Mother, daughter reunite nearly 50 years later

A US family has been reunited some 49 years later. The mother had been falsely told that her daughter had died at the hospital just hours after being born.

Gospel singer Zella Jackson Price, who lives in the suburb of Olivette in St Louis, in the US state of Missouri, said she was told 49 years ago that her daughter had died in a hospital hours after delivery, reported NY Daily News.

But last Thursday, Ms Price met that very alive daughter, Ms Melanie Diane Gilmore.

“There’s nothing greater. There’s nothing greater than this. Nothing,” Ms Price told local TV broadcaster KTVI.

When Ms Price gave birth at Homer G. Phillips Hospital, she was told shortly after delivery that the infant had died.

But her baby girl was actually alive and had been adopted by another family, reported UK’s Daily Mail.

Ms Price said the hospital had given her vague details about the death and she said she was told the baby’s twin had died too, even though she had only had a single-child birth.

The hospital had a big maternity ward, she said, adding that she had seen women nursing the wrong babies while she was there.

Ms Gilmore’s foster parents have died, but Ms Price said she was glad her daughter grew up in a good home.

Ms Gilmore lost her hearing when she was three years old after a childhood illness.

She said meeting her biological mother was something she has wanted for a long time. Her biological father is dead.

Ms Gilmore’s children had used the Internet and found Ms Price. DNA testing confirmed that the two are related.

The family plans to hire a lawyer to investigate the incident.

This article was first published on April 13, 2015.
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