"Sheer joy" as best friends reunite after overseas adoption

PLANO, TEXAS — Two orphans in China only had each other.  But the best friends were separated when one of them found a new family.  After a year apart, the two have been brought together again on the other side of the world.

Three-year-old Dawson and four-year-old Hannah saw each other again for the first time in 11 months at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.  Hugging and falling over in a display of sheer joy.

“They must have hugged 400 times. They kept hugging and getting so giddy that they would fall over,” said Dawson’s mom Amy Clary.

“That went on for like 20 minutes,” added Sharon Sykes, who is Hannah’s mother.

Before they were a part of their North Texas families, Hannah and Dawson had each other. They had been inseparable at the orphanage in China where they had essentially spent their entire lives.

“They had so little connection, and so little consistency-- they [only] had each other for those first formative years,” explained Sykes.

In nearly every photo update the family received from their adoption agency, their daughter Hannah was next to her best friend. The two were always playing together and always holding hands.

“They call each other brother and sister,” said Sykes.

Hannah and Dawson’s close relationship became apparent to Sykes as she and her husband were going through the adoption process.

Bringing Hannah home to North Texas meant leaving Dawson behind. Sykes was determined to find him a loving home, so she shared his story on Facebook.

“He was on my heart. Really, I couldn’t stop thinking of him,” said Sykes.

Through a mutual friend, Clary learned about the Facebook post. The Clary’s already had a full house. They have three kids under five-years-old, but they also had an open heart.

Her husband Christopher jokes about how fast the decision to adopt was made: “I was gone for 45 seconds, maybe it was two minutes, and then [she] said, “We’re adopting this little boy. I just said okay.”

Nearly a year later, Dawson and Hannah were picking up where they left off. This time, they’re neighbors. The families live about five minutes away from each other.

Through their children, and through adoption, two families have become one.

“It’s not really what we’re doing for these kids. It’s what they’re doing for us,” said Andy Sykes.

“You think you’re doing something for them, and our lives have been so blessed,” added Sharon Sykes.

Both children were likely abandoned for medical reasons.  Hannah had a cleft lip and Dawson HAS a brain fluid condition.

Cox Media Group