A woman who never knew growing up she had a long lost sister has tracked down her sibling, after being separated more than 50 years ago.
Diane Ward, 58, was put up for adoption when she was a baby in the US and moved to the UK in 1999 with her husband Colin.
Curious about her roots in the States she bought herself a MyHeritage DNA kit which eventually showed she had a second cousin who she messaged online.
After their initial greeting Diane, from Devon, was astonished to find out she had a sister, who she has now tracked down in Arkansas.
They have now had their first meeting, over Zoom.
Diane said: "When I spoke to her on Zoom for the first time it was just an incredible feeling - it was like I found my other leg.
“When I bought the kit I just thought it would be kinda cool to see if I was a quarter German or there was some Irish blood in me.
"I didn't even know of her existence. My mum had me at 18 and I was given to an adopted family.
"I only had her first name to go on, which was fairly common so it was really tricky to go from there.
"But throughout my life I have always tried to find out more information."
Despite not knowing of each other's existences, the pair grew up near each other in Michigan.
They share plenty in common- including that they were both put up for adoption by their biological mum.
Next month, Diane will make the 5,000-mile journey to North Carolina, where Mary has rented a beach house, for a long-anticipated meeting and both sisters are over the moon.
She added: "[When we chatted on Zoom] It was love at first sight. We just clicked and bounced off each other straight away.
“Her husband overheard me and said we were very similar. He turned to her and said 'yep, that's your sister.
"We both have a sarcastic, dark sense of humour.
"I'm just so thankful I bought the kit. Without it I wouldn't have known.
"I'm so excited to see Mary next month.
"We're just going to hit the beach, catch a tan and put the world to rights."
