Tennessee woman went to get a driver's license and ended up finding her biological family

Imagine living almost 50 years before you find out your biological family is not who you thought they were.

That's a reality for Anna Carlson, a 47-year-old Oakland resident.

"I'm sort of still in shock," she said.

After moving from Minnesota to Tennessee in 2021, Carlson went to get a Tennessee driver's license. The Department of Motor Vehicles told Carlson her birth certificate from the Philippines could not be accepted and that she should apply for a passport, which could be used to get a license.

After applying for a passport, the government in December 2021 requested a paternal DNA test from Carlson and the man she thought was her biological father. Following some hesitation, her dad agreed, and by April the test results came back only for them to realize the hard truth.

"He wasn't my biological father," Carlson said. "It was incredibly devastating for me and him, which he did not know. He did not want to know the results and said that I was his, that's what he's been told since I was a week old."

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'I just did not know who I was'

The discovery sent Carlson into a whirlwind. A friend suggested trying 23andMe, which offers DNA testing and can help find genetic relatives — all by sending in a tube filled with spit.

Carlson agreed to do the DNA test.

"At that point I just did not know who I was," she said. "I knew it was a longshot finding relatives, but if I can't do that at least I could find my ancestry."

In May, Carlson received her 23andMe results, which led her to a first cousin in Georgia. From there, her cousin's family helped her find her biological dad and sister. Filled with anxiety, Carlson messaged whom she believed were her biological father and sister on Facebook.

Her sister, Elizabeth Ann Smith, responded.

"At first I didn't know what to think," said Smith, who lives in Dublin, Georgia. "But, for me it was like an almost instant connection. It was like a piece of my heart that was missing was back in place."

'There's no doubt she's my sister'

Smith, 48, said she "Facebook stalked" her sister, and after pulling up a photo of Carlson laughing she "almost threw the phone at (her) husband."

"We look just alike," Smith said. "There's no doubt she's my sister."

After some introductory messages, Smith and Carlson became hooked on each other. The sisters spoke over the phone almost every day, discovering similarities between themselves including their love for Twizzlers, same curly hairstyles in the 1990s and even wearing the same Hardee's uniform as young adults.

Smith teaches first graders at a primary school and Carlson takes care of her family as a stay-at-home parent. Carlson stands at 5-foot-2-inches while Smith, although older, is 4-foot-11-inches.

Something they did not have in common was their connection to the sisters' biological father, James Fincher.

'A little bit of a shock'

"It was a little bit of a shock when I first heard the news," Fincher, 72, said. "In the back of my mind I knew it was a possibility."

Fincher, a retired U.S. Air Force airman, was stationed in the Philippines from 1972 to 1976 and had a relationship with Smith and Carlson's mother. Fincher broke off the relationship with their mother and took custody of Smith right after she was born in 1974 and raised her.

With only rumors swirling around, Fincher did not know about Carlson and returned to the U.S. in 1976, months after Carlson was born.

"I was not directly aware of her," he said. "I had heard stories from a friend that the mother had another girl and that the baby looked a lot like Elizabeth. Just stories but I was never able to follow up on it."

Fast-forward to 2022, and the voice in the back of Fincher's head was right. Carlson was alive and his daughter.

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'The best hug of my entire life'

After about a month of coordinating a visit, Carlson, along with her husband and kids, drove to Dublin, Georgia, on July 29 and met Fincher and Smith for the first time.

Before the car even stopped, Carlson jumped out and ran to Smith who was waiting for her at the front door of their father's home. Fincher patiently waited on the porch for his turn to hug Carlson and look her in the eye.

"I just felt like the circle had been completed, I felt complete," he said. "I had a feeling of closure, the unknowing all this time, having the possibility in the back of my head, and having it confirmed was just unreal. I was just happy."

Carlson and Smith felt the same.

"I was raised as a single child and I've always wanted siblings, and I thought I was at the point where I'm not going to have any," Carlson said. "Then to realize I've got a full sister, a half-sister and two half-brothers, it's just I've got this whole other family now that's welcomed me with open arms and it's been pretty amazing."

Smith said she held onto Carlson for "what seemed like hours" through tears and laughter. Smith said it was "the best hug of my entire life."

Carlson also met her half-siblings as well as Fincher's wife and mother.

'It's been a wild, wild year'

Unlike Carlson who found out this year about her biological family, Smith had known about the possibility of a full-blooded sister for about 33 years.

Smith said at 15 years old she found her birth certificate, which has her biological mother's name on it and the woman was someone she had never heard of. After speaking with her dad and adoptive mom, whom she thought was her biological mom, she was told about the rumors of Carlson but could not prove them.

Until now.

Carlson said her family now plans to move closer to her father and sister in Georgia to make up for missed time. Until then, the sisters pinky promised to speak as often as they can and videocall every week. Carlson and her family will also visit Fincher and Smith for Thanksgiving.

"I can see myself in them that throughout the years I could never see myself in my adoptive family, but I didn't realize why," Carlson said. "Now I do, and it's been a wild, wild year."

Carlson said her adoptive father supports the journey in meeting her biological family but reminds her that he raised her and she's his kid.

As for their biological mother, Smith and Carlson recently found her through an old military book and connected with her on social media.

The sisters said their mom lives in Maryland and seemed happy to hear from them. They hope to meet her one day, but for now no definitive plans are in place.

"It's been new things constantly this year," Carlson said. "It's been pretty amazing, I'm just so overjoyed."

Dima Amro covers the suburbs for The Commercial Appeal and can be reached at Dima.Amro@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @AmroDima.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: How 23andMe helped Tennessee woman find her biological family