He lived 54 years believing his dad died in WWII — until a DNA match revealed he was alive just hours away in Texas
Decades after learning of his dad's death, Huynh's father took to Ancestry.com.
A man always thought his dad, an American soldier from the Vietnam War, had died in World War II until, at 54 years old, he got on Ancestry.com and realized his father was alive and only miles away. His daughter, Kim Huynh (@heyitskimh), shared the story on Instagram on November 9.
Huynh said her father took the test to check if he had any relatives in the U.S, and was shocked to find his half-brother living only 6 hours away. She added a picture of her dad and his half-brother, and netizens could notice the striking resemblance between the two. For background, Huynh said her dad was born in January 1971 and grew up thinking his dad lost his life in the war. "In the 1990s, the US felt really bad for its involvement in the war. And so they said, if you can prove that you were born between those years, during the war, and if you looked remotely American at all, you were allowed to come to the US. So my mom, my dad, and I were granted a permanent resident card," Huynh explained. Life went on, and her father didn't want to dig into his past until his early 50s. That's when he got onto Ancestry.com and matched with his half-brother from his paternal side. Later, Huynh's dad discovered that his father was alive. He'd contracted malaria during the war, and everyone thought he was dead. But in reality, he was treated in a hospital, got better, and was sent to the US, where he had his second son in December 1971.
For more than 5 decades, Huynh's dad didn't bother to find out about his ancestry until his desire to connect to his lineage grew. There can be more than one reason for someone to take a DNA test and reconnect to their past. In fact, when a YouGov survey asked people who have taken an ancestry test, 59% said they wanted to learn about their heritage, 54% went in just for fun, 41% to learn about health risks, and 22% to connect with family members, among other reasons.
In a Part 3 video uploaded on November 13, Huynh showed her father meeting his half-brother's family. She wrote, "My dad was soooo nervous but so so so excited! I’m so thrilled we made this happen and I can’t wait to share more with you all! We still have a lot of unanswered questions and my dad’s dad isn’t quite convinced yet…" @doctorjonpaul commented asking, "Ooohhh this is his half brotherrr! Got it. Has he met his dad?" to which Huynh answered, "He has not!!!" In Part 4, Huynh mentions, "We got so lucky," referring to the warm treatment they received from her half-uncle and his wife. "New white uncle" wanted a second opinion on the DNA results, so they went ahead and returned with a 99.99% match. Huynh's granddad was sceptical when they approached him with the information, saying he wasn't in Vietnam when Huynh's dad was born. So, curious, she relayed the conversation to her father, who simply said, "Oh. That's not my real birthday." Now they're on a hunt for a consistent and accurate timeline of events.
Meanwhile, reacting to Huynh's father's story, @kaitlynlkelly commented, "What a story! Praying that it's a life-changing experience for you all!" Even Ancestry.com itself wrote (@ancestry), "How amazing, Kim! We are thrilled to hear that you and your dad have been able to make these connections and can only imagine how special this meeting must have been for everyone involved. We truly wish you all the best as you get to know your newfound family, and thank you so much for sharing this journey with us!" @laurendonovanlee said, "Oh my gosh, this is WILD! What an amazing plot twist for your family!"
@lkhanh_le shared, "My uncle found his biological father a couple of years back, and when they FaceTimed, they looked and laughed the same, but my uncle didn't want to meet him and establish a relationship even though his biological dad really wanted to meet him and integrate him into his family. He tells me sometimes he drives around his dad's neighborhood and spies on him from afar, just having that feeling of what could have been. It makes me cry every time he brings it up. He's so Viet through and through, though he said his reason was there would be nothing in common other than blood. I hope yours is different."
You can follow Kim Huynh (@heyitskimh) on Instagram for lifestyle content.
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