Steve's Weekly Letter

Thursday, September 19, 2024

This is Middle Falls on the Genesee River in Letchworth State Park near Castile, New York. My wife, Priscilla, and her siblings were born near Castile. The family moved to Idaho when Priscilla was 6 months old. I took this picture a few years ago when we visited her birthplace.

Reflection

My brother-in-law, Andy Perkins, spent the first 70 years of his life celebrating his birthday on the wrong day.

He celebrated it annually on September 13. Then, a few months after his 70th birthday, he learned that his real birthday was on September 12.

And he learned that his parents actually named him Philip—that is, Philip Robinson.

My brother-in-law discovered that he was switched at birth!

I shared this story four years ago, but a lot of you were not readers at the time. So I’m going to share it again in the hopes that it might reassure you of God’s providence over the details of your life—even the details you struggle to comprehend. Below is a photo of Priscilla and me with her brother, Andy, shortly before he turned 70.

Here is the story. Andy’s daughter, Candi (my niece), has done a lot of research over the years on the history of the Perkins family. Five years ago, when her dad—my brother-in-law, Andy—turned 70, she and her sister took a DNA test in hopes of learning more about the family. Oddly enough, the results did not show a connection with any other Perkins family members. They did not think too much of it at the time, though, because none of Candi’s dad’s siblings had done DNA testing. Neither had Candi's cousins—Andy’s nephews and nieces.

There was one detail, though, that did not fit. Andy's daughters had a strong connection to members of a Robinson family from the same area in New York state where Andy and his siblings were born. In fact, one of the Robinson family members contacted Candi to ask how they were related. Candi could not figure out the connection. Until she did.

In January 2020, Candi was looking back through family records when she came across the birth announcement for her dad, Andy (see the photo below). It was from the Castile, New York newspaper in 1949. It said: “Andrew James to James H. and Shirley Kief Perkins, Castile, Sept. 13.” Beneath it was another birth announcement that stunned Candi and suggested the connection to the Robinson family. It read: “Philip Keith to Harold S. and Pauline McElwain Robinson, Warsaw, Sept. 12.”

At that moment, Candi was certain that her dad, Andy, had been switched at birth! She knew that he was born in the early morning hours of September 13, 1949. She found Philip Robinson’s birth certificate online and learned that he was born late at night on September 12, 1949.

My niece, Candi, is quite the online detective, and she soon found photos of the Robinson family, including Philip—the Perkins baby and my wife Priscilla’s biological brother. The resemblance is stunning. In his pre-school photos, Philip looks a lot like Priscilla and her brothers did at the same age. He also looks a lot like Priscilla’s dad. In the photo below, Philip is on the right with his mom and his younger Robinson siblings.

In 1949, mothers in that rural New York hospital were given ether—yes, ether!—to put them “under” when they gave birth. Fathers were not permitted in the labor and delivery room. Somehow, in the early morning hours of September 13, the Perkins and Robinson babies were accidentally switched by hospital personnel. It must have happened before the babies were given identification bracelets and brought back to their parents for the first time.

Sadly, Philip died when he was six years old after battling non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Meanwhile, Andy looks a lot like his biological mother and his Robinson siblings. The summer before Andy turned 70, he and his Perkins siblings were together in Idaho. Andy looked at a family photo and said to his sister, Priscilla (my wife): “Who’s the one who doesn’t look like the others? Sometimes I wonder if I’m adopted.” Priscilla laughed it off, of course. But now it makes sense.

Two days after Candi made her discovery, she went with her sister to tell her dad. Andy received the news well, and he called Priscilla shortly after hearing it and said, “I have something to tell you that you’re not going to believe.” Then, a week later, he flew to Idaho to tell his 90-year old mom what he had discovered. She took it well and said, “It’s hard to think that I didn’t give birth to Andy, but he’s still our boy.”

A couple of weeks later, Candi reached out to the Robinson family. There’s really no protocol for contacting a family to tell them that their oldest brother had been switched at birth and is still living! Thankfully, the two Robinson siblings Candi contacted were elated. One said, “This is the best news I’ve ever received!”

A few weeks later, Andy’s biological sister, Sally, and her husband visited Andy and his family in Texas. They had a great visit. Since then, Andy has been able to spend time with all of his biological siblings. Their parents had already passed, so Andy never had the opportunity to meet his biological father and mother. Priscilla and I met Andy’s biological sister, Sally, about four years ago in Idaho at a family reunion.

It’s been interesting to learn how Andy resembles his biological parents. The physical resemblance is definitely there, but so are the personality traits. He has some of the same leadership traits as his biological dad, an executive with State Farm. Andy was the youngest court reporter for the US Army during the Vietnam War, and he even made forays into North Korea. Then, when he was a printing broker, he handled the account for the Texas Rangers and worked closely with their owner—George Bush, the eventual 43rd president of the United States. The two spent enough time together that Bush started referring to Andy as “Perk.” Then about 25 years ago, Andy founded BESTWA, a ministry that works in Liberia training leaders, feeding children, and helping families stay together. He has traveled to Liberia over 30 times.

This switched-at-birth story has led to some lighter moments. Priscilla jokes with Andy that he really is her brother from another mother! And I wish him “happy birthdays” (plural) when September 13 rolls around.

Yet, the story still seems surreal to us. While we don’t understand why God allowed this to happen, we’re grateful that he was watching over the events that took place in a little hospital in New York state during the early morning hours of September 13, 1949. As the Heidelberg Catechism says, “He [God] also preserves me in such a way that without the will of my heavenly Father not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, all things must work together for my salvation.”

That is all we know, but it is enough. God is good, and he is in control of all the details in our lives—even the ones we struggle to comprehend.

Personal Update

I have had a lot of papers to grade this week for the two online courses I am teaching at Moody Theological Seminary. I have also been updating my notes on Genesis and Exodus for the class I will teach next week (Tuesday and Wednesday) for Western Seminary in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I look forward to meeting a new group of graduate students and taking them through the Bible during the next academic year.

As far as reading this week, I’ve been dabbling in commentaries and monographs on the books of Genesis and Exodus. But I also took time to re-read something lighter. It’s The Fly Fisher's Book of Lists by my friend, Dave Goetz, and me.

It’s simply a fun little read that we enjoyed writing together. We’re working on another book idea. I’ll share more when there is more to share.

Grandkids Corner

My son, Luke, sent this photo of our grandson, Dakota (1 1/2). He added this caption: “Dirt and pizza all over his face. It’s been a good evening!” Yes, most boys love playing in the dirt and eating pizza for supper. It’s a great combination.

Boys also like breakfast. Last week, our grandson Blake (almost 14, and pictured below) was telling us about his favorite breakfast food that his mom—our daughter, Anna—makes for him. He told us that she puts Jim Beam in it. What?!

Upon further questioning, we figured out that Blake meant “Jimmy Dean,” not Jim Beam. So, the secret ingredient in his favorite breakfast food is sausage, not 80-proof Kentucky Bourbon whiskey!

Thanks as always for reading this. Have a good weekend!