Mother love is a two-way street

Lena Pierce was only 13 when she had her first baby. Since Lena was a ward of the state in Utica, New York, her baby, later named Betty, was put up for closed adoption to a family in Long Island. Betty grew up on Long Island without any siblings. Her adoptive mother died when Betty was 21, and her adoptive father died a few years later.

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For the next 50 years, Betty searched for her birth mother, with no results until Betty's 32-year-old granddaughter helped her search online. Betty quickly learned her mother is 96 years old and living in a nursing home in Hallstead, Pennsylvania. Once Betty tracked down Lena, she called Lena's daughter and planned a reunion. One plane-ride later, mother and daughter were tearfully reunited. Betty learned she is not an "only child" after all. She has two brothers and four sisters. "I've been on my own all this time," she said, "but not anymore"