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March 13, 2013
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Vol. 35, No. 52
PO Box 603, Wabash, IN 46992 (260) 563-8326
Sisters reunite after adoption separates them 60 years ago
by Ashley Flynn features@ thepaperofwabash.com At seven years old, Maryanne Stanley sat with her 16-monthold sister, Teri, on a curb and waited for a stranger to pick them up. A family she had never met pulled up, took Teri from her arms, and drove away. Maryanne sat alone as she waited her turn, and then another car pulled up. Now, for the first time in 60 years, the sisters have reunited to spend the week together and celebrate birthdays. “For 60 years, we haven’t been able to celebrate birthdays together. She (Teri) will be 61, so I said I was going to make it happen, and I made it happen. I’m baking the first cake I’ve ever made for her,” Maryanne told The Paper of Wabash. Teri “Rose” Sluss has lived in Wabash for 12 years, and this is Maryanne’s first time in Indiana. Maryanne and Teri both grew up in Texas less than 30 minutes apart. “Our dad had a stroke and was sent away to a mental hospital, and our mom couldn’t afford us. We had three brothers; one passed away. James and George were adopted by the same family,” Maryanne said. All five of them were never all together at once again. The children’s aunt offered to care for them, but a judge would not allow it due to her circumstances. He wanted to put them in social services, but the mother would not allow that. Instead, she arranged for families to take them, but no one would adopt all five children. Two years after their separation, their biological mother died at the age of 34 when a hot water heater exploded on her causing third degree burns. Maryanne can still remember the day a family pulled up and took her baby sister from her. “She was my baby. I raised her. I changed that baby’s dirty cloth diapers and dipped them in the commode. I rocked her to sleep at night. I took care of my baby sister because our mother worked nights in bars,” Maryanne said. “My (adoptive) mother would always ask me why I didn’t take my sister and run with her, but I was 7 years
old. I was just a kid.” The family that took Maryanne from the curb never had the intention of adopting her, but they gave her a good home until they found a family that would. “They found a most perfect family. I stayed with them about a year and spent my eighth birthday with them. I remember because she made a cake and Kool-Aid. And then a family from Groves, Texas heard about me. They found my biological mother and asked if they could take me. She said, ‘yeah go ahead and take her, she’s a good little worker’,” said Maryanne. Although the girls grew up so close to each other, Teri’s adoptive parents would not allow her to see her sister, but Maryanne’s mother had a different outlook. She never kept anything from her and wanted the sisters to connect. “As children, my mom called (Teri’s mom) because I said I wanted to see my sister, and they knew where she was. They dropped her off and within five minutes they came back and said “come on, Teri, it’s time to go,” Maryanne said. “I was so excited because I really liked hotdogs, and her mother was going to make us hotdogs. About as soon as I walked in, they were back. They just drove around the block, and took me home and wouldn’t let me visit. They never would give me a reason,” Teri said. It was not until 1984, when the girls were grown, that they became in full contact. Due to an ectopic pregnancy, Maryanne was having a nervous breakdown. “I had remembered growing up and my parents talking about the Flags. That name stuck in my head. When I was having my nervous breakdown, the doctors just kept saying let her talk. All of a sudden, I told my ex-husband Flag. I said my sister’s last name is Flag, and she lives in Groves, Texas,” Teri said. Her husband did some research and found Maryanne’s mother who then gave him Maryanne’s number. “Someone called and said ‘is this Maryanne,’ and I said ‘yeah.’ They said ‘your sister is looking for you’.
TERI “ROSE” SLUSS (LEFT), WABASH, AND HER SISTER MARYANNE STANLEY, Texas, will celebrate their birthdays together for the first time in 60 years. The sisters were separated as children when they were adopted into different families. They grew up in town approximately 20 minutes apart, but did not reconnect until they were adults. (photo by Ashley Flynn) Maryanne and her husband called off work and left. They drove all night, and 19 hours later, they arrived at the hospital. “When we met, the doctors and nurses were in tears. We connected instantly. I walked in as they were rolling her away for surgery,” Maryanne said. “After surgery, I remember you standing at the foot of my bed and praying for me,” Teri said to Maryanne. “I was going through a really tough time. It was an ectopic pregnancy, and you lose a lot of blood and have a chance of not having any more kids.” Teri has had two ectopic pregnancies and one successful one gave her a son, Jack Wayne Russell whom she calls Scooter. “Ironically, I was working in Baytown, Texas when she (Teri) had her son in the same hospital I was working processing. We were that close to find-
ing each other,” Maryanne said. “I didn’t know her last name. Her adoptive parents wouldn’t let me know anything about her, but the day she had her baby, I was working right down the hall doing processing.” “She processed my son’s name and had no idea,” said Teri. Maryanne also has children, one girl and two boys. Since the sister’s first reunion at the hospital, they have constantly kept in touch. “We kept in regular contact through phone and email and short visits,” Maryanne said, but this is the first time the ladies will spend a week together since their separation. “This is our first holiday together, first birthday. That’s something I could never understand (growing up). Why couldn’t I spend a birthday with my sister,” Teri said.
Since the reunion, the sisters have found out they have a lot in common, including they use the same hairspray and both own a Maltese. During their week together they plan on spending most of their time inside enjoying each other’s company. Maryanne wants to walk around downtown, and Teri would like to show her the Wabash County Museum and Honeywell Center. “We are just going to sit back and enjoy each other and thank God for the desires of our hearts and that he’s granted that,” Teri said. “When God grants you the desire of your heart, and it’s something you never expected, you can’t sleep. You keep thinking ‘is this really going to happen.’ This will be the greatest birthday I’ve ever had.”