 | http://www.forestlaketimes.com/2005/January/19119erbesstory.html
In search of his family
Jessica Foster
Staff Writer
Michael Erbes knows he has family in Forest Lake.
Possibly a mother and a father.
A whole passel of brothers and sisters.
Aunts. Uncles. Cousins. Nieces. Nephews.
But he doesn’t know a single one of them.
Erbes was born at District Memorial Hospital at 4:48 a.m. January 26, 1967.
This year, the man who makes his home in Grand Island, NE, can’t quite
imagine a better present for his thirty eighth birthday than learning the
origin of his roots.
Adopted at birth, Erbes has been searching for his birth mother since he was
16-years-old.
“They told me to call back when I was 18. I did and they still couldn’t
tell me anything,” Erbes said.
About four years ago he bought a computer in hopes it would help with his
search in finding people who look like him. But he has had little luck in
finding answers.
He found an agency to help him, but they said it would cost him $700—with no
guarantees.
Still, he pushes on. In the Dec. 23 issue of Forest Lake Times, Erbes ran an ad
seeking his birth parents.
He is unsure if it did any good.
“I got two or three calls that came up on our phone as unavailable and when I
picked up the other end was open but they wouldn’t say anything; it could be
nothing,” Erbes said.
Erbes said, he yearns to meet the woman who gave him life.
“I have no problems with what happened,” Erbes said. “I just want to meet
her before she passes away. I have this feeling time will get away from me and
she will pass away before I can find her.”
Too, he would like to meet the others he shares DNA, if not memories.
“It would be nice to see that everybody’s all right,” Erbes said of his
reported 10 siblings.
“I’ve only had one brother my whole life,” he said.
Clues
Over the years, Erbes has learned snippets about the family he came from.
From a non identifying social history released by Lutheran Social Services of
Minnesota—which handled the adoption—Erbes has learned snippets of his
life.
Strung together, these snippets comprise the clues of his family here.
He knows he weighed 5 lbs. and 9 oz. at birth, was 19½ inches long and had a
head circumference of 13¼ inches and a chest circumference of 11¾ inches.
Upon leaving District Memorial Hospital, he went to a foster home where he
lived until May 12, 1967 when he was adopted by the Erbes family.
When he was born, his mother was 37-years-old and listed her nationality as
Norwegian, German and Irish.
She was a member of a Lutheran congregation where she was involved with a group
of ladies in her church. She enjoyed spending time with her children, to cook
and sew.
Her father died of a heart attack when he was 62; her mother died of a heart
attack at 71.
She had 11 brothers and sisters. At the time of Erbes’ birth, two of his
mother’s brothers were deceased—one of pneumonia at 21 and the other of
strangulation at 4 days old.
One of her brothers was a factory worker. One was a carpenter. One served in
the U.S. Navy.
One sister was a nurse’s aide. One was a cook. One was a baby sitter who
worked in a bakery.
Many sisters were housewives. Her younger siblings were students. Two brothers
were in pre-school in 1967.
His mother, who was divorced, had 10 children. Of them, two daughters were
married. Her first son died from choking when he was an infant. As a single
mother, she was making a home for six children at the time of Erbes’ birth.
He is told his siblings were light complected and had blue or green eyes except
for the youngest who had darker hair and brown eyes.
His father was in his 40s and the nationality is unknown. He spent 21 years
serving in the armed services and was said to have a good sense of humor.
The report says he was 5-5, heavy-set in build with dark hair and gray eyes.
Reportedly, Erbes’ mother had known him for about seven years.
Life today
Erbes and his wife, Linda, have two children, Darren, 16 and Tara, 14.
His family, Erbes said, is as nervous about this search as he is.
His adoptive parents, who live west of Minneapolis, support Erbes’ search for
his biological family.
He is employed as a mechanical engineer in a cold storage warehouse.
Describing himself, Erbes said he is “easy going” and “gets along with
just about everybody.” It is a description that fits the description he was
given of his birth father.
Like his birth mother, he has long suffered from sinus headaches.
In his spare time, Erbes said he likes to ride motorcycles and go bow hunting
with his son.
Contact info
It is Erbes’ hope that this article will prompt a family member, or anyone
with information relating to his family, to contact him.
“I just hope someone will read it and start thinking about it and put two and
two together,” he said.
Erbes can be reached by calling 308-384-1539 or 308-390-3962.
He also can be reached via email at lerbes@kdsi.net.
And if someone does contact him?
“I think I’d probably take a road trip,” Erbes said. “I’d like to
meet them.”
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A good friend will come and bail you out of jail . . . but, a true friend will
be sitting next to you saying, "Damn . . . that was fun!"
-----Unknown
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