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Send us a text What happens when the truth about your origins arrives decades late and everyone else already knew? In this episode of Family Twist, Kendall talks with Keith Sciarillo, a late-discovery adoptee who learned later in life that neither of the parents who raised him were biologically related to him. Even harder, siblings and family members knew the truth long before Keith did. Keith shares what it is like to grow up inside a family secret, how silence reshaped his childhood, and why so many moments only made sense after the truth finally came out. He and Kendall talk openly about resentment, understanding, and the complicated balance between grieving what was lost and accepting what is. They also explore identity in a literal sense. Keith grew up believing he was Italian Jewish, only to later discover Puerto Rican and Hungarian Jewish ancestry, including Holocaust survivor history in his biological family. That shift was not just informational. It changed how Keith understood himself, his body, and where he comes from. The conversation moves into parenting, responsibility, and the decision not to pass trauma forward. Keith reflects on becoming a parent while still processing his own story, and why showing up honestly matters more than pretending everything is fine. Toward the end of the episode, Keith mentions a film that deeply resonated with his own experience, Myth of the Ghost Kingdom. The film follows a late-discovery adoptee and captures the emotional reality of learning the truth far later than anyone should. Keith explains why the story feels uncomfortably accurate, and why seeing adoption and identity explored on screen can be validating in ways people do not always expect. This episode is for anyone navigating a late-discovery adoption, a DNA surprise, or the long shadow of family secrecy. It is also for anyone trying to understand how silence shapes a child long after childhood ends.

Send us a text What happens when the truth doesn’t arrive as a single moment, but hides in plain sight for years? In this episode of Family Twist, Corey and Kendall sit down with Dr. Nicole Price, a DNAngels Board Advisor whose discovery that her father wasn’t her biological parent came not from a sudden match, but from something she didn’t notice for nearly a decade. A small line of text. A quiet warning. A truth everyone else already seemed to know. Nicole shares what it was like to realize she may have been the only person in her family kept in the dark, and how that silence reshaped her sense of self, her relationships with her siblings, and her understanding of empathy. She talks candidly about anger, betrayal, grief, and the physical toll this kind of discovery can take, including anxiety, identity disorientation, and the need for trauma-informed support. This conversation explores what it means to grieve the person you thought you were, why “you’re still the same” can feel dismissive instead of comforting, and how healing doesn’t come from minimizing the impact of a DNA surprise, but from honoring it. Nicole also reflects on reconnecting with her biological father later in life, adjusting expectations, and learning to sit with silence rather than trying to force a relationship to be something it isn’t. Nicole now helps others navigate these moments through her work with DNAngels, offering empathy and guidance to people who are just beginning to process their own discoveries. Nicole will also be speaking at Untangling Our Roots, where she’ll be part of the DNAngels presence supporting attendees who are in the middle of discovery, grief, and integration. This episode is for anyone who has ever been told to move on too quickly, who felt their body react before their mind could catch up, or who needed reassurance that this kind of truth really is a big deal. Guest bio: Dr. Nicole Price is no stranger to the transformative power of empathy. Her personal journey, beginning with the revelation at 45 that her father wasn’t her biological parent, launched her exploration of empathy’s profound impact. These experiences now shape her professional approach, blending her technical, results-focused background with empathetic understanding. Dr. Price’s dynamic genealogy workshops, consulting, and keynotes equip others with practical strategies to enhance their research. With her energetic presentation style, she inspires participants to apply empathy to their genealogical work. She holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina A&T University, a Master’s in Adult Education from Park University, and a Doctorate in Leadership and Management from Capella University. Postdoctoral studies were completed at Stanford University. Key Takeaways A DNA discovery doesn’t have to be loud to be life-altering. Quiet realizations and delayed understanding can hit just as hard.Finding out you were the only one who didn’t know creates a unique kind of grief, one rooted in betrayal, silence, and isolation.“You’re still the same person” can feel invalidating. Discovery often changes how someone understands themselves, their body, and their place in their family.This kind of revelation is a grief event, not just new information. Grieving who you thought you were is part of healing.Your body often reacts before your mind can catch up. Anxiety, disorientation, and physical symptoms are common and real.There is no correct timeline for processing discovery. Pausing, pulling back, or limiting new information can be an act of self-care.

