Siblings Joseph Lambert and Donna Morin waited anxiously at Winnipeg Richardson International Airport for a sister they had never met.
"I'll probably just be crying. It's hard to say what's going to happen because I'm in shock still," said Morin.
They and their sister Melody Roberts are survivors of the '60s Scoop, a Canadian government policy from the 1950s to the 1980s that removed Indigenous children from their families and placed them with non-Indigenous adopters.
When Roberts arrived from Oregon, the three embraced in tears.
"The heart is just bursting, bursting with happiness," said Roberts.
The reunion was facilitated by the Hope Centre and the '60s Scoop Alliance of Manitoba, who located Roberts through post-adoption records.
"I think their story needs to be told," said Susanna Tasse, a community outreach coordinator with the Hope Centre. "It's heartbreaking that the parents aren't here."
Recent studies estimate around 20,000 children were taken under the '60s Scoop. Advocates say funding for family reunification programs has lapsed, and they are lobbying for its restoration.
The siblings plan to continue building their relationship, including a future visit to Roberts' home in Oregon.