A woman was left stunned after discovering she had 35 siblings she never knew about following her mum's startling confession on her deathbed. As Josephine Latimer, also known as Josie, said goodbye to her beloved mum, it was revealed that the man who raised her, Scott, wasn't her biological father. Scott had passed away at the age of 42, and eight years later, Josie's mum sadly suffered a stroke - leading to the confession.
"We knew she didn’t have long left. When I went to visit her, she took my hand and said my real dad was tall and older," Josie said. "Suddenly, I had a flashback of her saying the same thing when I was five. She said she used to take me to see him when I was a baby. I couldn't believe he knew about me. To think the man who'd raised me wasn’t my biological dad was overwhelming. I had to start thinking of him as my stepdad.".
Her mum, Annie explained that she had been conceived while she and Scott were on a break. Following her mum's admission, Josie, 69, set out to uncover the truth about her biological father using a DNA test. The results revealed that her genetic father was a man called John, who had passed away 30 years ago at the age of 84. However, Josie, from the US, then realised she had 35 siblings from her father's side she never knew about. "It’s surreal to talk about," Josie said. "I have a whopping 42 altogether. The DNA results led me to my nephews, which then led me to my cousin, who then revealed my actual father after my oldest sister on my mum’s side remembered who he was.".
She continued: "She didn’t tell me until I found out, though. And [apparently] she used to play with my siblings growing up; until I was born." Before her mum's confession, the cosmetics business owner had heard rumours during her childhood that the man who raised her wasn't her biological father. "When I was five, I could hear my parents arguing. Dad stormed off in a huff and mum said my real father was an older, tall, good-looking man," Josie shared.
But at such a young age, Josie didn't comprehend what was said. "Because I was only five, I didn’t understand what she meant. I didn’t think any more of it," Josie reflected. "I always felt closer to my mum, but dad was a good parent. He always said I was different, but I did think we had a special bond. When I was nine, he said he knew I wasn't his child, but I was as long as he was raising me. It went in one ear and out the other.".
Josie, the second youngest of her seven siblings on her mum’s side, found her unknown siblings from her dad's side on the DNA site and reached out to meet them. During a Zoom call, Josie discovered that they had grown up in the same neighbourhood, and she was welcomed with open arms into her extended family. She joyfully shared, "I was invited to their yearly family reunion. They’d been doing them for over 50 years, so I was nervous to be the newcomer. What if the rest of Dad’s family didn’t accept me?.
"But when I got there, they overwhelmed me with love. It was like I was the star of the show and I felt so lucky. Soon, I went to visit Ethel [Josie's eldest sister at age 99] at her home. When I walked in, her eyes lit up. We held hands as we talked for hours getting to know each other. She told me about our dad’s humble beginnings and how he was once the eligible bachelor of the town. "We came to the conclusion he must’ve stayed out of my life out of respect for my mum and stepdad. Or it could’ve been because he didn’t want to disrupt my life. Either way, I wish he’d made himself known to me.".
Josie was also taken to her biological dad's grave by two of her sisters. She recalled: "When we got to dad's grave, I knelt down and put my hands on his headstone. It was a sad moment, but I also felt happy to be closer to him. My sisters and I spent the rest of the day together and we clicked. It feels like I've known them my whole life. I feel lucky to have such a big, loving family.". Get email updates with the day's biggest stories.
