HOUSTON – Family is everything for Veronica Brown Rogers.
Adopted by a married couple in Conroe when she was just 2 days old, Rogers said she's always wanted to know more about her roots.
“My skin's always been darker," she said. "I always wanted to find that person that looked like me, and that ultimately was the drive for me to find out who or where I came from."
So she set out with a goal, armed only with just a few clues about her birth mother.
“My biological mom's name was Patsy. I was told she was Native American. She was short, had dark black hair. I know that she was fairly young -- in her 20s,” Rogers said of what her adopted parents told her about her birth mother.
And with even fewer details about her biological father, Rogers thought finding her birth parents would be nearly impossible.
“I knew from the very beginning he possibly didn't know about me,” she said.
So at the urging of a friend, Rogers turned to www.Ancestry.com to begin putting the pieces of her family puzzle together.
Crista Cowan, a family history researcher with Ancestry, said 20 billion historical records live on the site. Seven million people are included in the company's DNA database.
“We have a reference panel of people from regions all over the globe,” Cowan said. “We compare your DNA to that reference panel of people and that's how we create your DNA story and information about where in the world your DNA connects you to.”
[Click here to build your own family tree]
The connection for Rogers turned out to be a relative who also completed a DNA test, eventually ending part of her 32-year mystery.
“My first cousin tested, and when my first cousin tested, the miracle happens,” Rogers said.
Once Rogers found her first cousin, the pieces of the family tree began falling together. She discovered with certainty that one of five siblings -- all related to her first cousin -- had to be either her biological mother, or her biological father.
“Next thing you know, they were putting things together and they said, ‘OK, this is who you have to be with.’ I was shocked, you know? I was shaking, nervous,” Rogers said.
After eliminating four of the siblings, only one person remained.
“They narrowed it down to my dad," Rogers said. "My dad was in the Marines. He was in the Oklahoma-Texas area around that time (of conception)."
A DNA test confirmed it.
“I wasn't looking for my father. It just never crossed my mind when I was growing up," Rogers said. "I don't know why. I just never thought about it. DNA doesn't lie.”
Since they've united, the two speak daily and have formed a bond.
“He always wanted a daughter," Rogers said. "Always.”
She's also met most of her family on her father's side, including a brother who lives only 20 minutes from her.
“I think that knowing they were so open in wanting me, that's what made it," Rogers said. "I always wanted to know who I was a part of."
Rogers said she still hopes to find her birth mother. She's sharing an appeal online in hopes someone will be able to help them connect.
VIDEO: Rogers' appeal to find birth mother
KPRC2 News also spoke to our very own Frank Billingsley about his journey to find his biological family and his new book “Swabbed and Found.”
VIDEO: Billingsley's DNA journey and discovery
https://www.frankbillingsley.com/shop/swabbed-found
Other ancestry research resources: