As she tells her young lover of her pregnancy, he declares, Im sterile.

These hurtful words impact her life and that of her baby boy. She has caused a family scandal and cannot count on her family for support.

She struggles to care for her baby, as she has no working skills and no money. After a ten-month struggle to care for her baby, the only solution is to put him up for adoption.

This book documents the journey taken by this author and her son in finding each other.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Sep 15, 2016
• ISBN: 9781532004421

Leona Casey Signor

The author is a retired registered nurse, who started her career at Mass General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, in the early 1960s. She is a widow with two sons, a daughter, and eight grandchildren and is currently residing in Saratoga Springs, New York. Leona was very active in the working class section of Saratoga Springs, New York. In her book Dublin Revisited- Stories of the West Side Saratoga Springs, New York she documents the lives of this area of the city. In her retirement, she enjoys her grandchildren and supports them in their lives. She also is an avid reader of a variety of books.

Book preview

HOW DID HE

FIND ME?

-AN ADOPTION STORY

A Memoir

LEONA CASEY SIGNOR

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HOW DID HE FIND ME? -AN ADOPTION STORY

A MEMOIR

Copyright © 2016 Leona Casey-Signor.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-5320-0441-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5320-0442-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016912907

iUniverse rev. date: 09/08/2016

CONTENTS

Chapter I Life Changing Call

Chapter II A Son Meets His Dad

Chapter III The Signors and The Melonis Meet

Chapter IV Trip To Bountiful, Utah

Chapter V Who Is Michael’s Mother – Childhood and The Convent

Chapter VI The Meeting, Lee and Mickey

Chapter VII The Pregnancy

Chapter VIII The Adoption

Chapter IX New Career

Chapter X Starting a New Life

Chapter XI A Message

CHAPTER I

Life Changing Call

IS THIS LEONA CASEY SIGNOR? Yes. This is Pat Rutherford from Worldwide Tracers Incorporated. I have a young man here who is looking for his mother. He found me? How did he do that? Catholic Charities closed their doors to me, closed their records. The man at the end of the phone was very pleasant, very engaging, complimenting me, saying how courageous I had been. This young man is 4o years old and is married to Mary. They have a son, Ryan and two daughters, Teresa and Taralyn. They live in Bountiful, Utah.

How could this man have birth records opened when each try had failed.? There are ways "said. Pat Rutherford.

Everything had been tried, everything.! Nephew Billie being a computer whiz, googled on the internet to no avail. At the time a computer was not one of my worldly possessions Thwarted at every turn, giving up was the only alternative to maintaining my sanity. It was always in the back of my mind that there would someday be a reunion with, my first born son, the son that had been surrendered to adoption.

How well is that day recalled, the day that would alter both of our