Send us a text What happens when a father and daughter meet for the first time, in adulthood, and decide to build the relationship in public, in real time? In this episode of Family Twist, Corey sits down with Joseph McGill Jr. and his daughter Charity Barriere Muhammad, who reunited just six months ago and are already preparing to share their story on stage together at Untangling Our Roots Summit 2026 in Atlanta, March 19–22, 2026.  Joseph is the founder and Executive Director of The Slave Dwelling Project, an effort that brings attention to the overlooked structures where enslaved people lived by arranging overnight stays in extant slave dwellings, creating space for truth-telling, dialogue, and public education.  He is also the coauthor of Sleeping with the Ancestors: How I Followed the Footprints of Slavery, a deeply personal account of that work and what it reveals about American history, memory, and legacy.  Charity is a cultural storyteller, educator, author, and the visionary behind Gumbo for the Soul, blending ancestry, creativity, and community.  In Corey’s conversation with Charity and Joseph, you’ll hear how reunion has expanded her sense of identity, including the way heritage and family history show up in food, traditions, and the stories we tell ourselves about where we come from. Together, Joseph and Charity speak candidly about the early days of reunion, learning trust, holding space for hard truths, and what it means to build a relationship as two adults who both had full lives before they ever met. They also talk about what they hope others in the adoption, donor-conceived, and NPE communities take from their experience, especially those who are still searching, still processing, or still afraid to ask the next question. Kendall will be attending Untangling Our Roots for the first time, and this episode is part preview, part love letter to the messy middle, where healing is real, but so is the work. In this episode, we cover What six months of reunion can feel like, emotionally and practicallyNature and nurture moments, when similarities show up in unexpected waysTrust-building after a lifetime without a parent-child relationshipHow Joseph’s work as a public historian shapes his view of legacy and familyHow food, recipes, and cultural inheritance become part of reunionWhy therapy, patience, and “doing your part” matter in late discovery family connectionsWhat Joseph and Charity hope their on-stage conversation sparks for others at Untangling Our RootsGuest spotlight Joseph McGill Jr. Founder and Executive Director, The Slave Dwelling Project. Coauthor, Sleeping with the Ancestors: How I Followed the Footprints of Slavery.  Charity Barriere Muhammad Founder, Gumbo for the Soul, author, educator, cultural storyteller.  Mentioned in this episode Untangling Our Roots Summit 2026 (Atlanta, March 19–22, 2026) The Slave Dwelling Project Sleeping with the Ancestors: How I Followed the Footprints of Slavery Gumbo for the Soul 

Send us a text Last March, Corey attended Untangling Our Roots Summit in Denver for the first time. He went alone, unsure what to expect, and quietly wondering if he belonged there at all. In this solo episode, Corey reflects on walking into a room where everyone already spoke the same language. Adoptees, donor-conceived people, NPEs, MPEs, birth parents, adoptive parents, partners, spouses, and allies, all in one space, without hierarchy or comparison. What began as a moment of imposter syndrome quickly turned into connection, recognition, and relief. This year feels even more meaningful. Corey and Kendall are attending together, and both will be speaking. Corey will be interviewing filmmaker Lisa Brenner, whose work explores identity, truth, and family through storytelling. Kendall will be moderating a powerful panel, “Who Am I? Is This Me. A Male Perspective,” centering men’s voices in conversations about identity disruption and discovery. This episode is an invitation. To anyone who has ever felt alone after a DNA discovery. To anyone still trying to understand where they fit. To anyone who needs to sit in a room where they don’t have to explain themselves. Untangling Our Roots is the largest gathering of these communities anywhere in the world, and it only happens every other year. If you miss it this March, the next one won’t be until 2028. You don’t need all the answers. You just need to show up.

