Gary Barnes was patiently waiting at an arrival gate. He was nervous and excited because he will meet his only child for the first time.
Sometimes, life can give you amazing surprises that you don’t expect. Surprises that you often see in movies can actually happen in real life.
A while back, Gary Barnes’ story went viral. He was 78 at that time when he shared his story of how fate brought him and his daughter together.
Gary Barnes
Barnes is now living his dream life. He owns a property in Grass Valley where he can relax and enjoy the stunning mountain scenery. Fifty years ago, Gary was a Vietnam Veteran and his service was exceptional!
He even earned medals and awards.
During his time in Vietnam, he also frequently visited the Philippines. According to his interview with CBS, he thought that the women there were beautiful, and he had found someone to be with during his stay. Sadly, they lost communication, and they went on with their lives.
Gary even vowed not to have kids but now that he’s an older man, he felt that something was missing in his life.
Little did he know that soon, he’ll meet someone who will complete him.
Olivia Robles
Olivia Robles was born in 1967. At the young age of just six years old, she, her mother, and her stepdad decided to permanently move to the U.S.
When Olivia was 10 years old, she found out that her stepdad wasn’t her biological father. Like any child, she wanted to know the name of her real father.
Thanks to technology, Olivia took the chance of submitting her DNA sample to a popular website called Ancestry.com.
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Fast forward to last year, Diana Barnes, Gary’s cousin, also submitted her sample to the same website. As fate would have it, Olivia was soon notified that the system found a close match between the two DNA data. Soon, Olivia decided to reach out to Diana. She wasn’t really sure what to expect but she was hopeful.
In Olivia’s heart, she knew she was one step closer to finding out her biological father.
Father and daughter
Diana told Olivia that her cousin, Gary, had been traveling to the Philippines during 1966 while he was serving the Navy.
Olivia’s heart pounded, she had a strong feeling that she was closer to the truth.
“The timeline fit together,” Robles said to The Union. “And then Diana sent me a picture of him. My youngest son has such a resemblance to him that I thought, ‘He has to be my father.’”
Robles decided to contact Gary Barnes.
“I was really nervous at first,” she said in her interview. “I didn’t know how he would react.”
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However, all her worries faded when she was able to talk to him. According to her, she felt “at ease and comfortable. It was like I’d known him all these years.”
Gary finally decided to submit his DNA sample to the same website and at last, everything was confirmed.
Gary Barnes is Olivia Robles’ biological father.
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It was a beautiful scene when Olivia walked into that gate and where Gary hugged his daughter for the first time. They didn’t waste any time and immediately bonded along with Gary’s wife, Caryl.
What’s amazing is that Gary didn’t just have a daughter; he now has three grandsons and one great-grandson. Gary’s grandsons are also part of the military just like their grandfather.
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What a beautiful story of fate, hope, and love.
Gary and Olivia made sure that they didn’t waste any time. They would spend important occasions together as well as talk on the phone every single day.
Olivia found her dad and Gary has found his missing piece. What a lovely story! Don’t forget to share this with your family and friends!
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