In Texas, courts seal adoption records. But, sometimes, people can show good reasons why the records should be opened. Though, these days, it can be easier to turn to social media -- and that's exactly what one woman did.
Porter resident Meredith Cheney knows she was born at Ben Taub General Hospital 40 years ago. Her father is British and has hazel eyes just like her. Her mother was just a teenager, a junior in high school, when she got pregnant.
"I wanna find my roots. I wanna find out who I look like on my side of the family, who I take after, ya know?" Cheney said.
Cheney grew up in Harris County. She was only five years old when she discovered she was adopted by accident.
"And that pretty much was the end to my world," she said.
Her birth name was Misty Stewart. She was born on October 22, 1973.
Cheney knows the local adoption agency her parents used but says she can't afford to pay to get any further information.
"It's tough. It is tough because I can read it on paper. Well my grandmother was 5'4" but it's hard to put it all together and say oh OK I look like that," she said.
She says she has tried everything to find her real mom and dad but she keeps hitting dead ends. As a last resort, she posted her struggle on Facebook, hoping someone sees her and can help.
"If these parents are still around, what if they don't wanna meet you?" we asked her.
"That's fine. As long as I know names, I would be able to track down heritage records," she said.
Cheney's son, Dylan Cheney, pushed her to make this public plea.
"That's my big question, where do I come from? Where does she come from? Where does my little brother come from?" he said.
We contacted the local adoption agency that Cheney's parents used. Depelchin Children's Center says it will work with her and help her find any information they can.
If you want to help Meredith, go here and share with your Facebook friends.