Send us a text What happens after the truth comes out, when the search begins and there is no DNA test, no internet, and no clear roadmap? In part two of this two-part episode, we continue our conversation with Marylee MacDonald as she takes us into the long, painstaking search for her birth family. This was a time before commercial DNA testing, when finding answers meant microfilm machines, legal notices buried in newspapers, and carefully rehearsed phone calls that could change your life in an instant. Marylee shares how she searched for her birth mother after her adoptive mother’s death, navigating guilt, fear, and hope all at once. When she finally makes contact, she experiences something many adoptees describe but rarely get to feel. Mirrors. Voices that sound like hers. Siblings who feel instantly familiar. But reunion is not a fairy tale. Marylee opens up about being kept secret, introduced as a “family friend,” and hearing words no one ever wants to hear from a parent. She reflects on the complicated emotional terrain of reunion, where love, shame, pride, and distance can all exist at the same time. And then comes another layer. Marylee also shares the story of finding the son she was forced to surrender as a teenager. What followed was not instant closeness, but something deeper. Time. Effort. Shared history. And eventually, a family that chose to make room for one another. This episode lands during the holidays, and without planning it, Marylee leaves us with a powerful reminder of what connection can look like when the work is done. A full house. A crowded kitchen. Decades of memories made after years of separation. What We Talk About in Part Two Searching for birth family before DNA testing  Using microfilm and legal notices to find answers  Making the first phone call to a birth parent  Meeting siblings and finally seeing mirrors  The pain of being kept secret after reunion  Why reunion does not erase grief or shame  Finding a son surrendered in a closed adoption  Building real family history over time  What the holidays can look like after reunion About Our Guest Marylee MacDonald is an adoptee and author whose work explores adoption, identity, secrecy, motherhood, and reunion. Her writing reflects both the emotional cost of closed-era adoption and the long process of building real family connection after decades of separation. Website Book: Surrender: A Memoir of Nature, Nurture, and Love Content Note: This episode includes discussion of adoption secrecy, family rejection, grief, and emotional distress. Please listen with care. Connect with Family Twist If this episode resonates with you, share it with someone who understands how family secrets shape identity. If you have a story of adoption, late discovery, or a family truth that surfaced years later, we would love to hear from you. Family secrets are the ultimate plot twist.

Send us a text What happens when the story you were told about your adoption turns out to be a lie, and you find out at the moment you need support the most? In part one of this two-part episode, we talk with Marylee MacDonald, an adoptee who always knew she was adopted and believed she had a tragic but simple origin story. She was told her birth parents had been killed in a car accident. The door was closed. The past was settled. Until it wasn’t. At 15, when Marylee became pregnant, her adoptive mother revealed the truth. Marylee’s birth mother was alive. And she had been a teenage girl, just like Marylee. This episode explores what it means to grow up being told you were “chosen,” while also learning that what can be chosen can also be unchosen. Marylee reflects on the pressure to perform, the subtle reminders that she was different, and the deep ache of growing up without mirrors. No one looked like her. No one sounded like her. No one shared her temperament, her intellect, or her fire. Part one focuses on Marylee’s early life, her adoption, the lie she was told about her origins, and the experience of being sent to a home for unwed mothers with little explanation and no real choice. It is a story shaped by secrecy, shame, and survival in an era of closed adoptions and hidden pregnancies. Part two will follow Marylee into the search for her birth family, the reunions that followed, and the son she was forced to surrender. What We Talk About in Part One Knowing you were adopted, but not knowing the truthBeing told you were “chosen” and the pressure that createsSubtle comments that signal you do not fully belongThe absence of mirrors for adopteesDiscovering the truth during a teenage pregnancyBeing sent to a home for unwed mothers without explanation or consentHow secrecy and shame shaped adoption in the 1950s and 60sThe emotional cost of learning the truth too lateAbout Our Guest Marylee MacDonald is an adoptee and author whose work explores adoption, identity, secrecy, motherhood, and reunion. Her writing reflects both the emotional cost of closed-era adoption and the long process of building real family connection after decades of separation. Website  Book: Surrender: A Memoir of Nature, Nurture, and Love  Content Note: This episode includes discussion of teenage pregnancy, adoption secrecy, family rejection, and emotional distress. Please listen with care. In part two, Marylee shares how she searched for her birth family long before DNA testing. Through microfilm, legal notices, and carefully scripted phone calls, she recounts the moment she heard a familiar voice on the other end of the line. She also shares how she reunited with the son she was forced to surrender, and what it means to build real family history after years of silence. Connect with Family Twist If this episode resonates with you, share it with someone who understands how family secrets shape identity. If you have a story of adoption, late discovery, or a family truth that surfaced years later, we would love to hear from you. Family secrets are the ultimate plot twist.  

