Kingwood Man to Reunite with Birth Mother

HOUSTON - After a quarter century of separation, a Kingwood man is preparing to meet his mother.

Jose Amstutz has grown from a confused kid into a 29-year old sheriff’s deputy.

And next week, if all goes as planned, he will be hugging the stranger who gave him life, but not much more.

“This piece of paper here,” Amstutz says, offering a document, “took all her rights away as a mother.”

There it is in black and white: the court record that stripped motherhood from a woman named Maria. Her last name is redacted in the document.

Jose Amstutz was named Jose Cavazos then. He recalls a childhood full of abuse and neglect, a memory buttressed by the state documents he has saved.

“It was in poverty and she abandoned us several times.”

Another scrapbook on the table contains a photo of Amstutz as a preschooler, hugging his mom.

“That was the last time that I saw my mother. I remember that she brought us some gifts. I believe that they came from garage sales. Those gifts were, I believe her token of saying I'm sorry.”

Before long, Jose and his older brother and sister were starring in a public service announcement, seeking permanent parents.

“Growing up in a foster home,” he recalls, “seeing several parents come and go, sometimes I thought it was my fault.”

The feeling nagged him, even as he met the Houston couple who gave him the last name he carries today.

“That was my happiest moment, was meeting my new parents.”

Jose Amstutz followed path that continues to be well-worn.

According to Child Protective Services, more than 1,700 foster children are awaiting adoption in the greater Houston area and more than 6,000 in all of Texas.

Today, Amstutz has a child of his own. He tells FOX 26 he is a single father to 8-year old Desiree.

After a long search, Amstutz finally found his birth mother living in poverty near Harlingen.

And after some soul-searching, he telephoned her.

“She called me Little Joe,” he says. “I found out that was my nickname. She was very excited to hear from me; she said she'd been looking for me for a long time.”

If both manage to scrape together the money, they’ll meet next Wednesday near Lubbock, where the whole journey began.

Jose says his sister is coming along, but not his brother.

Adoptees and birth parents who wish to reconnect can sign up with the Voluntary Adoption Registry: http://www.dfps.state.tx.us/Child_Protection/Adoption_Registry/default.asp