How did you find me after all these years?

Couple reunites after 50 years and later finds their daughter! Mark your calendars and plan to attend this special event brought to you by the Grygla Library.

Grygla’s Northwest Regional Library is bringing you a timeless love story on Wednesday, March 27th, at 6pm. “How did you find me after all these years?” chronicles a love story, and a family, 55 years in the making. Hear about their journey through time, and experience the love, loss, fear, hope and joy when Dennis and Karen Vinar visit the Grygla Community Center in a few weeks.

The Northfield, Minnesota, couple has turned their story into a family memoir titled, “How did you find me after all these years?” The story follows the trials and tribulations of a 13 year old girl, who was an A student, and a 15 year old boy, who was an average student, both living in a small west central Minnesota town in the late 1950’s.

Dennis and Karen were teenagers when they met and fell in love. Karen says, “One thing led to another and I got pregnant.” Her parents thought it would be better to give the baby up for adoption. Dennis was not allowed to see Karen and said it was a very difficult time – wanting to be with the one you love. When Karen delivered the baby, Dennis came in to hold the little girl and sign the birth certificate. The two then went on to live their separate lives; Dennis went off to the army while Karen went off to college. They were separated for 5 decades with no communication, but Dennis says he never stopped thinking of Karen. 

In October of 2014, a friend of Dennis’ asked him to join LinkedIn. He ended up searching for and ultimately finding Karen. After calling her and finding out they were both single, they eventually met up on a Monday night. By that Thursday morning, the two were married!

Karen shares in her story that her life was almost complete at that moment. She said, “I had found Dennis. My life would be fully complete if we could find our daughter.”

The couple says by the grace of God they located her.

Their daughter, Jean Voxland, was over the moon. She shared, “Imagine being 55 years old and hearing that your parents are together and they are looking for you!?” A reunion occurred with many tears and hugs shared. Karen said it was the most heart-warming experience she’s ever had.

Dennis and Karen later joined forces with Jean and her husband, Andrew Voxland, and wrote a memoir chronicling their story. “How did you find me after all these years? A Family Memoir” is available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon and the howdidyoufindme.com website. The book has also been selected as one of the best 25 love stories in the world by the producers of RTL Television in Germany.

In addition to their upcoming visit to Grygla, The Vinar family has appeared on numerous TV shows, including The Steve Harvey Show. You can hear their timeless love story in person on Wednesday, March 27th, at 6pm at the Grygla Community Center when the Northwest Regional Library hosts the Minnesota couple. 

About the family/authors

Dennis Vinar, is a speaker, inventor, marketing executive with his own business for over 40 years, and now an author who lives in Northfield, Minnesota. He enjoys art, music (especially concerts at Orchestra Hall), nature, reading, travelling, bicycling, exercising, photography and golf. Dennis is the leader for the Minnesota Chapter of the Non-Fiction Author Association. 

Karen Lehmann Vinar, an interior designer and kitchen and bath designer for over 40 years, lives in Northfield, Minnesota, and enjoys art, attending musical and theatrical performances, reading, nature, and gardening. 

Jean Voxland has teamed with her husband and birth parents in writing a memoir that gives a tug at the heart strings. Jean, who enjoys hiking and photography, lives in Kenyon, Minnesota, with her husband and a big white Great Pyrenees dog.

Andrew Voxland has found it enjoyable and necessary to have written a part of the memoir from his perspective. He currently resides in Kenyon, Minnesota, with his wife and takes pleasure in grilling rib-eyes and enjoying local music.