Oprah Winfrey Introduces "New" Half-Sister, Patricia

After 25 years of witnessing everything and anything on her television talk show, Oprah Winfrey thought she was beyond shock and surprise. She found out differently when her half-sister, Patricia, entered her life in October, 2010. Oprah actually met Patricia-single mother of two grown children, Aquarius and Andre-for the first time on Thanksgiving Day. They were living only 90 minutes from one another.

Patricia and Oprah have the same mother, Vernita Lee, but not the same father. Oprah believed she had no remaining siblings once her younger brother and sister died. Oprah was 9 years old in 1963, when Patricia was born, but she didn't realize her mother was pregnant, as she was living with her father in Tennessee at that time. Vernita made the decision to give Patricia up.

DNA tests verified the half-sisters' relationship. Oprah chose to introduce her sister on her TV show. They wanted to tell their own story rather than letting the tabloids have a field day with the news. The most surprising aspect of the situation was that Patricia-after years of searching- had realized since 2007 that the famous TV mogul was most likely her sister, yet she never considered selling the story to the press. Her main concern was finding her mother...Oprah just happened to be a bonus. Winfrey was impressed with the loyalty that her half-sister exhibited.

Vernita refused previous requests from Patricia for reuniting.Oprah and Patricia confronted their mother, asking why she had given Patricia up. She told them she was trying to get off welfare and felt she couldn't take care of the baby. She said she went back afterward looking for Patricia, but with no success.Although Vernita reportedly suffers from the after-effects of a stroke, it was clear that Oprah did not inherit her warm personality from her mother. Patricia was emotional saying, "It means a lot to me that she came back to get me." She said she'd always had a feeling that her mother never really wanted to give her up. Oprah's newfound sister had a rough beginning, spending the first 7 years of her life in foster care before being adopted.

After the conversation with their mother, Oprah told her sister she had had an "epiphany." She believes their mother is still stuck in 1963, filled with shame and unable to release herself from it so she can embrace Pat. She advised her mother to let go of the shame saying, "It's really all right." Oprah likened it to her own situation. When she was 14, she gave birth to a baby boy, who died after delivery. Her younger sister, in later years, sold the story to the media, devastating Oprah. Today, she believes that her now-deceased sister actually did her a favor. It released her from the shame of the dark secret.

Oprah's new half-sister, Patricia (her last name was withheld), says that meeting her biological family has been the best part of this experience. She and her two children now feel complete.

Click here to see a picture of Oprah and her half-sister, Patricia.

Source
Oprah Winfrey Show; January 24, 2011