‘Stolen at birth’: Tampa woman illegally adopted as baby recounts journey to finding biological Chilean family
TAMPA, Fla. - Two online articles in People Magazine helped Tampa resident Maria Hastings uncovered the difficult details behind her adoption.
"I just knew always growing up that I was adopted from Chile," Hastings, 37, said. "I was content with my life. I was happy. But when I saw that article, I had to find out."
The two articles were posted online in November 2022. One headline reads: "Twins Stolen at Birth Reunite with Biological Mom Who 'Never Forgot About Us' — and Fought to Find Them."
A People Magazine article led Maria Hastings to seek out her biological family.
As Hastings began to read, she couldn’t ignore how similar the twins’ adoption story was to hers.
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"Each of those moms were in poverty and could not afford to take care of them. And then also the time frame," Hastings said.
In the 1970s and 1980s, thousands of Chilean babies were illegally put up for adoption under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet as a means of reducing poverty.
Pictured: Maria Hastings
Hastings continued her research and found a second article featuring fellow Chilean adoptee Tyler Graf, who’s now on a mission to reunite these families through his nonprofit, Connecting Roots.
"You can tell there is a lot of pain on both sides," Graf told FOX 13 during a February interview.
After conducting his own investigation, Graf called Hastings to tell her she was just like him - stolen at birth.
Tyler Graf is on a mission to reconnect families through his non-profit Connecting Roots.
Hastings told FOX 13, Chilean records showed she never left the country and still lived there. Despite her birth mother not knowing how to read or write, Hastings said someone forged her mother’s signature on her adoption records.
"Oh my God, my heart dropped," Hastings said of her phone call with Graf. "I was trying not to cry on the phone. But I broke down after our phone call. It was difficult."
Through Connecting Roots, the Tampa woman flew down to Chile in February to meet her mom, older sister, and extended family members for the very first time.
Pictured: Maria Hastings and her adopted family.
Hastings learned she comes from a family of breadmakers, who introduced her to their traditions. She spent a week meeting her biological family members in Chile last month.
As she learns to navigate this new chapter, she’s also embracing her Florida roots.
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"I love them both very much," an emotional Hastings said of her Tampa and Chilean families. "I'm very happy to have them in my life."
Maria Hastings as a child with her adoptive family and as an adult with her biological mother and sister.
Hastings said her family in Florida was shocked to find out what she had discovered. In most of these cases, the adoptive families were also deceived as part of this illegal adoption network, according to Connecting Roots.
In the last month, Connecting Roots has received over 100 requests for help with new searches.
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