What began as a heartfelt plea on social media has blossomed into a powerful story of hope, persistence and the kindness of strangers across continents.
A man in Taiwan, searching for the half-sister he had not seen in more than 30 years, has finally been reunited with his family — thanks in part to the compassion of South Africans, including a community in Gqeberha who rallied behind his call.
Jay Lin, 42, from Taiwan, recently appealed to South Africans for help in finding his half-sister, Cindy, who lived in Greenshields Park, Gqeberha, when she was a teenager.
He said they shared the same mother, Olive, but grew up on opposite sides of the world.
“Cindy is my half-sister,” he said.
“We share the same mother.
“Cindy grew up in SA, while I grew up in Taiwan.
“Over time, we lost contact and did not know where the other was living.”
He explained that she had written letters and sent photographs to him from SA when she was about 17 and in her final year of high school.
Though he was just a child and could not understand English, he carefully kept every letter and photograph for more than three decades, never forgetting his sister.
“I tried many times over the years to understand those letters,” he said.
“As a child, I bought an English dictionary and tried to translate them word by word.
“However, Cindy wrote in cursive and I struggled to read it.
“Later, when English classes became available, I gathered the courage to ask my teacher for help.
“Instead of translating the letters, my teacher encouraged me to study hard and learn enough English to read them myself one day.”
His breakthrough came after using artificial intelligence tools to organise the information he had and identify local community groups in Gqeberha, where he shared his appeal.
It was after posting in the Facebook group “People of Port Elizabeth” that he received the life-changing information that led him to his sister.
At first, the response was slow, but everything changed within hours as the post spread across social media.
Soon, people recognised the people in the photographs and helped reunite the siblings.
“The post suddenly began spreading.
“Thousands of people saw it, shared it and offered help.
“Within a very short time, the people in the photograph were identified and soon after that I was reunited with my sister.
“I never imagined that so many strangers would help a person from Taiwan find family members in SA.”
He said he was now reconnecting with his half-sister, his brother and other relatives by sharing photographs, memories and everyday moments.
“Today I am simply grateful.
“I am grateful to Cindy, to my family, and to the thousands of people who shared my post.
“Because of their kindness, I was able to reconnect with my sister after so many years.
“To everyone in SA and around the world who helped, thank you.
“Your kindness changed my life.”
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