Jennifer Skiles, 46, finally connected with her biological father, Paul Lonardo, 66, in 2022 after decades of searching. The initial phone call, arranged for 7 p.m., marked the end of a long journey that began when Skiles started looking for her birth parents at the age of 19. Skiles, who was adopted as a toddler, had pieced together information from records and DNA databases before discovering Lonardo, a retired Army serviceman living in Cranston, Rhode Island.

Lonardo, who served in the Army from 1975 to 1979 and was stationed at Fort Dix in New Jersey during the late 1970s, had been unaware of Skiles’s existence until his son was contacted in early 2022 by a woman seeking a man named Paul Lonardo. The woman claimed to be Lonardo’s daughter. At the time, Lonardo had moved on to a civilian life as a carpenter, married with three children.

Their first conversation confirmed a natural bond. They shared physical traits and habits, such as both being left-handed and having the same blood type. The initial phone call quickly led to daily conversations, and a paternity test confirmed their relationship on Father’s Day 2022.

Skiles, who grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee, learned that her biological mother, Cheryl Brown, had been in an abusive relationship and placed her for adoption for safety reasons. Brown, who had met Lonardo while both were stationed at Fort Dix, died in a car accident in 2017. Before her death, Brown encouraged Skiles to find her father, recounting memories of a brief romance with Lonardo that ended after a weekend trip to New York City.

Following the confirmation of paternity, Lonardo visited Skiles in Knoxville, where they quickly developed a close relationship. Lonardo also met Brown’s extended family, and Skiles has grown close to Lonardo’s wife and three children. Lonardo has embraced Skiles’s husband and three adult children as well, with Skiles’s children calling him “Grandpa.”

In early 2026, Lonardo formally adopted Skiles, an event celebrated by their extended family at city hall in Cranston. The adoption legally recognized their long-awaited father-daughter bond. Skiles, who has documented her experience in a book titled “Vault of Treasures,” expressed hope that her story offers inspiration to others seeking family connections.

Since reunited, the family has frequently visited each other, and Skiles has traveled to Italy to explore her paternal heritage. Lonardo, who had kept a small bar of soap from the Hotel Chelsea where he spent that pivotal weekend with Brown, regards the reunion as a profoundly meaningful chapter in both their lives. “We’re making up for lost time,” he said, reflecting the couple’s eagerness to nurture the relationship that had eluded them for nearly five decades.