March 2020 | Vol. 20 Iss. 03
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AGAINST THE ODDS, A DAUGHTER REUNITES WITH HER MOTHER, A HEMISPHERE AWAY
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By Shaun Delliskave | s.delliskave@mycityjournals.com
T
hey wondered what had become of one another after an unwed mother in South Korea gave her daughter up for adoption over four decades ago. The baby was adopted by the Cook family of Murray and grew up to work for a criminal defense law firm and have three kids of her own. That daughter, Carrie Pace, made it her mission to reunite with her birth mother after visiting South Korea in October 2016. Now, after an unbelievable quest and a few miracles, Pace has reunited with her mother. “I visited Korea for the first time since my birth. Being in my birthplace, in Seoul, for the first time, I was overwhelmed with love for the culture, the people, the food, the language— all that I had lost most of my life,” Pace said. “I was most overwhelmed longing for answers. After that trip, I immediately got on my laptop and started the search of a lifetime—I started searching for my birth mother.” Korean culture in the 1970s frowned on unwed mothers. Women could face being eschewed or ostracized in society with little hope of a good life for the mother or the daughter. “My birth mother was 22 years old when she was pregnant with me. She was young, and she was not married. In South Korea, that goes against their culture. It is basically cultural dishonor,” Pace said. “The midwife hospital I was born at arranged my adoption. My birth mother said she heard me crying all night and it was the most painful sound she had ever heard. She said there are not enough tears for the guilt Carrie Pace was adopted from Korea as a newborn infant. (Photo courContinued page 8
Local Postal Customer ECRWSS
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Mayor’s State of the City Address recaps busy year
Scan Here: Interactive online edition with more photos.
tesy Carrie Pace)
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Murray District students take to the stage this spring
Carrie Pace (left) found her Korean birth mother (right) after 40 years. (Photo courtesy Carrie Pace)
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Food competitions take the cake
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