Chicago woman, 96-year-old father to share Christmas together in emotional reunion

A Chicago woman is preparing to celebrate Christmas in her home with her 96-year-old father, decades after she was put up for adoption.

Cynthia Bednarz believed she would never meet her biological father.

“I never thought in a million years he was alive,” Bednarz told NBC Chicago.

Adopted at a young age, Bednarz knew that her birth mother was white and her birth father was Black, with curiosity about her roots growing deeper as she got older.

“I really wanted to start searching and find where I came from biologically,” Bednarz said.

She went on to hire a private investigator to search for her birth mother, later learning that she passed away.

Questions regarding her father remained unanswered. Though Bednarz knew his name was Willie C. Cross, she didn't know much else about his life.

Bednarz took a 23andme DNA test and later received a message asking if she had any additional information, as that person was looking to build a family tree.

“They knew Cross' in Detroit, so they reached out to people in Detroit,” she said.

Thanks to a relative, the pieces of the puzzle soon came together, with Bednarz receiving a Facebook message from a biological niece.

“I found her on Facebook and in-boxed her, and I said I’m here with my grandfather and he would like to meet you,” niece Atisi Riddle said.

Bednarz was left stunned by the news.

"I called my daughter and said, 'Let's go meet your granddad - let's go meet my dad,'" Bednarz said.

Bednarza and her father both recall the day they finally got to meet in-person.

“They barely opened the door. We just gave each other a big hug – it was just amazing,” she said.

A paternity test proved Cross is Bednarz's father.

“It was a beautiful day…words cannot even describe it. I will never forget it,” Cross said. “She is one of us. She’s family.”

Now at the age of 96, he’s making memories with the daughter he never knew. Without hesitation, Bednarz and her family were accepted into their new family.

“She is a beautiful sister …she is the sister I always wanted, and I could not ask for a better one,” Felisa Cross, Cynthia’s sister, said.