Mom Told Baby Died at Birth, Discovers Truth Nearly 40 Years Later
In 1983, Hilda del Carmen Quezada of Chile, experienced a tragedy that no mother should go through. She had prematurely given birth to a baby boy 3 months early, who she had named Sergio. When Quezada went to visit her baby boy, he was nowhere to be found.
It was there that the doctor informed her that her son had passed away. When a heartbroken Quezada asked, her pleas to see her newborn baby’s body was denied.
Almost 40 years later, Quezada received a phone call from Hijos y Madres del Silencio in May 2021 that would forever change her life. The organization informed Quezada that her son was not dead, but alive.
At that moment, she found out that her son, along with other children, were part of an international trafficking network that was world-wide with members including hospital personnel, the Chilean government, and the Catholic Church back in the 70s and 80s, as reported by ABC News’ “Good Morning America.”
“I couldn’t digest the information,” Quezada told The New York Times. “I couldn’t grasp what was happening. Every muscle in my body tightened up and squeezed the tears in my eyes. I felt like I had been hit by a bat and was seeing stars.”
This news also came as a shock to Tyler Graf of Houston, Texas. Graf, 38, who knew that he was adopted, was told that his mother had given him up, due to being unfit to raise him since she had other children and little money.
“I never thought that any excuse would be good enough,” Graf said. “I carried that animosity, that chip on my shoulder, my whole life.”
Knowing the truth, Quezada boarded her first flight to head to Houston to see the son that for almost 40 years she believed had passed away during childbirth.
“It was the closest hug,” Graf said. “They just left us alone in each other’s arms and we hugged and she kissed me and we just stood there crying.”
Since their first meeting, Graf has visited Chile to see his mother and meet siblings he never knew he had.
“We’re making up for 38 years of lost time,” Graf explained. “Time we can’t get back.”
