A Woman Reunites With Her Family

Imagine waking up and not remembering your family – and then not seeing them for five decades. While that may seem like an extreme situation, that is exactly what happened to Celestine Gandy Thompson! Over two decades ago, Thompson woke up from a coma and had trouble regaining her memory. Now, the woman has finally reunited with extended family in South Mississippi – after five long decades!

When she was just 14 years old, Thompson left her home in Mississippi in 1957 to see the world. She ended up in Buffalo, New York, living there for over 30 years. In 1992, she was a survivor of a fire that left her in a coma for two years. After waking up from her coma, she struggled with remembering her past – including most of her family. But she did remember one name that stood out to her: Clarence Woolard – the name of her nephew.

“The girl asked me, she said, ‘how long has it been, and did you ever find any of your biological family.’ I said, ‘no baby, I wouldn’t know where to start.’ She said, ‘just give me a name,’ and his name popped up in my head,” said Thompson. “So she went into the phone and she found him, and that’s just how this came together.”

After being contacted, her nephew spread word to the rest of the family that Thompson was alive and they couldn’t wait to finally be reunited with her. That was news to Thompson’s ears, as she began to lose hope she’d ever see her family again because of the 50 years of separation. Since getting reconnected, the now-Greensboro, Alabama resident learned that she has 23 nieces and nephews (or 23 Clarence Woolards!), 64 grandnieces/grandnephews, 66 great-grandnieces/great-grandnephews and 34 great-great grandnieces/grandnephews. Talk about a memory game!

Photo Source: WLOX News