Send us a text What do you do when a DNA test proves that everything you believed about your race, your ancestry, and your family history is not true, and at the same time the world becomes more dangerous for the people you have just learned you belong to? That is the question at the center of Kara’s story. Kara grew up believing she was African-American, with a family history rooted in ancestors who had been enslaved in Texas. When she asked her father to take a DNA test so she could plan a "Finding Your Roots" style trip to Africa, the results were overwhelming and life-changing. Her test showed zero African DNA and fifty percent Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry. Kara is the founder of Right to Know, a national nonprofit dedicated to advocating for adoptees, donor-conceived people, and NPEs who want access to their origins. Even with years of advocacy behind her, nothing prepared her for the identity shock of becoming part of a Jewish community during one of the most turbulent periods for Jewish people worldwide. Her youngest son, Nico, shares his own perspective. He accompanied Kara through Jewish spaces, Jewish summer camp, and eventually a semester abroad in Israel. That trip became far more than cultural exploration. Nico was in Israel when Iran began launching missiles. His story includes middle-of-the-night sirens, running to bomb shelters, sleeping underground, and eventually being evacuated on a cruise ship escorted by the Israeli Navy to Cyprus. This episode brings together personal identity, world events, and the difficult reality of building a new sense of self in a time of public hostility and fear. What We Explore in This Episode How a DNA test overturned Kara’s lifelong understanding of her race and ancestryWhy DNA surprises around race have a unique emotional impactHow Kara’s father responded with deep love and supportKara’s founding of Right to Know and her commitment to identity rightsThe challenges of entering Jewish spaces during a time of rising antisemitismNico’s path from temple to Jewish summer camp to a semester in IsraelWhat it feels like to live with missile alerts as part of daily lifeSleeping in bomb shelters and learning how quickly danger becomes normalThe Navy escorted the evacuation to Cyprus and the global attention on Iran’s missile strikesHow Israeli culture reshapes a person’s understanding of joy, resilience, and living in the momentThe creation of new December traditions for a family with multiple layers of identityThe music that helped both Kara and Nico stay groundedWhy This Episode Matters  This story is unfolding during a time when antisemitism is rising, when political tensions around Israel are impossible to ignore, and when DNA tests continue to reveal hidden ancestries that launch people into unexpected communities. Kara and Nico’s story sits right at the crossroads of these issues, which is why it feels urgent, honest, and timely. Perfect For Listeners Who Are Navigating a DNA surprise that shifted their identityLearning they have Jewish ancestryFeeling imposter syndrome in cultural or religious spacesTrying to explain DNA surprises to their childrenInterested in real-world experiences inside Israel during the Iran missile attacksPart of the adoption, donor-conceived, or NPE communitiesDrawn to stories where family secrets collide with global eventsIf this episode speaks to you, share it with someone who is working through their own identity twist. Right to Know Untangling Our Roots

