I might be the start of my own tree :-(
I was adopted. My original birth certificate from West Virginia listed Sophia Karen & Morris Bader as my parents. The birth certificate correctly listed their address, birth places, and Morris' occupation, but incorrectly left Karen's occupation blank. Alas, this seems to be an case of identity fraud. I have no generic link to Morris (I am from Haplogroup G, which is completely different from Morris), and Karen wasn't pregnant in the spring of 1962, nor was Morris' first wife, Joyce Schwartzman (now Joyce S Sterling) of Needham, MA. Ironically, I have some connection to Karen Bader... there is a 90% likelihood that we shared a maternal ancestor in the last 400 years or so. That narrows things down :-) So what do I know?
My birth mother was likely Jewish
My birth mother declared that she was Jewish to the adoption agency, Jewish family Services, and specified that I should be placed with a Jewish family. Second, my mtDNA is haplogroup k1a1b1a which is a subgroup of Ashkenazi Jews.
My birth mother was likely in Marietta, Ohio in 1961 / 1962
The birth certificate listed a home address in Marietta. Even though there was false information, there was likely a connection to Marietta. I was born in West Virginia, just across the state line from Marietta. My parents where told that the birth mother lived in south eastern Ohio, not in Columbus.
My birth mother likely knew Morris Bader
On the birth certificate, Morris and Karen's names, birth place, birthdays, and address were correct. Morris's occupation "professor at Marietta college" was correct, though Karen's occupation was incorrectly left blank. In the days before google, this was not easy information to discover unless you had access to someone's employment records (worked in records or the chemistry department at Marietta College) or were in their social circle.
My birth mother was likely involved in the Jewish community in Marietta, Ohio
Combine the knowledge of Morris' personal data and that my birth mother was Jewish, it is likely that she was associated with the Orthodox Jewish community in either Marietta, Ohio, or maybe Parkersburg, WV. This is not an area with a lot of Orthodox Jews, so people often crossed the state line to find like minded people. It is possible, but unlikely given Morris' involvement with Orthodox synagogues that my birth mother was associated with a reform synagogue, like Temple B'na Israel and Parkersburg.
Speculation
My adoptive parents were told my mother was a young, single, professional women (maybe a teacher or scientist). I believe my birth mother likely worked at Marietta College. I expect that she got pregnant. In those days, being a single mother just wasn't acceptable, and for whatever reason marriage wasn't a possibility. Maybe he wasn't Jewish, maybe they didn't want to be together, maybe he didn't want to be a father yet. For whatever reason she couldn't or didn't want to keep the child. So who was she? Karen Bader was in Marietta from Feb 1962 and following. She did not meet any single, pregnant women associated with the college or the synagogue. I am going to guess that my birth mother had "dropped out of circulation" once there was a risk that the pregnancy showed. After all, in that era, it was very unacceptable, shameful, to be an unmarried mother. Likely she stayed nearby, but far enough away that she wouldn't run into her casual friends. I suspect that is why I was born in WV, rather than Ohio.
Next Steps?
Wait for someone to pop up as a Y-DNA match or someone contacts me after seeing this page and recognizing something. I thought about trying to track down young women associated with orthodox synagogues in Marietta and Parkersburg. Unfortunately, the synagogue, as far as I know doesn't exist so it will be very hard to find people who were part of the community in 1961. Joyce Bader and Karen Bader don't remember the names of anyone in the area, other than Joyce remembering a cherish but long lost friend named Frances Geller. Joyce remembered Frances as a delightful women, who maybe came from Arizona, drove her car fast, and was maybe a professor at Marietta (sociology or education?). I wonder if this is the same Frances Geller who got a MA in Education from the University of Toledo. Maybe Frances would remember other people who might be able to help.
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