Hillary (far right, with Dawn and daughter Stella) had spent years trying to track down her half-sibling Dawn. Photo / Fox 8
A woman spent seven years searching for her long-lost sister - only to discover she had moved in next door after spotting her name on a delivery.
Hillary Harris, 31, from Eau Claire, Wisconsin, knew her sibling was called Dawn Johnson - and decided to ask her neighbour about her father after seeing her full name.
Johnson, 50, confirmed that they did indeed share the same father, Wayne Clouse, who died in 2002.
Harris had spent years trying to track down her long-lost siblings with no luck, until Johnson and her partner Kurt Casperson moved next door a year ago.
Harris and her brother Tyler Hardy, 33, were adopted 30 years ago, when they were just toddlers, the MailOnline reported.
She had decided to search for her biological family when she became pregnant with her daughter Stella, now 7.
Her adoption agency revealed the names of her birth parents but she was heartbroken to discover Clouse had died in 2002.
But when going through her file, Hillary discovered her late father's obituary, which mentioned his daughters Dawn Johnson and Renee Diericks, 49.
Harris tried, but failed, to track down her half-siblings on Facebook.
"For me this is 100 per cent fate. I was so sad when I discovered my biological father had passed away," Harris said.
"But by meeting Dawn, I feel like I have all the answers I will ever need. She's the missing puzzle piece I have been looking for for so many years."
She added: "For me something first clicked in June when I first found out her name was Dawn and she was from Greenwood.
"My husband and me joked for a few weeks that she was my sister but we didn't know her last name."
However, that changed when Harris spotted Johnson's last name on a delivery of roof shingles. "It was addressed to Dawn Johnson, the same name in Wayne's obituary," she explained.
"I began to shake. It was such an intense moment. It was late at night, but I finally got the courage to text her and ask her who her dad was.
"She confirmed it was Wayne. I told her we had a lot to talk about and she said, 'We have the same dad don't we?"
Harris described how she and half-sister Johnson have grown close since discovering they were related.
"When I met my birth mum I thought I would have this tingly feeling and an immediate bond and I didn't," she said. "With Dawn I felt an immediate connection."
Johnson, who did not grow up with her father but formed a relationship with him later in life, said: "It's such a weird coincidence.
"Of all the hundreds of thousands of homes we bought a house that shares a driveway with my sister.
"I was ecstatic and so was my sister Renee. She couldn't believe it."
After meeting her biological mother, Harris discovered she and her brother Tyler Hardy, a factory worker, were born as a result of an affair with Clouse.
Although Harris says Hardy was reluctant to meet Johnson at first, he finally agreed to meet his half-sibling.
Harris and Hardy plan to undergo DNA tests to officially confirm that Johnson and Diericks are their siblings.
Harris said: "We would hope to DNA tests soon but we're in no rush. My brother has met Dawn and said he would have no problem providing his DNA."
Johnson, who is mother to Todd, 29, and Tyler, 27, has enjoyed getting to know her new niece Stella, 7, and her brother-in-law Lance Harris, 44.
Johnson said: "I have become so close to Stella. I had only ever had boys so it is so fun to have a little girl playing in the front yard.
"Hopefully my boys will be able to meet the whole family soon."
Harris added: "Stella just loves Dawn. She thinks she so fun and has loved getting to know her and Kurt."
"I think all our bad luck with weird neighbors finally turned around because I feel so lucky to have found Dawn."