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Ryann McQuilton: born 1987, Cambridge, Massachusetts
I grew up in Cambridge, Massachusetts in a family with lesbian moms. My parents split up when I was a baby, and I spent my childhood at both of their houses. I have a younger sister, Halle, and an amazing extended family. But still, I always felt like there was a part of the story missing. As a kid, I tried to piece together everything I knew about my donor. It wasn’t much. It didn’t even occur to me that there might be half-siblings until I was older.
After high school I moved to Los Angeles. It was in LA that I started thinking seriously about looking for my donor and any half-siblings that might have been born. In 2006, I signed up for the Donor Sibling Registry and found out I had six new siblings! A few months later, Jeffrey came forward and I couldn’t believe we’d been living just a few miles apart. I met him that weekend, and it was an amazing (and surreal!) experience.
Since then, Jeffrey and I get together every few months to hang out – at the dog park, walking along the beach, or getting Indian food. When I graduated from college, he attended the ceremony with the rest of my family. I love meeting up with the siblings, too. Like them, I love animals and traveling. In my junior year, I studied abroad in London and traveled in France, Spain, and Eastern Europe. Sometimes I can’t believe how many similarities there are between us.
Today I’m an advisor at an undergraduate honors program. I also volunteer at a wildlife sanctuary. I’m hoping to pursue a Master’s degree in writing next year and eventually move back to London.
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