Michelle Jones’ (46) 16-year-long search for her biological mother has led her to Standerton, where she has received many tips suggesting to the possibility of her birth parents being Standerton residents.

Jones is a Cape Town resident who grew up in Mitchells Plain with her loving adoptive family.

According to Jones, she was adopted at three weeks old through Barmhartigheidsdienste in 1979.

“My mother did not give me much information about my birth parents. She only told me that my birth mother was 16 when I was born and that my surname at the time of adoption was Van Vooren,” said Jones.

According to Jones, her parents decided on adoption after her adoptive mother had suffered an ectopic pregnancy and had to have a fallopian tube removed.

“At the time, adoption protocol called for parents to adopt children who would look similar to them, to ensure that the children did not feel left out or different in the family environment,” explained Jones.

When her parents visited the adoption centre, there were many babies in cribs, but only one with a smile like hers.
After she had smiled at them, the Joneses decided she was their daughter.

They did not mind the protocol, and despite the baby not bearing much resemblance to them, Jones never felt left out.

She found out she was adopted when she was six years old, but did not start pursuing her birth mother until she turned 30.

The search for her biological parents has taken her all over the country and eventually brought her to her latest lead in Standerton, 1 452km away from her hometown.

According to Jones, the decision to track down her birth mother stemmed from her own values.

“I know that if I had given a baby up for adoption, I would wonder about their well-being and their lives every day. I want to take this opportunity to give myself and my birth mother closure and finally find out where I came from,” stated Jones.

The biggest challenge she faced because she was adopted is not having any background on where or how her life began. Jones went through life not knowing much about her heritage, medical background or birth family.

She passively started researching ancestry, visiting adoption centres and applying for a vault copy of her original birth certificate.

Jones did not decide to take her story to social media until the start of 2025.

Her first stop on this nationwide journey was Namaqualand, where she began posting her video on Facebook groups.

According to Jones, a commenter reached out and explained that Van Vooren is not a common surname in the area, but told Jones more about the Van Vooren family history.

“She told me that the Van Voorens were once landowners in Mpumalanga, but lost their farms due to apartheid. They then moved to a mining town, but the family scattered once the mines shut down,” explained Jones.

Through this, she received a tip stating that the Van Vooren family was scattered all over Johannesburg, KwaZulu-Natal, and Standerton.

“I requested to post my story on many local groups, and most of them were rejected, but the Standerton Sentraal group allowed my post,” explained Jones.

According to Jones, this lead to local Van Voorens contacting her, offering to have DNA tests done.

Jones is optimistic, and after speaking to many people, she hopes that this lead will finally reunite her with her birth mother.

“During this journey, I have learned so much and heard so many stories of other adopted children reuniting with their birth parents,” said Jones.

She worked closely with social workers and therapists and accepted the many ways this endeavour could end.
She accepted multiple outcomes and endured several challenges.

Anyone with information that can lead Jones to her birth family can contact her via her Facebook page or e-mail at Michellejones2601@gmail.com