MISSING PEOPLE AND UNKNOWN DNA MATCHES

Do you have an unknown DNA match on your list?  Is there a family member you've been searching for but still can't find?  Let's add them to my list below!  For my final post of 2023, I decided to put this list online hoping someone may see it and have some valuable information.  Maybe we can find the missing pieces to your family puzzle.  This is something I deal with daily.  I often find who I'm looking for, but sometimes people remain a mystery a long time.  Family members sometimes spend years searching for a loved one.  If you're out there, we'll find you!

As I've mentioned in previous posts, a big problem with people who use genealogy sites is, they stop checking their messages once their accounts expire.  Yes, you can still check messages even with an expired account.  They also don't bother to ever fill out the profile page so we can't figure out who they are.  These sites don't put enough emphisis on the importance of filling out a profile and leaving contact information or at least something to let others know a few details about yourself.

Sometimes I actually can find the person you're looking for, but am unable to make contact.  Facebook used to be a great way to find people and make a connection.  Now, if you're not on someone's friends list, they may never see your message.  Facebook isn't as widely used as it once was either.  People-search-sites may have phone numbers and email addresses, but they are often outdated emails and old land-line numbers.

Below is a list of some people I have yet to find.  There's not a lot of information to go on here, but it's a start.  If you have someone you would like to add to this list, let me know.  I'd be happy to add them.  I also respect people's privacy.  If you're one of these missing people and don't want to be found, I'll certainly remove you from the list.

Joann Pinto

Marc Boucher has a half sister DNA match to a woman named Joann Pinto.  Joann included no information on her 23 and Me profile.  We suspect Joann is between 70 and 80 years old and was very likely adopted.  She would probably have been born in Illinois, New York, or New Jersey.  Marc has attempted to contact over one hundred people named Joann Pinto but has had no luck so far.  If you're out there Joann, we are looking for you.

Paula Dillenbeck

After an insane DNA analysis, I was able to piece together the family of Paula Dillenbeck.  We have uncovered a whole lot of information but Paula still has not been found.  She has been missing since the 1990s.  Her daughter is looking for her.  Paula is from upstate New York and was born in 1957.  She also had the married names Haywood and Ellsworth.  She may have married at least once after those two, (last name unknown).  Paula may be living in Auburn, New York.  She has also lived in Cortland and Syracuse.

Amanda Strykul

Sherri Strykul's daughter, Amanda, was born September 4th, 1985 in Alexandria, Virginia.  She was given up for adoption.  Sherri is seriously ill and would like to find her daughter.  Amanda's name was likely changed if she was adopted.  If you were born on that date and don't know who your bio family is, let us know.  You might be who we're looking for.

Janice Saunders

Janice is an unknown DNA match to a woman I was helping named Brittany.  Brittany's grandfather is unknown, but Janice is somehow related to him.  Janice is African American and may have lived in New York.  She may also be related to a Gwendolyn McNair Saunders.  She definitely has some connection to a McNair family who once lived in North Carolina.  Who are you Janice?

Brenda Joyce Basnight Armstrong

After finding the grandparents for a woman named Sherry, it was discovered that her grandmother had several children who were given up for adoption.  Some of these adoptions were known to the family, but a DNA match made it clear there was another child no one knew about.  We have yet to make contact with her.  It is believed that Brenda was adopted by the Basnight family.  Her name was later changed to Armstrong when her adopted mother remarried.  She was born in 1949.  Brenda, you have a niece who is looking for you.

The Son of Charles Long

Charles was a birth parent I found a couple years ago.  The DNA matches indicate that he also had a son (name unknown).  That son had a daughter who never knew who her bio father was.  We now know he was the son of Charles Long.  Charles died in a car accident in 1989 in Flint, Michigan.  We suspect Charles' son was born around 1960 in Michigan.

Edith Whitmore (Franklin)

Edith was probably born in the early to mid 1950s in Newark New Jersey.  Her mother was Dorothy Grace Curtin.  All of Dorothy's children were put in an orphanage but later reunited, except for Edith.  Her whereabouts are unknown.  It is possible Edith may have had a different father with the last name Franklin.  She may have been Edith Franklin when she was an orphan.  The father of her siblings was Gustave Whitmore.  I haven't done much research on Edith yet, but family members are looking for her.

Next, find out why it's a smart decision to let a genealogist help you.