Ten-year-old identical twin sisters were separated at birth in China. They didn't know the other existed because they were adopted by two different families in America. They were reunited for the first time in person on "Good Morning America" on Wednesday, January 11, 2017. The twins showed up in matching outfits with pink tops and dark pants. They had the same hairstyle, and both wore black rimmed eyeglasses.
The twins' story
Co-anchors Robin Roberts and Michael Strahan interviewed Audrey Doering and her adoptive parents from Wausau, Wisconsin.
The Doerings have three boys, and when Audrey told her parents she wanted a sister for Christmas, Jennifer Doering said she did the next best thing. She planned to compile and give Audrey some information about her past. When she began her research, she saw a picture of a foster mother holding two small children who looked alike. After further research, Jennifer and Thomas Doering found out that Audrey had an identical twin sister. It was Gracie Rainsberry who lives with her parents, two brothers, and a sister in Richland, Washington. That's almost 1,500 miles from where Audrey lives.
Two families wanted to adopt
Jennifer and Thomas Doering wanted to enlarge their family by adopting a baby. Nicole and Scott Rainsberry had the same idea.
The plan for adoption led both families to China. The adoptive parents knew nothing about the other family or the other twin until 10 years later.
These identical twins separated at birth have just reunited in person — watch the emotional moment: https://t.co/VasqhBvxYc pic.twitter.com/F3OCoZ4hz2
— Us Weekly (@usweekly) January 11, 2017
The girls' reaction
Even though Audrey and Gracie talked on FaceTime, they hadn't been together since they left China as babies.
Of course, neither one of them remembered the other. After the girls reunited, Gracie said she was feeling excited and happy even though it was overwhelming. Audrey said it felt like there was somebody missing, but now it's complete. Audrey also said that when she and her sister video chatted the first time, her initial reaction to her sister was that "she's me."
There was not a dry eye in the "Good Morning America" studio after the Twins met and hugged each other. The show presented them with gifts, including dinner reservation so the girls could do more chatting. Also, they were presented with tickets so that they can visit each other.
