How to Find Lost Family Members Using the Internet

Choose Your Search Method
If you're lucky, simply typing your loved one's name into search engine may be enough to track him or her down. However, often it will take more than this. You could also try using a private, but running at $50-$100 hour, a PI could put quite a dent in your budget.

A much less costly, yet still effective, option would be to use an online people search engine, the nice thing about doing it this way is it provides at no cost the same information other sites charge for. If you know basic information about the family member you are looking for, it's likely he or she will turn up.

Gather Your Information
You may not know much, but every bit of information you have about your family member will help narrow the search down. Because there are so many people with the same name in the United States, it's important to know some distinguishing factor. For example, knowing their birth year, their place of birth, or their last known state of residence, will be a big help. Plug this information into the search engine, and see who comes up.

Plan How to Approach Your Family Member
Once you've found out your family member's contact information, it's time to plan what you'll say to them. You haven't spoken to this person in years, or perhaps you've never gotten the chance to. Reestablishing contact may be quite a shock to them. Keep in mind, that through your search you have had time to adjust to the idea of speaking with them-but they have not been afforded this luxury. Therefore, approach your family member with the proper respect. Try sending them a letter to break the news that you'd like to establish contact. Let them know you'd like to call them sometime soon. Place your contact information in the letter, and wait a week or two to give them a chance to write or call you. If yu don't hear anything, go ahead and give the phone call a try.

How to Reconnect
Talking about something as simple as a shared memory, or speaking about your common heritage are great ways to start off the conversation. Remember, the reason you are reconnecting with this person is your shared history and your shared family bond, which is why you want to be in contact with them.

With more and more public records available online, finding lost family members is easier and less expensive than ever. Using free websites like gaetasearch.com are a great place to start your search. Just approach your family member with respect and sensitivity, and start reconnecting. Donna Gaeta created this search engine in 2007 and has been running it successfully for 2 years.

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