Baby Abandoned At Airport Finds His Birth Parents 33 Years Later

Steve Hydes was abandoned as a 10-day-old infant at Gatwick Airport on April 10, 1986, and 33 years later, he finally found his birth parents.

Hydes was discovered in the restrooms in the South Terminal at Gatwick Airport by duty-free sales assistant Beryl Wright. He was dressed in two onesies and wrapped in a tartan shawl.

At the time, he was nicknamed Gatwick Gary after the airport’s teddy bear mascot which was given to him when he was discovered.

Hydes went into the foster care system and then was adopted by a family, growing up with three sisters.

With the help of genealogists and DNA sampling, Hydes searched for his parents for 15 years and finally found them.

Man abandoned in Gatwick Airport toilet 33 years ago finally finds his parents https://t.co/6xRcbisLp2

— Metro (@MetroUK) May 13, 2019

Unfortunately, his birth mother had already passed away and he was unable to meet her. As far as his birth father and siblings, they had no idea that Hydes existed. While Hydes’ birth mother is unable to explain why she abandoned him at the airport, he’s not angry about what happened.

“As you can imagine this is quite a sensitive issue to all involved and very new to us all, but I wanted to take this time to thank everyone for their continued support over the years,” Hydes wrote on Facebook.

He added, “The work the genealogists do is incredible and for years they have worked so hard and it is thanks to them they are solving cases like mine. More people are having their DNA tested every day and I hope this and my story can help raise awareness and prevent other babies from being abandoned.”