Send us a text In Part One, Lisa shared her extraordinary adoption reunion story. A closed adoption, a lifetime of questions, a birth family who lived down the street, and the shocking discovery that she likely cared for her own biological grandfather in the ICU. It was a story about caregiving, identity, and the power of finally finding your roots. Part Two takes us into a very different kind of discovery. This episode explores the emotional fallout of her paternal DNA match. What begins with hopeful emails and a powerful moment of genetic mirroring turns into years of confusion, mixed narratives, addiction, emotional manipulation, and the painful truth adoptees often live with. Reunion does not guarantee safety. Sometimes it brings an entirely new wave of grief. Lisa walks us through the relationship with her biological father, the intense early connection, the unraveling that followed, the trauma she and her daughter endured, and the strength it took to reclaim her voice again. It is an honest, vulnerable look at what happens when the fantasy of family meets the reality of human complexity. And throughout it all, Lisa continues to ground herself in caregiving, advocacy, and her work as a nurse practitioner. As nursing faces new threats on the national stage, her story is a reminder of how much nurses carry for the rest of us and why their voices matter. This is Part Two of Lisa’s story. If you missed Part One, we recommend listening in order. Her book, The Adopted Nurse, expands on this journey with even more insight and compassion. How a Nurse Practitioner Survived a Second DNA DiscoveryWhat Listeners Will Hear • The first phone call with her biological father. • How hope and longing shaped her early trust. • The intense bond that formed during their first visit. • Signs that something was not right. • The unraveling of the relationship. • The impact on her daughter. • The yearslong cycle of addiction, apologies, and emotional confusion. • The night she and her daughter were kicked out with nowhere to go. • How therapy and reflection helped her make sense of the narrative she was given. • Why she will never know the full truth about her birth parents. • How this experience deepened her work as an adoptee advocate and nurse practitioner. • What she wants other adoptees to know before they take a DNA test. • Her message of healing, strength, and reclaiming your own story. Link to Lisa’s Book: The Adopted Nurse If Lisa’s story resonates with you, or if you have your own Family Twist, we would love to hear from you. Your story matters. Your truth matters. And your voice deserves to be heard.

Send us a text With the Trump administration moving to reclassify nursing so it no longer counts as a professional degree for federal student aid, this episode couldn’t land at a more urgent moment. Nursing organizations warn that limiting access to funding threatens the very foundation of patient care, and in our household, where nurses are family, this news hits hard. Today’s guest, Lisa, is a nurse practitioner, an adoptee, and someone who has lived through more than one life-changing twist thanks to DNA testing. Her story blends caregiving, identity, trauma, reunion, and that beautiful mix of nature and nurture we explore so often on Family Twist. Lisa grew up in a loving adoptive home, always knowing she was adopted but never knowing the medical history she desperately needed. As a nurse practitioner and later a mother, the absence of that information became impossible to ignore. When she finally began searching for answers, she uncovered a story that feels like fate. If you want to go even deeper into Lisa’s story, you can find her book here: The Adopted Nurse (Amazon): https://www.amazon.com/s?k=the+adopted+nurse How a Nurse Practitioner Discovered Her Real RootsHer journey includes: • A neighbor who recognizes her immediately • A grandfather she may have unknowingly cared for as an ICU nurse • A birth family who lived down the street from her adoptive parents • Birth aunts who welcome her with warmth, memory, and long-held truths This episode explores the way caregivers are shaped by their histories, how adoptees carry both gratitude and grief, and how discovering your roots can transform everything. Next week, Part Two goes even deeper with a second DNA discovery that completely reframes Lisa’s understanding of identity and safety. But first, this is where her story begins.

Send us a text What happens when you discover a whole set of siblings who grew up in the donor’s home, but you are not sure they even know you existIn part one, a simple birthday DNA kit rewrote everything Nick thought he knew about his identity. He learned he was donor conceived at thirty-six, discovered fourteen half siblings, and realized his parents had carried the truth for decades. But nothing prepared him for what came next. In this episode, Nick talks about the two siblings who were raised by the donor, and the complicated question that hangs over many donor conceived adults: Do they know about us And if they do not, should someone tell them Part Two explores the unsettling space between biological connection and total silence, and what it means to live with questions you cannot safely or ethically answer. Nick also shares how he transformed his experience into a book and a podcast, giving other donor conceived people a place to speak honestly, without shame or editing. His story is both deeply personal and universally familiar to anyone navigating DNA surprises. What We Talk About• What it feels like to discover donor raised siblings who may be unaware of you • The ethics of reaching out when the consequences are unknown • How donor conceived adults become detectives whether they want to or not • The ongoing challenges of incomplete medical histories • Writing as a way to process identity shifts • Why Nick created a podcast for donor conceived voices • How openness can protect mental and emotional health • The growing need for reform and transparency in the fertility industry • How music helped Nick work through identity questions Takeaways• Donor conceived people often live with unanswered questions that affect identity, medical decisions, and relationships • The donor’s raised children may be unaware of their genetic siblings, creating an emotional and ethical dilemma • Stories and conversation help break isolation and build community • The fertility industry still offers little guidance to the adults created through these methods • Honesty and visibility remain the strongest tools for change Reflection Questions for Listeners• How would you feel if you learned you had siblings who did not know you existed • What responsibility, if any, do donor conceived people have toward the donor’s raised children • What part of your story have you been afraid to speak out loud • How might telling your truth change your relationships or your sense of self

