I was completely mesmerized by this beautiful story. The word I’d use for the many coincidences and overlaps is “kismet.” I believe that you, Matt, were watching the clock waiting for the time for this journey to unfurl. You did a spectacular job in telling it.

I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts recently while cleaning or trying to get some work done. This podcast had me captivated and invested in the story. I am very happy that there was a conclusion, and he told the whole story. I was also appreciative of him including contradicting opinions to his, because we all know in life that not everyone supports what you do. This was a great piece of investigative journalism and very well done!

This is a fantastic-search for your origin- story. So well done. I have been working on my own genealogy the last 10 years and have uncovered so many unbelievable secrets. Stories of seeking out personal truths are a fantastic listen. This one was exceptional.

Is ur mother serious? She “can’t remember” & she is most troubled by her reputation? How insanely selfish. This show is not worth the listen. It’s about her being a narcissist

Beautifully constructed & delivered.

The threads that connect us to one another—the messages we receive, the synchronicities we experience—are all present for us to discover , if we remain open and willing to embrace this truth. This story is a beautiful reminder of that.

Loved this. I am glad it worked out and he was able to get some sort of closure. Was surprised to hear how common this was and how wonderful to discover extended family.

Extraordinary facts involving a fascinating story…Matt’s journey taught me so much about the “inconceivable” idea of how infertility was medically treated back in the day without the couple knowing the real truth. Mixing sperm…Who knew?

So slow, not worth it. The narrator spends a lot of time recounting mundane details about his own life that contribute little to the main story.

What a beautiful origin story. My heart went along for this journey of self discovery and I am grateful to witness such a powerful experience. It was thought provoking and emotionally rich. Thank you for sharing your layers with the world.

Bravo! ✨

My mom found out in 1964 right before going to college that she was not her dad’s biological daughter. She was a result of an affair between my grandmother and a salesman that traveled in 1946. And she was born out of wed-lock to my grandmother. And she married later and that man adopted my mom. She, much later, found out who her bio-dad was and he had passed, she learned she had 5 half siblings, 4 of which she met and developed a minor relationship with them.

Just beautiful

I simply am blown away that this stuff even happened! I could relate to so much of the emotion. My mother was pregnant with me when she married the man I was raised to believe was my father. At 16 years old, my mother told me the truth. I found my bio father after many years of hunting and thanks to AncestryDNA. He hung up on my when I found him and mentioned my mother’s name. I had my answer. I still feel disconnected and trying to find where I belong. Thank you for this podcast!!

I know this podcast is supposed to be about this specific person’s story but I still found it be very hard to get through. There’s a lot of sort of “fluff” about the main character’s feelings and their slow, slow journey to truth while rushing through the more compelling parts of the story. It felt self indulgent and I ended up rolling my eyes more then once.

This is a beautifully told story. Couldn’t stop listening. There is so much true love and connection in this story. It’s a must listen!

One of my favorite podcasts, very emotional, beautiful and inspiring. Wonderful story.

I won’t spoil it for anyone…by I can honestly say I have listened to probably hundreds of podcast episodes and not one has ever made me FEEL the story so deeply. I have laughed and quite literally cried.

A beautiful story - but not a story - a history that so many are finding themselves in today at varying levels. I love the positivity that emerges even when Matt hit a dead end.

The vulnerability of Matt is so admirable. These are the stories that people want and need to hear in order to cope with their own pasts. The sharing of these stories is like therapy for the soul. Despite some folks in Matt’s life, telling him to not dig up the past, I kept cheering him on as the podcast continued. He had every right to unearth his past. Sure, unsettling feelings occurred but the magnitude of discovering his biological father has healed part of a wound that no one but Matt, could understand. Rock solid 🫶🏼

Loved this so much. It was great to join you on your journey!

Matt’s storytelling captures his inquisitive, gentle spirit while shedding light on the donor-conceived community. Matt’s family has a a treasure; Mom’s response to his discoveries is open, loving and encouraging. Well done, Matt!

It was easy to love this podcast. Matt Katz is a top-tier narrator, authentically telling his own story with complete vulnerability, honesty, and clarity. It has just the right amount of suspense & mystery, investigation, humor, and love. (As well as the general shock factor of how Matt was conceived.) Matt and his family are so likeable.

I started this without reading the synopsis. And I was blown away by this journey. I can’t even imagine what kind of emotional roller coaster finding your truth. Thank you for making the 9 hour drive for NC to PA an enjoyable trip. Listen to this!

The story is really fascinating and well told. I struggled because so many want to go back in history and judge what happened. It was a different time, a ground breaking time. It seems to me that many of the doctors who worked on helping couples at that time had the best of intentions. Unless they knowingly sought to hurt people, I think we have to give them the benefit of the doubt. Judging them with what we know know doesn’t seem fair

Enjoyed every minute of it.

Great story telling. Incredible!!

I watched a few different movies about this subject and also had read and listened to similar stories before listening to this one, but I guess that’s kind of to be expected since this apparently happened so much back in the day and people were so secretive about it. The host is a very likable and engaging guy, which kept me interested and listening.

