Perth woman launches Facebook plea to locate her daughter’s Gold Coast father
A mother has harnessed the power of social media and launched a passionate and heartfelt plea to the public to assist her in locating her daughter’s father.
The post made by the single mother has since gone viral.
For 13 years Perth resident Kerryn-Leigh has dreamt about finding the father of her teen daughter, Imi, and now she says she is 'overwhelmed' with the response she has received.
The mother became increasingly convinced that Facebook was the solution to solving the mystery of who was the biological father to her only child.
So in a brave bid the 52-year-old jewellery designer put out a call to all on social media for the mysterious Gold Coast man she had a brief fling with resulting in her pregnancy.
The pair met while they were both on holiday in Queenstown, New Zealand, 13 years and nine months ago.
“Because I had a first name only, I just felt disempowered,” she told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
“One day a friend of mine came over … she said that’s a beautiful story, I think you should try to find him … Facebook is pretty powerful.
“Social media wasn’t like it is now. Thirteen years ago I didn’t have a computer.”
The mother of one has not revealed her surname and said the man known only as Rodney was about 175cm tall, fit, had long lightly coloured hair (possibly with a red tinge) and a fair complexion.
New Zealand-born Kerryn-Leigh said Rodney was on a snowboarding holiday in Queenstown when they had a the brief fling.
She also thinks the mystery man would probably be in his mid-to-late forties.
“This was a really quick union, it wasn’t a long thing. He was there for three days snowboarding with a couple of friends and we met at that time,” she told the Gold Coast Bulletin.
“I was shocked (when I discovered I was pregnant) … I was a mess because it wasn’t something I’d planned on.
“He looked like a surfer … Long hair past his shoulders, kind of scruffy.”
In the post the mother has expressed strongly that she didn’t expect anything from the father of her daughter but said Imi had long asked questions about Rodney and loved the idea of the pair having a relationship.
Kerryn-Leigh wasn't going to tell her daughter – "I didn't want to get her hopes up" – but the post started to go viral she expressed to the WA Today.
"She's a bit excited ... She is embracing it all. If nothing comes of it, she knows I tried.
"All we really want is a picture of her dad. Then she's actually got a real dad," Kerryn-Leigh said.
Since originally posting the message the mother has been inundated with hundreds of messages from the public offering leads, assistance and most importantly encouragement.
“I actually didn’t tell her (Imi) I was doing this, I didn’t tell a soul – not even my mum or my sister,” the mother confessed.
“A while ago I went through all the Rodneys in Queensland on Facebook and asked about 10 people.”
The mother is also mentioned in the post that Rodney was travelling with two friends both named John, who lived and worked in Brisbane.
Imi is about to celebrate her 13th birthday.
News break – April 29
