RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) - Sharon Crickmar grew up in Binghamton, New York, with her parents and brother.

"They sat both of us down, and they waited until I was a little older before they told him," said Crickmar.

That's when Crickmar learned she and her brother were adopted from two different families.

"We always wondered, I think he and I both did, who was out there. Are they out there? Will we ever find them?" said Crickmar.

Despite the challenges of a closed adoption system in New York, Sharon's determination never wavered. She kept running into roadblocks, but she never gave up hope.

"The problem in New York is that any adoptions from the 70s were sealed," she explained, but she was undeterred.

So, she signed up for 23andMe, hoping to mainly learn more about her genetic history. That's when she got the surprise of a lifetime on Nov. 30, 2023.

"I got results saying I had a mom match, and I almost fell on the floor," said Crickmar.

And a few days prior, Shirley Bendeck, 1,300 miles away in Lubbock, Texas, still wondered if the child she gave up for adoption would ever find her.

"Two days prior, my husband and I were watching a movie, and it was about this girl who finds her birth mom. So after the movie, my husband asked if I thought she would ever find you. Cause I had signed papers, I can't look for her," Bendeck said.

So, after Sharon got the notification from 23andMe, she checked out the profile of who the site said was her birth mother. "She looked exactly like me. I said, oh my god, she looks exactly like me, and my husband says that's scary," said Bendeck.

That's when she decided to send her a message.

"On Nov. 30, I was walking into the house from the garage, and I got that message from her on my phone," said Bendeck.

"I said, oh my gosh, he goes what? And I said, I think she found me? He goes who, and I said, my daughter," said Crickmar.

The first phone call was a moment of intense emotion, a culmination of years of longing and hope. It was an answered prayer for both Sharon and Shirley.

"We must have talked for four hours. It was amazing," Sharon recalled, her voice filled with the same wonder and joy she felt that day.

For Sharon, her family grew instantly.

"I have siblings, I have cousins, and I have family. I was like my family was very small growing up, and a lot of my family has passed away," she shared, her voice tinged with the joy of her newfound connections.

Sharon quickly learned answers to so many questions.

"I was young. I was 18 when I was pregnant with her, and I turned 19 when I gave birth," said Bendeck.

Shirley went on to join the Army Reserves and serve on active duty. About a year later, she met her husband of 46 years, and they married a year later. They had their first child together three years after she gave Sharon up for adoption. Today, they have two daughters and have adopted two sons.

"I have a husband who also supported me, and he knew before we even married, and he has always been by my side," said Bendeck.

Together, they revealed to their four children about their half-sister when they were in junior high school. She says one of her daughters encouraged her to get on 23andMe.

"She kind of tricked me into doing it because apparently, my other two daughters were conspiring to find their half-sister," said Bendeck.

It worked, and Shirley finally met Sharon in March of this year. It's the Christmas miracle these two have waited 49 years to share.

"It's a true blessing. I never thought I would have a wonderful family like this," said Sharon.

"It was just amazing. It was an answer to prayer," said Bendeck.

A 23andMe spokesperson says, "With genetic testing readily available to consumers, we increasingly hear stories of families discovering and reuniting with newfound relatives. Although 23andMe was not designed specifically to help people confirm parentage or find biological parents, our DNA Relatives tool does help people discover and connect with participating genetic relatives. This feature is completely optional, meaning customers must actively choose to participate and be informed upfront that by using the tool, they may discover unexpected relationships."