Irish-Moroccan Teen Reunites with Long-Lost Father After Facebook Search

Raised by her mother, Caitlin McKinney, 18, did not know her father Bachir. Luckily, she found him on Facebook in 2020. Since then, they have started talking on the phone. "It was one of my dreams to meet my father one day. On every birthday, I blew out the candles and that was my wish," Caitlin confides. "When we started talking, I was so excited at the idea that I could one day have my father in my life."

Accompanied by her 21-year-old boyfriend Leonardo McGlinchey, the young woman went to Dover on August 27th to surprise her father at his workplace (a pub). "I didn’t sleep at all the night before because I was excited. Seeing my father was just amazing, he couldn’t believe it. Just before we met, I kept telling my boyfriend: ’That’s my father, that’s my father!’"

During their meeting, they agreed on a family trip to Morocco. This trip will allow Caitlin to meet not only her father’s extended family members, but it will also be an opportunity for her to learn more about her Irish-Moroccan heritage. "It’s good to be able to learn more about my father’s culture because I didn’t know much about it," the young woman said.

Before this trip, Caitlin plans to meet her half-siblings. "I’m so excited to meet my half-siblings and my new little sister. I felt like something was missing in my life because I didn’t know my father - and now it finally feels complete."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ablOuU1O3rI