Man abandoned as a baby at airport finds birth parents 33 years later
A man who was abandoned at an airport as a baby 33 years ago has finally found his parents.
Steve Hydes, who was known as “Gatwick Gary” after the airport’s teddy bear mascot in England’s southeast, had spent 15 years trying to find his family.
Through the help of genealogists, who used DNA samples, he was able to identify his parents.
Mr Hydes was ten days old when he was discovered by a duty-free sales assistant, Beryl Wright, at the South Terminal of Gatwick Airport, on April 10, 1986.
He was wrapped in a tartan shawl and dressed in two baby onesies.
He was eventually fostered before being adopted into a family and grew up with three sisters.
However, Mr Hydes discovered that his mother had passed away before he could meet her. He added for this reason he may never know exactly what happened and why.
Mr Hydes has made contact with his father and his siblings, who had no idea he existed.
Before his search for his parents ended, he said he bared no ill-will and is not angry about what happened.
Mr Hydes still has the Gatwick Gary bear given to him by staff after he was discovered there.
“As you can imagine this is quite a sensitive issue to all involved and very new to us all, but I wanted to take this time to thank everyone for their continued support over the years,” he wrote on Facebook.
“The work the genealogists do is incredible and for years they have worked so hard and it is thanks to them they are solving cases like mine.
“More people are having their DNA tested every day and I hope this and my story can help raise awareness and prevent other babies from being abandoned.”
In January, a DNA test reunited a mum and a daughter who was given up for adoption after 52 years apart.
A Queensland woman recently met her family in Zimbabwe but the reunion left her with many questions.
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