Fifteen years ago, Stephanie Lovatos’ two-year-old daughter, Celina Aquirie, disappeared with Celina’s father.Lovatos says she never stopped searching for Celina, but it wasn’t until late last month that she found her, through a popular teen Web site, MySpace.com.
The site is frequently in the news as a place where child predators try to find victims, but the case of Lovatos and Celina is very different.
The two had an emotional reunion Friday night at San Francisco International Airport.
“It’s been an amazing time for me,” Celina told The Early Show co-anchor Julie Chen Wednesday. “I never thought this day would happen, and it’s just wonderful to be sitting next to her right now.”
Earlier, Lovatos told CBS News, “The clock couldn’t move fast enough,” in the airport, as she awaited Celina’s arrival. “I was going toward the gate, looking, watching the clock. They were the longest minutes of my life. Then, I started feeling the reaction. … ‘Oh, my God.’ I was never so terrified. I was hyperventilating. I was a wreck.”
Lovatos gave birth to Celina in Maui, Hawaii in May of 1989. She had shared custody with her boyfriend, but left him for a new life in California in 1991, taking Celina with her.
When Lovatos couldn’t find a home she considered suitable for her and the toddler, she asked the boyfriend in Maui to care for Celina temporarily.
The boyfriend and his new wife left Maui, without telling Lovatos. It turned out that they moved to Florida, and told Celina the boyfriend’s wife was her mother.
It was only when Celina stumbled on her birth certificate when she was 13 that she learned the truth.
All that time, says Lovatos, she was desperately trying to find her daughter.
“Back then, obviously, there was no Internet or anything like that,” she told Chen. “So, I first tried to get legal advice, and that’s when I was notified that neither of us had actual legal custody of her and, because of that, there was nothing (police) could do. I was just told that my best bet was just to find them on my own, and then I could, you know, obviously, try for my custody then.”
She never married, had three other children, earned a master’s degree in business, bought a home in San Jose, Calif., and is a project manager for a construction company.
Then, out of the blue, a brainstorm hit Lovatos: Why not use MySpace?
She had someone create a page for her in February and, in the area asking whom she’d like to meet, she put Celina’s name, saying: “If you ever see this, I have not seen you since you were two. I have been looking for you all this time. Get a hold of me. I have important information to tell you.”
On June 14, Lovatos got a call from a long-lost cousin, which made Lovatos realize she could access the MySpace search functionality.
Within minutes, Lovatos had found Celina’s page.
“I kept thinking,” Lovatos says, “twenty minutes on a … Web site, after 15 years of phone calls and searching,” is what it took.
Ironically, Celina says she doesn’t go on MySpace, and her boyfriend had created the page for her.
It took some phone calls and the intervention of that boyfriend and Lovatos’ best friend to finally hook them up but, when it happened, 15 years of anxiety came to an end.
“I said Celina, ‘This is Mom,” Lovatos recalls. “I started to choke up, and said, ‘Look, hear me out, don’t hang up. I just you need to know, I never abandoned you. You were taken from me, no one has ever let me know where you are. The past 15 years, I’ve never given up. I’ve looked for you. I love you and miss you.”
Celina says she’s note sure whether she’ll stay in California with Lovatos or return to Florida and her father.
January 8th, 2007 at 12:10 pm
nice site, very informative, well designed, easy to use … what can i say ? i love it…
January 9th, 2007 at 8:15 am
i really loved your site and found it to be very friendly and helpfull.
January 10th, 2007 at 5:39 pm
Nice site try it here.
January 11th, 2007 at 12:17 am
Hi My wife and I would like to thank you all for this web site. Hours of pleasure and all
January 12th, 2007 at 3:09 pm
Hi, I really apreciated this website! Thanks
January 12th, 2007 at 3:10 pm
I like your website ,and like to communicate with everyone on this issue!
January 15th, 2007 at 2:04 pm
COOL !!!
January 16th, 2007 at 6:45 am
Nice work chief ;-)
January 18th, 2007 at 4:55 pm
The stuff on this web site is really witty and cool wise
January 22nd, 2007 at 11:00 pm
a really great homepage! i’m a big fan of your stuff although i’m just 16!
January 22nd, 2007 at 11:01 pm
Thank you for providing this site and guest book.
January 24th, 2007 at 5:09 am
Thank you, I just wanted to give a greeting and tell you I enjoyed reading your material.
January 24th, 2007 at 5:32 pm
Great site! Best wishes!
January 26th, 2007 at 8:11 am
Double WOW 2 your design!
January 26th, 2007 at 8:12 am
perfect site !!!!!!!! Perfect piece of work fellows !!!!!!!
January 26th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
Thank you, I just wanted to give a greeting and tell you I like your website very much.
January 29th, 2007 at 12:03 am
I dont even remember how i reached your site but it doesnt matter, cause i’m so happy i found it, it really made me think, keep up the good work
January 29th, 2007 at 4:05 am
Your site is also very interesting, very calming effect just reading it. Will spend more time with certain areas. Well done and good luck with your work.
January 30th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
A very very nice site with helpful informations! So keep up the good work - I already added the site to my personal favourites. All the best!
February 1st, 2007 at 4:17 am
Logging into this website should be a requirement for anyone knowledgeable on earth these days…
February 1st, 2007 at 9:26 am
The stuff on this web site is really witty and cool wise
February 2nd, 2007 at 7:14 am
Your site is also very interesting, very calming effect just reading it. Will spend more time with certain areas. Well done and good luck with your work.
February 3rd, 2007 at 3:57 am
It´s a very good website you have here,
February 6th, 2007 at 5:50 pm
I used this site to get information for that i had in my class. This is an excellent site for this information :)
February 6th, 2007 at 11:26 pm
I just surfed in and found your site, I really enjoyed the visit and hope to come back soon. nice Site!
February 7th, 2007 at 5:37 am
Warm greetings! Thanks for all the information, a very nice and well done site! Cheers.
February 7th, 2007 at 11:48 am
I like the way you set up that your info is the homepage, nicely done. Thanks!
February 7th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
SarahBell ( ) wrote:
February 8th, 2007 at 6:59 am
Salut !
February 8th, 2007 at 7:00 am
This is a very beautiful website, I have enjoyed my visit here very much. I’m very honoured to sign in your guestbook. Thanking you for the great work that you are doing here.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:51 am
good URL!!!!!!!!!!!!
February 11th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
Great stuff here guys, check this site out!
February 12th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
What a nice site, been surfing on it for the whole night and day and i neva got bored for a single minute. Keep up your good work and all of the best in everything you do! :-)
February 12th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
This is one super duper site
February 12th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
Hi there, I must say that you have done a wonderful job on your site and I thoroughly enjoyed my stay here, I thank you for sharing it with me…
February 12th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
Go there guys buy prescription medications that are used to relax your body, relax your muscles.
February 13th, 2007 at 7:25 pm
Boy, this is some high-class site
February 14th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
Got here and seen your stuff - way to go!
February 14th, 2007 at 4:29 pm
Great Site, Yeah. Hope you can improve it again!
February 15th, 2007 at 7:03 am
I am happy to see this site so much. It is always nice to hear such good news as your site.
February 15th, 2007 at 3:29 pm
Just wanted to say hi, thanks and bye
February 15th, 2007 at 3:30 pm
Hello, What a beautiful and awesome site. I adore what you’ve done with your setup and graphics. Thanks you so much.
April 23rd, 2007 at 9:28 pm
hot man pants…
The hot man pants…
July 18th, 2007 at 10:25 pm
This site is put together well!