In a story that stretches over four decades, a Mother Reunited With Daughter after being separated in Chile during the brutal dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Edita Bizama, now 64, had given birth to her daughter, Adamary Garcia, in 1984, only to have her taken away just days later.
The Chilean authorities, during Pinochet’s regime, forcibly took as many as 20,000 children from their biological parents, often sending them abroad for adoption in an attempt to reduce child poverty while strengthening the regime’s ideological control.
Edita Bizama, who had no idea where her daughter had gone, kept the secret from her family for years, wondering if she would ever see her again. Now, after over 40 years, the long-awaited reunion has finally occurred, and it’s a testament to the resilience of love and the power of modern connections that have made this emotional moment possible.
A Broken Beginning
When Edita Bizama became pregnant with Adamary in 1984, she already had two young children and was facing a difficult situation.
Struggling with the instability of her personal life, Bizama considered adoption for the baby, encouraged by a persistent social worker who told her that she couldn’t raise three children without a stable home, job, or support system. Despite her initial doubts, the social worker’s persistence led Bizama to agree to a plan that would change her life forever.
However, this adoption was no ordinary case. A few days after Adamary was born, the newborn was taken away from Bizama’s arms. She was forced to part with her daughter, handed over to authorities and put on a bus to a distant office, far from her hometown.
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Bizama had no choice in the matter and was told that she could not raise her child. The emotional toll of that separation was immense, and for years, Bizama carried the pain of not knowing where her daughter had gone, or if she was alive.
'Non-stop laughs and tears': A mother-daughter reunion unfolds in Chile as a woman taken as an infant during the Pinochet era meets her birth mother https://t.co/YzHT8BD9Sj pic.twitter.com/38T20Xy3IK
— Reuters (@Reuters) February 26, 2025
To keep the trauma from overwhelming her, Bizama kept the secret from much of her family, carrying the heartbreak quietly. She had no means to find Adamary. But what Bizama didn’t know at the time was that Adamary would grow up, and one day, she would find her way back to her.
A Life in Limbo
Adamary Garcia, meanwhile, grew up in Florida, not knowing the full details of her origins. Adopted into a loving family, she knew from an early age that she was adopted, but had no information about her biological parents or how she had come to be in the U.S. She carried a sense of curiosity, but also a lingering emptiness, wondering about her roots and what happened to the family she had been separated from.
As Garcia grew older, she encountered moments where questions about her past took center stage. However, it wasn’t until a chance encounter with a news story about Tyler Graf, a Texas firefighter, that she began to actively search for answers.
Graf, who had learned that he too was one of the thousands of children forcibly taken during the dictatorship, founded an NGO called Connecting Roots to help reunite adoptees with their biological families in Chile. Graf’s initiative began to make waves, offering a beacon of hope to those separated by the brutalities of the dictatorship.
Garcia learned of Graf’s organization and decided to investigate the possibility of tracing her biological parents. Through Connecting Roots, her search began with the discovery of her sister’s birth certificate. A DNA test soon confirmed what she had longed to know: Edita Bizama was her biological mother.
The Emotional Reunion
In a moment that felt like a dream come true, Adamary Garcia was finally able to meet the woman who had given her life. The two women, separated by the violence of a past era, saw each other for the first time over Zoom, where Garcia was struck by the profound resemblance she shared with her mother and sisters.
Garcia spoke about the overwhelming feeling of looking into her mother’s eyes and realizing that she had finally found the woman she had been searching for all her life.
“We were all kind of looking at each other and not saying much,” Garcia recalled. “Looking at my mother’s eyes and saying, ‘this is the person that gave me life and, oh my God, I look so much like her.’”
The first meeting was a deeply emotional one, and the connection was undeniable. Garcia’s Puerto Rican Spanish, mixed with Miami idioms, contrasted with Bizama’s Chilean accent, but that did nothing to diminish the bond they shared.
The moment was surreal yet filled with an immense sense of joy and sorrow for the years lost. What followed was an in-person reunion at the airport, where emotions ran high, and the mother and daughter embraced, overwhelmed by the years of separation and the strength of their eventual reunion.
Garcia’s adoption story is not unique; Connecting Roots has helped facilitate several reunions between adoptees and their biological families. Graf, the founder of the organization, explained that the mission was far from political.
“The goal is more pragmatic than political,” he said. “We’re trying to reunite as many families as possible before it’s too late.” The urgency stems from the fact that many of the mothers who were separated from their children are getting older, and some have already passed away.
The reunion marks the beginning of a new chapter for Adamary Garcia and Edita Bizama, one filled with emotional healing and the chance to build a relationship that was once thought impossible. Garcia, now 41, is taking the time to learn more about her roots and integrate Chilean culture into her life.
From exploring Chilean slang to diving into the country’s cuisine, music, and customs, Garcia is embarking on a journey to reconnect with the land and family that were denied to her for so many years.
In addition to reconnecting with her biological mother, Garcia is also meeting her sisters, and the group is planning a trip through Patagonia, where they will share new experiences and bond as a family. This journey, marked by laughter, tears, and the forging of new relationships, is giving everyone involved a sense of closure and peace that was years in the making.
Reflecting on the journey, Garcia shared that the reunion has helped her find closure not only for herself but also for her mother and the rest of her family.
The trauma of the past is not easily erased, but it is in moments like these that the power of human connection shines through. “It’s been non-stop laughs and tears,” Garcia said. “I think this is a moment that helps everybody get closure on things that happened 40 years ago and at the same time begin to establish relationships that are going to last a lifetime.”
A Legacy of Strength and Resilience
The story of Edita Bizama and Adamary Garcia is a poignant reminder of the strength and resilience of the human spirit, even in the face of such deep loss. It speaks to the power of love, the importance of family, and the ways in which modern technology can bridge the gaps of history.
While the dark period of Pinochet’s dictatorship will always remain a painful chapter in Chile’s history, this reunion offers hope and a sense of healing to those who continue to search for answers and the families they were taken from.
As Connecting Roots continues its mission, countless others like Garcia will hopefully experience similar reunions, finding solace in the faces of their long-lost family members and reconnecting with their roots.
The road ahead may be filled with challenges, but it is also full of possibility, as families like Garcia’s begin to rebuild what was lost. In the end, this reunion is a testament to the idea that love, no matter how long separated, always finds a way back home.
let’s enjoy few years on earth with peace and happiness….✍🏼🙏