Send us a text What if a simple birthday gift revealed a secret your parents had been carrying for more than three decades? For his 36th birthday, Nick’s siblings gave him a 23andMe kit. It seemed like a fun way to learn more about his ancestry, until his parents sat him down with a truth that changed everything. Nick discovered that he was donor conceived, while his brother was not. In this first part of Nick’s story, he shares what it felt like to have the truth land without warning, why he chose compassion instead of anger, and how this discovery ultimately strengthened his relationship with the father who raised him. Nick also explains the fertility practices of the 1980s, including sperm washing and sperm mixing, and how secrecy became standard procedure for families like his. And when his test results came back, the surprises were just beginning. One Test. Two Brothers. Two Different Truths.What We Talk AboutHow a DNA test transformed a birthday gift into a life-changing discoveryThe moment Nick’s parents told him the truth about his conceptionHow secrecy was encouraged in fertility medicine during the 1980sThe emotional impact of realizing your family story is incompleteWhy Nick’s empathy toward his parents shaped their healingThe mix of gratitude and confusion that comes with learning you are donor conceivedThe unregulated side of the fertility industry and its lasting effectsDiscovering 14 half-siblings, including two raised by the donorFinding a new sense of identity and belonging after a DNA surprise Key QuotesIt was the shock of my life. I did not see it coming whatsoever. I could see the fear in my parents’ eyes, and I just wanted to make sure they were okay. When I found out I was donor conceived, it didn’t break our relationship. It made it stronger. Doctors told them, ‘Don’t ever say anything. There’s no way this will ever come out.’ TakeawaysDNA tests can reveal truths that change entire family narratives.Secrets meant to protect can create years of emotional weight.Empathy and openness can lead to unexpected healing.The fertility industry’s lack of oversight has left many families without answers.Understanding your origins can strengthen, not destroy, family connections. Reflection Questions for ListenersHow would you respond if you learned your family story wasn’t what you thought?What might honesty bring to a family that has held on to a secret for years?How do we redefine family when biology and identity diverge?What does compassion look like in moments of shock or betrayal?

Send us a text What happens when a single email from a stranger confirms the secret you have been living with your whole life? In this episode, Rich Boerner returns to Family Twist to share the second half of his extraordinary story. In Part One, Rich discovered the truth about his father after finding a Polaroid tucked inside his mother’s old address book. That discovery shattered the story he had grown up believing and opened the door to an entirely new family. In Part Two, Rich picks up the story a decade later, when an unexpected email from a woman claiming to be his half-sister pulls him into the next chapter of his life. What follows is an emotional mix of disbelief, connection, and forgiveness. Rich talks about how he went from shock to understanding, how he built a new relationship with his sister, and why finally learning the truth changed the way he viewed both of his parents. He also shares how the process of telling his story became a healing experience, first for him and then for his children. The Not-So Only ChildIn this episodeHow one photo uncovered a lifetime of secretsThe decade between discovery and connectionWhat it feels like to finally meet a sibling who already knew the truthThe complicated emotions of forgiveness after decades of silenceHow Rich turned his discovery into his memoir and audiobook The Not-So Only ChildWhy storytelling can be one of the most powerful forms of healing About Rich BoernerRich Boerner is a veteran radio producer, audio storyteller, and the author of The Not-So Only Child: My True Story. His book began as an experiment in the recording booth, speaking his story aloud rather than writing it, and evolved into an audiobook and memoir that explores identity, loss, and reconnection. You can find The Not-So Only Child on Amazon in print, ebook, and audiobook formats. Why this episode mattersRich’s journey is about more than DNA surprises. It is about what happens after the truth surfaces, when you have to decide whether to open the door to the people and the pain that come with it. His story reminds us that healing often begins with honesty, and that our voices, even shaky ones, can help others feel less alone. Listen nowSubscribe to Family Twist wherever you get your podcasts and hear more stories that prove family secrets are the ultimate plot twist.

