MyHeritage has a history of using their resources to benefit humanity, and they have just launched a new program to do just that: DNA Quest is an initiative to reunite families who were separated by adoption. MyHeritage will be donating 15,000 MyHeritage DNA kits to American* adoptees and to members of birth families who hope to find them. DNA Quest has the potential to change lives in the most positive and profound way.
The project web page describes candidates this way:
Participation in this project is open to adoptees seeking to find their biological family members, and to parents and other family members looking for a child they had placed in adoption years ago. Preference will be given to people who are not able to afford genetic testing. Leveraging the power of genetic genealogy opens new doors in the search for relatives, and we believe everyone should be able to access this valuable technology.
If this describes you or someone you know, and if you have never done a DNA test, please apply. (The deadline is 30 April, 2018.) If you have already taken a DNA test with another genealogy company, you can transfer your raw data into the MyHeritage database—for free! By transferring rather than requesting a new DNA kit you will get the same results from MyHeritage, you will get them more quickly, and you will free up resources for even more people to participate. Spread the good!
Even if you don’t know of adoptions in your close family, you can contribute to the project, at no cost to yourself, by transferring your DNA data from another company into MyHeritage‘s database and by linking your data to a family tree. No tree is too small! Even if you only know as far back as your grandparents, including them in a family tree with their names, birth/death years, and birth/death locations could provide a valuable clue to a surname or town for someone who might be your third or fourth cousin.
I am honored to serve pro bono on the advisory board for this project alongside some of the most respected names in reunion work. Please help us spread the word by sharing this post with your friends, colleagues, and relatives.
Quick links:
- Click here to learn more about DNA Quest and MyHeritage.
- Click here to apply for a free DNA test for adoptees and their biological relatives.
- Click here to transfer your raw data from another company into MyHeritage’s database.
- Click here to purchase a DNA test from MyHeritage.
*DNA Quest is currently limited to people who were adopted in the US and who reside there (excluding Alaska). Narrowing the focus to a region where many people have already tested increases the chances of successful reunions. MyHeritage may expand the program into other regions in the future.
I am having a problem getting a download of tree on Ancestry that i can make a Gedcom tree. Any Ideas?
If you already have the tree on Ancestry, you can download the gedcom file under Tree Settings then Export Tree. If you have trouble, I suggest contacting Ancestry’s customer support.
Is there a way to get some help. I missed the deadline and I am adopted. Can I please make the cutoff still??
You can apply for the waiting list here:
https://www.dnaquest.org/
Good luck!
i want to varify i have found my mom and help with geneology. i found her recently and i want to varify just to be without any doubt 100 % so i can stop searching. i was adopted in nc. my mom is from honduras but has lived here since the 80s my dads was european white and is deseased only 3 years ago. please let me know if i can still do this to see if i found my mom. I would mean the world to me and my two children. thanks i look forward to hearing back from you.
You can apply here: https://dnaquest.org/application/ Good luck!
I am 72 years, and was never adopted. My name was changed by the last foster family. I don’t know anything about who I am. I saw your ad for a free DNA test so i am hopeful that you will consider me, I live on a fixed income and can’t afford to pay for a test. Thank you KAREN Steward
That program has closed but you can still apply for their waiting list here: https://www.dnaquest.org/
Were you born in the United States?