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| Lee Eung-sun cries during a video chat session in Seoul, Oct. 15, with her long-lost daughter, who went missing 44 years ago at Namdaemun Market in Seoul and was later adopted by an American couple. Yonhap |
By Kim Se-jeong
In June 1976, Lee Eung-sun's three-year-old daughter went missing in a crowded market in Seoul. Last week, the mother, now 78, was reunited through a video chat with her long-lost daughter, now 47 and residing in the U.S., after she was adopted by an American couple.
The happy, yet tearful reunion session, which was organized by the National Police Agency (NPA), received extensive media coverage by local media outlets in Korea. The lost daughter's two siblings were also present.
"I can't describe how happy I am. I feel like dancing all the time. Sleepless nights thick with grief are gone now. I am so happy and can't wait to see her in person," Lee told The Korea Times after the first video reunion.
The daughter, Yoon Sang-ae, went missing at Namdaemun Market in Seoul in 1976 while she was out with her grandmother ― Yoon was renamed Denise McCarty after her adoption.
"My mom who was visiting from the countryside lost her sense of direction in the busy city for a few seconds," Lee said. "Sang-ae was wearing a sleeveless flower dress."
The family's despair was strong.
"My husband stopped talking to me after she went missing. The very last sentence he spoke was 'she was the dearest.'" Her husband died 20 years ago as a result of heavy drinking.
The family tried everything they could to find the daughter.
"We requested a police search. We made flyers with her photo and gave them out at the market. We appeared on a TV show that was helping people finding lost family members. We also visited many orphanages in Seoul to look for her," Lee said.
Meanwhile, the lost daughter turned up in Suwon ― it's not known how she arrived there from Seoul by subway ― and went to the U.S. after being adopted in December 1976.
Lee even opened a clothing store at the market hoping she would return to where she had gone missing, and her son also opened a lottery ticket shop.
At times when Lee was losing hope, she remembered what a fortune-teller said: "The daughter has gone very far, but is alive."
In 2017, she went to the police and had a DNA sample taken. "People around me recommended I try the DNA search," Lee said.
Earlier this year, she got a call from the police saying they found a person in the U.S. whose DNA was a 99 percent match with hers. Her daughter had visited Korea a few years ago and had a DNA sample taken by a local NGO.
To confirm the match, Yoon gave a sample at the Korean Consulate General Office in Boston which was sent to the National Forensic Service that affirmed the relationship Sept. 25.
The two are is planning to meet in Korea next spring and Yoon's foster parents are also expected to come.
"I can't be more thankful to her parents in the U.S. who raised her well. I can't wait to meet them in person and thank them, Lee" said.
Asked about the potential language barrier, she answered: "Sang-ae said she is learning Korean. Her twin sister here is also learning English to better communicate with her sister. So, things will be fine."
Lee also thanked people for support.
"I've been getting so many calls all over and outside Korea. So many people visited my shop in Namdaemun to congratulate me. People stopped me on the street to say congratulations. Motorcycles and cars stopped in front of me to say congratulations. My family is overwhelmed by the support shown by people and we're deeply thankful."
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