After 36 Years, A DNA Test Brought Long-Lost Twin Sisters Into Each Others Lives
South Korean-born identical twins Emily Bushnell and Molly Sinert were separated at birth, put into the foster care system, and adopted by two different American families.
They never knew the other existed. Then, a chance DNA test brought the identical twins back into each other's lives. But after 36 years, were Emily and Molly ready to share everything about themselves?
Born In 1985 And Put Into Foster Care
Identical twins Emily Bushnell and Molly Sinert were born in 1985 in South Korea. As infants, they were placed in the foster care system. Eventually, they were both adopted by an American family.
The thing is, the twins weren't adopted by the same family and were separated. Growing up, they had no clue the other existed.
Emily Went To Live In Pennsylvania
Emily was adopted by Sandy Schwartz Klein and Christopher Bushnell, an older couple that resided in Yardley, Pennsylvania. It was a quiet and family-friendly suburb, right outside of Philadelphia.
And while Emily grew up with three loving older brothers, she had no idea she actually had a biological sister, a twin!
Molly Went To Live In Florida
Molly, on the other hand, didn't grow up with siblings. She was adopted by Merill and Marla Sinert, an older couple from Winter Park, Florida, close to the city of Orlando.
Even though she was an only child, her upbringing was filled with love, friends, and a whole lot of extracurricular activities.
They Had Similar Upbringings
Although the twins lived in different cities miles away from one another, they both had a surprisingly similar upbringing. Both Emily and Milly took dance lessons as children and worked hard as baristas in high school.
They were even both brought up in the Jewish faith! Neither of them thought much about their biological family until much later in life.
Finding Biological Family Didn't Interest Molly
According to Molly, she really had no interest in learning about her South Korean family. She loved her life. During an interview with People magazine, she said, "I knew I was adopted, but I had no real interest in finding my Korean family."
"I grew up going to synagogue, this Jewish girl who was Korean, and I was a happy kid."
A 23andMe Test Snowballed Into Something More
Eventually, both Molly and Emily took a 23andME at-home DNA test. Of course, they both did so for very different reasons. Emily took one after her ten-year-old daughter, Izzy, was interested in learning more about her South Korean roots.
On the other hand, Molly had a health scare and wanted to see if there were any genetic diseases from her birth parents she didn't know about.
Molly's Results Said She Had A Daughter...But She Had No Kids
The twins submitted the tests and awaited the results, not expecting their lives to change drastically. It was just an at-home DNA test, after all. But when Molly received her results, things were set in motion.
The email said that she most likely had a daughter. A strange thing, considering she and her husband had no children.
Was It A Scam?
Speaking to People magazine, Molly didn't hold back on what she thought of the weird results. During the interview, she said, "I thought the test was a scam at first."
Even so, she was curious. The test results came with a link to Izzy's profile; the "daughter" 23andMe thought was hers.
After The Results Came In, Emily Went Straight To The Internet
Emily and Izzy were kind of in the same boat, receiving strange results saying her mother was someone named Molly Sinert and not Emily Bushnell. They, too, had a link to Molly's profile.
But this was Emily's daughter, and she didn't want to leave anything to chance. She went straight to the internet to find a picture of Molly.
Emily Couldn't Believe Her Eyes
What Emily found was astounding. Finding a recent work video of Molly, Emily couldn't believe her eyes. It was like looking in a mirror. After further research, she realized this Molly had the same birthday as her.
During an interview with People magazine, Emily said, "It was like watching myself. I was in complete shock."
It Was Time To Meet
The two ladies began talking and, after going through each other's photos and noticing they shared the same birthday, decided to meet. However, they still thought that there was no way they were twins.
Yet it was almost like a piece of themselves they didn't know was missing fell right into place. They knew they had to meet.
They Met On Their 36th Birthday
Not wanting to meet for the first time over a video call, Molly and Emily decided their first get-together would be on March 29, their 36th birthday, at the Hyatt Centric hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Amazingly, neither Emily nor Molly were nervous about the meeting, just excited to learn about the other.
It Was Very Emotional
During an interview with People magazine, Emily explained her initial reaction to seeing Molly. She said, "I felt every emotion under the sun. All I wanted to do was hug her."
Molly had a similar reaction, telling the magazine that she was so thankful they had the rest of their lives to get to no one another.
Their Relationship Was So Easy
During a joint interview with People magazine, Molly began crying, telling her sister that, even though they just met, she thinks Emily knows her better than anyone else in her life.
It was like the twins were never separated, quickly falling into the simple relationship sisters have with one another.
It Was Time For Some Family Trips!
According to Emily and Molly, the two text one another every day, are already starting to share their clothing, and are even planning trips with one another's families.
In fact, Molly and her husband went to visit Emily and Izzy in Pennsylvania, a trip everyone thought was way too short.
They're Happier Then Ever
During an interview with People magazine, Emily discussed the trip, saying, "I've laughed more in the last couple of days than I have in a long time. She gets me, and for the first time, I feel like I can be me."
It looks like the 23andMe at-home DNA test was one of the best things to happen to both Molly and Emily!
Finding Their Birth Parents Is Still Up In The Air
While Molly and Emily finally found one another, they are still talking about whether or not they want to take the time to find their birth parents.
If they had to guess, their biological parents would still be in South Korea, a world away from where they were both living in the United States.
They Got In Touch With The Adoption Agencies
Even so, they've reached out to other South Koreans who went through the adoption process. It has definitely been a learning experience for the twins.
As of 2021, they have actually decided to get in touch with the adoption agencies they went through all of those years ago. But it isn't to find their parents.
A Documentary Is In Their Future
Both Emily and Molly decided to get in touch with the adoption agencies because they plan to film a documentary on their lives and journey to finding one another 36 years after being separated.
The documentary will be filmed by the Seoul Broadcasting System, a major television company based in South Korea.
"It's The Greatest Gift"
After 36 years of not knowing the other existed, Emily and Molly finally found each other -- an identical twin who knows the other better than they know themselves. According to Emily, "It's crazy; I feel like I've known Molly forever."
"Knowing I have somebody to take that journey with is so special. It's the greatest gift."
