For three decades, Lorraine Butler had been looking for the son snatched from her as a baby.
Lorraine Butler can’t wipe the smile off her face as she watches her two adult sons tease each other. Most mums grow tired of telling their kids to be nice to each other, but Lorraine is happy to let the banter flow.
This is the first time in 30 years the brothers, Shane and Troy, have met. And it’s the first time Lorraine has seen her younger son Troy since he was snatched from her arms at two weeks old. The family’s emotional reunion comes after years of searching, with success finally coming via social networking site Facebook.
“As soon as I saw him walking across the tarmac I knew which one was my Troy,” says a tearful Lorraine. “At last I’ve got my two boys back together. The gaping hole I have had in my heart all these years has been filled.”
The saga began 40 years ago when Lorraine, aged 18, married a South African man and moved to his home country. Lorraine was elated when Shane was born and, two years later, she fell pregnant again. But the joy soon turned to devastation when she discovered her husband had been hiding another family from her. When she confronted him, Lorraine recalls her husband’s harsh words: “Go upstairs, get Shane and get out.”
“He told me he never wanted to see me again,” says Lorraine, who stayed with friends until she gave birth to Troy. “Even after the trauma I’d been through, when I had Troy I was just so happy to have my two beautiful boys. But [my husband] was far from finished with me.”
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