Man meets birth mother for the first time thanks to DNA test

TAMPA, Fla. (FOX 13) - A Bay Area man was able to reunite with his birth mother 51 years after he was adopted, and it was all thanks to a DNA test.

Jeff Snyder said he decided to put himself on Ancestry.com's registry several years ago, but hadn't planned on finding anyone through it.

It took about two years, but Snyder said he got an email back in October from Judy Newkirk, his birth mother.

Snyder waited excitedly at Tampa International Airport to meet Newkirk, admitting he was nervous about meeting his mom for the first time.

"It's almost like a first date," he said. "You get the butterflies, you get the trepidation, you don't really know what's going to happen or how things are going to work."

Once Newkirk got off the plane, the two shared a tearful embrace.

"Welcome to Florida!" he said as he gave her a hug. "Welcome to my life!"

The reunion was over five decades in the making.

"I held him for six hours, 51 years ago," Newkirk said. "And this is the first time I get to do it again."

Snyder encourages anyone thinking about signing up for a DNA registry to take the plunge.

"I'm a success story, I'm one of the happiest success stories. I'm lucky," he said. "I encourage people to keep trying and do whatever they can. Find them, you're going to be happy."