Send us a text What if the father you spent your life wondering about turned out to be someone you already knew?As a kid growing up on Long Island in the 1970s, Rich Boerner learned not to ask too many questions. His mother had her version of the truth and repeated it word for word whenever he asked. His father was a man from Milwaukee who left when he found out she was pregnant. That was all she would say. It was a story that sounded just plausible enough to stop the conversation. For years, Rich focused on his own life instead. He went to college, built a career in radio, started a family, and kept that mystery locked away in a quiet corner of his mind. But after his mother passed away, everything changed. While cleaning out her apartment, Rich opened an old address book. Inside was a Polaroid photo and a note that would unravel decades of silence. His father wasn’t a stranger from another state. He was someone who had always been there. In this first half of our two-part conversation, Rich joins Corey and Kendall to talk about growing up with half-truths, the cost of protecting a parent’s secret, and what it feels like when the life you’ve built suddenly shifts under your feet. His story reminds us how deeply love and deception can intertwine and how the search for truth can begin long after we think the story is over. In this episodeLife as an only child raised by a single mother in a working-class New York neighborhoodThe “three-sentence story” his mother told and why he believed it for so longWhat he found among her letters after her deathThe Polaroid that rewrote everything he thought he knew about his fatherHow grief can become the moment of truth GuestRich Boerner is a longtime radio executive and the author of The Not-So Only Child: My True Story. The memoir chronicles the discovery of his hidden family and his path toward forgiveness, recorded and produced in his own home studio. Coming in Part TwoRich reconnects with the sister who knew the secret all along and learns how his father’s final wish tied their two families together. He also shares the late-night creative process that turned his story into an audiobook for his children and for anyone who has ever had to rebuild their sense of self from the truth.

Send us a text What happens when the podcast that’s helping you make sense of your DNA surprise starts to sound a little too familiar? For many listeners, Family Twist is more than a podcast, it’s a lifeline. That’s exactly how it felt for Jai, whose own DNA discovery journey unfolded side by side with the stories she was hearing from Corey and Kendall. As an adoptee navigating identity, belonging, and the shock of hidden truths, Jai found comfort and courage in Kendall’s openness about rejection, reconnection, and redefining family. This episode is for anyone who has listened to a story that suddenly felt like their own. Jai reminds us that healing doesn’t just happen through discovery, it happens through connection. What Listeners Will Gain 1. A mirror for your own journey. Jai’s story echoes the emotions so many of us face: curiosity, grief, hope, and the courage to seek truth even when it hurts. 2. A lesson in empathy and resilience. She talks candidly about how Kendall’s story gave her language for emotions she didn’t yet know how to name and how compassion builds bridges even between strangers. 3. A reminder that you’re not alone. Through podcasts, online communities, and real-life connections, Jai found strength in realizing that others have walked this road and survived it.

Send us a text This episode feels like the heart of Family Twist. It’s about what happens when we stop hiding, start talking, and realize we’re all part of a much bigger family than we thought. Right to Know: Healing in Real TimeCorey shares the mic with other board members from Right to Know, the organization making sure everyone has access to their own origin story. These conversations aren’t polished or easy, but they’re full of heart, honesty, and hope. Debbie Olson talks about the strange beauty of finding family while also finding your purpose. She turned her DNA discovery into a mission to make sure no one goes through it alone. Kara Rubinstein Deyerin and Brad Ewell share the story behind the name Right to Know and how they built a space for people who are still reeling from the shock of new truths. Their message is simple: healing doesn’t come from pretending it didn’t happen. It comes from community. And Steven Osborne reminds us what real courage sounds like when he tells the story of confronting his mother after decades of secrets. It’s raw, it’s human, and it’s a reminder that honesty doesn’t always heal overnight, but it’s always the first step. This episode also celebrates the Untangling Our Roots Summit, where adoptees, donor-conceived folks, NPEs, and their families come together to laugh, cry, and find connection in the chaos. It’s proof that healing can be loud, messy, and even joyful. Family secrets might be the hardest stories to tell, but when we tell them together, they turn into something bigger, understanding, compassion, and sometimes even a little karaoke.