Thank you for telling your story! It was fascinating, I couldn't pull myself away, I binged the whole thing in 1 day! Well done

I have to say, for my first podcast ever, yours was awesome and provided a shocker! A friend suggested it to me back in June knowing I enjoy genealogy, but I only got to it last night. We had both been searching our unknown families. She had been adopted and found her birth family which included 10 siblings. And I found my mom’s biological unmarried mother through DNA who had given her up at birth. And all the new 2nd cousins that I thought were my mom’s biological father’s side … nope, turns out my Dad’s father wasn’t the guy on the birth records. (My brother did the YDNA test.) And a DNA match led me to my Dad’s paternal grandmother, a Sweeney, from Co. Cork. And this DNA matches’ Sweeney’s are in H#22 in Carrighagulla, Macroom, while your grandmother Ellie Lehane and your ggf Michael Lynch are in H#7…. Wow! What are the odds of that???

IVF continues to this day to have serious ethical questions surrounding it and it’s important to wrestle with. You said it best when you stated that no one thought about the baby when they made these choices.

Loved this story telling!

Matt Katz is a professional through and through, and it shows in this well-done and thought-provoking series. He takes the listener along his personal journey of forming his biological identity and his sometimes emotional questions about how much or how little this impacts who he is now. This podcast is a gift that I highly recommend. Thank you!

Thank you for sharing this journey, Matt! This is one of the best podcasts I have ever listened to!! Family comes in so many forms but the base of it all is love!

I liked the history portions that were tied into his personal story in the first free episodes. Over time, I found there was too much time spent on Matt’s personal feelings, though, and I just disconnected a bit. I stopped listening a bit into the 7th episode. I lost interest in the story by that point. As a side note, it always amazes me how much bad language even reporters use when they know they are being recorded for public release. For me, at least, it takes away from the listening experience.

Was good to hear the story of His adventure from everyone’s point of view. Was disturbing that the physician lied about using non medical people.

Found this podcast by accident, and thoroughly enjoyed it!

But don’t skip ahead because it’s all about the hunt and the journey. I don’t believe it’s serendipitous that all of these paths crossed but that we are all truly connected. I don’t agree with the doctor’s rationalization but it is true that a child, is a child, is a child. We all have the same origin. Humans are meant to be connected so we created these constructs (geographical, religious or cultural) to do just that. But what this podcast clearly illustrates is that we’re much more than that. Even so, you should be able to trace your genealogical line! And the fact that bloodlines can’t be hoodwinked by eye color and blood type creates the most transparent time in human history. But I also appreciated the barber’s points. Maybe based on society of that time, his points rang true, but never again. Looking back on the social norms of the time (and how the language has changed but not much else surrounding donors) is fascinating and scary. Trusting those who “know best.” Yet those intellects never thought ahead to the impact on the child. It is mind blowing. Have children really been valued so little until lately? One thing that stands true in every era, is that every generation can look back proudly and also look back and cringe. Anywho, best ending since the finale of Six Feet Under. Thank you Matt and friends and family (both old and new) for sharing this beautiful story.

The Barber was so spot on for me. The title of Father and Dad is very special and honor to me. A sperm donor is just a way to gift a family something they needed with no strings.

This was an incredible story that was brilliantly told. Each episode kept me wanting more! I laughed and cried along this journey. Great listen!

This has to be one of the best podcasts I’ve listened. I was so caught up in your journey to find your biological father. You opened my eyes about the world of sometimes seedy IVF. I just could not stop listening! Awesome job!

What a great series.

An amazing journey and well crafted masterpiece of an unlikely tale yet a magnificently important one: stranger than fiction. Love the work, Matt!

Man spends years looking for his father when he had one all along. #TeamRichard.

Matt, you did a wonderful job with this podcast! I thoroughly enjoyed listening and couldn’t wait to get to listen to each episode. You handled a lot of very sensitive situations with care and dignity. I’m very thankful you were able to find the answers you needed and were looking for. What a bonus to find even more family!

Matt, thank your for opening up your heart and sharing your extremely personal story of finding your father. You have a true gift of storytelling - I feel as though I walked through the journey with you and got to know your family. Your story brings tears to my eyes, and is so incredibly heartfelt. Your podcast made me really stop and think about ethics behind fertility treatments and was my favorite podcast I’ve listened to this year!

I became so interested in the way that DNA databases have unintentionally exposed this phenomenon of donor conceived babies after reading “Inheritance” by Dani Shapiro. This podcast is so well researched, not only with regard to Matt’s personal family history, but also relating to the origins of and the issue of treating infertility. It’s also presented in an easy to follow and entertaining manner.

Thank you for sharing your story, I could not stop listening. I am happy you found family in the process. My mother was from Ireland and came to the USA with her first husband-James McNally, in about 1958-60! Small world.

Honestly, I was enthralled. Thank you for sharing your beautiful journey. Enjoy the gift of your wonderful, extended family.

Matt takes you through the highs and lows of his incredible journey and keeps you captivated the entire time. I spent my weekend binging his story!