An 81-year-old woman who grew up in an orphanage has met her 103-year-old mother for the very first time. Eileen Macken had dedicated most of her life to searching for her unknown birth mother, having spent all of her childhood at the Bethany Home residence in Dublin. Decades later, a genealogist managed to track down her mother, Elizabeth, to Scotland and the pair were united in an emotional meeting ahead of her 104th birthday on Sunday. Ms Macken was joined by her family for the trip, during which she also found out that she has two half-brothers - one of whom answered the door. She told RTE that "nothing would stop me trying to get to see her" once she was told her mother was alive. Advertisement "I went over to see her and she's the most beautiful lady, lovely family, they gave me a great welcome," she said. "I haven't got over the acceptance that I got. They accepted me and I had a great chat with my mother." Ms Macken spent three days with her mother, who was born in Ireland during the First World War in 1915. She said they enjoyed a "great chat" and doubts she "will ever come down out of the cloud". She added: "She was reading the newspaper and when she saw me, I said we were from Ireland and she said, 'I was born in Ireland'. She was thrilled and she never let go of my hand." The Protestant clergy-run home where Ms Macken grew up is one of a number to have been scrutinised by an Irish-government appointed commission. Homes of its type were generally institutions where women who became pregnant outside marriage gave birth, after which the babies were adopted.<doc-sep>AN IRISH WOMAN has been reunited with her mother for the first time after searching for her for over 60 years. Eileen Macken, an 81-year-old woman from Kildare, met her 103-year-old mother Elizabeth in April after a genealogist traced her back to an area in Scotland. Eileen was given up for adoption, and has been on RTÉ Radio 1′s Liveline before to share her story. It was after hearing Eileen recount the steps she has taken to try to find her mother on Liveline, that a genealogist got in touch to offer to help. “I’ll be 82 in August Joe, and I’ve never known my mum, I’ve never seen my mum, I’ve had no information whatsoever.” “Last August I got a call from the genealogist that he had found my mum, that she was alive at 103… Once I heard that, nothing would stop me to try to see her.” Eileen said that her family were worried about Eileen visiting without getting an invitation first, which Eileen herself understood. “But it went on and on until I decided I’d take the bull by the horns. So I went over with my daughter and my husband and her husband and I knocked on the door. A gentleman opened the door, and I told him I was from Ireland, that I had found my mum here, and could we come in to see her. And he said ‘certainly’. “We came in and Joe, honestly, I haven’t got over the acceptance that I got.” I was thinking look this is terrible what am I going to do, but I put up with it, they accepted me and I had a great chat with my mother. Eileen’s mother Elizabeth will be 104 years old this Saturday. “I went to see her, and Joe she is the most beautiful lady, a lovely family, they gave me a great welcome.” Now, I know she’s my mum, and I did say it to her “You know I’m your daughter”. And she just looked up at me and she took my hand, and we had a great chat and she never kind of accepted it, I think it’s nearly gone past her. But there was such a bond between the two of us Joe, it was fantastic. Such a kind lady. “I said to my children ‘All my life, I love this lady that I don’t know who she is’.” Eileen said that she was afraid to stay too long because she was elderly, and Eileen wanted to respect that. She said it was very hard to say goodbye when it was time to leave. “My mother said to me ‘Oh I’d love to make you some tea, but I don’t think I’ll be able to.’ And I told her don’t worry at all about it. I don’t want tea I just want to chat to you’.” Eileen thanked presenter Joe Duffy, the Liveline team, and everyone else who helped her or wished her well: “I’m such a happy lady now.”<doc-sep>An 81-year-old Irish woman says she has never been happier after meeting her 103-year-old mother for the first time. Eileen Macken grew up in an orphanage in Dublin and has for decades wanted to locate her birth mother. She tracked her down with the help of a genealogist and recently met her mother in Scotland. Macken told RTE Radio 1 the visit was a great success: "she was thrilled and she never let go of my hand." Macken says of her mother: "She's the most beautiful lady, lovely family. They gave me a great welcome." Macken says she also found out she has two half brothers. Her mother will be turning 104 on Saturday. The Bethany mother-and-baby home in Dublin has been among those scrutinized by Irish authorities.<doc-sep>An 81-year-old Irish woman was overjoyed after meeting her birth mother for the first time after searching for her for more than 60 years. Eileen Macken, who grew up in a Dublin orphanage, had been searching for her mother since the age of 19 without success. After telling her story on RTÉ Radio 1′s Liveline, Macken was contacted by a genealogist, who managed to trace Macken’s mother back to Scotland. Macken traveled to Scotland last month, along with her husband, daughter and son-in-law, to meet her 103-year-old mother, Elizabeth. “She’s the most beautiful lady, lovely family, they gave me a great welcome,” Macken said to Liveline host Joe Duffy in a follow-up appearance. She said she had a “great chat” with her mother, who’s celebrating her 104th birthday this weekend. “There was such a bond between the two of us, it was fantastic. She’s such a kind lady, I said to my children that all this life I’ve loved this lady, even though I don’t know who she is,” Macken said, adding she didn’t want to stay too long due to her mother’s age. Macken thanked Duffy, the Liveline team, the genealogist and everyone who helped make the special moment possible. “I don’t think I’ll ever come down out of the cloud,” she said.<doc-sep>
An 81-year-old Irish woman has said she still has not come out of the clouds after meeting her estranged mother for the first time after 60 years of searching. Eileen Macken grew up in a Bethany Home orphanage and had never met her birth mother. Last year, having started searching when she was 19, Ms Macken contacted RTÉ's Liveline and made an appeal to track her mother down. Earlier this year Ms Macken said that with the help of a genealogist she had managed to find her mother who was 103 years old and was living in Scotland. When she found out that her mother was still alive, Ms Macken told RTÉ News that "just to touch her, it would mean so much". Last month Ms Macken's wish came true as she travelled to Scotland with her husband George, along with her daughter and son-in-law, to meet her mother, Elizabeth. "I went over to see her and she is the most beautiful lady," Ms Macken said. Eileen Macken, who was born in the Bethany Home in Dublin, has been reunited with her mother after 60 years of searching for her pic.twitter.com/Gc3X7WRr02 — RTÉ News (@rtenews) May 9, 2019 She said that her own family were worried about her travelling over but she decided to "take the bull by the horns" and make the journey. Ms Macken said she travelled to her mother's home and knocked on the door, to meet a man who turned out to be her half-brother. "I told him I was from Ireland and that I had found my mum here and could we come in to see her, and he said 'certainly'," she said. She said that she had a "great chat" with her mother during her three-day trip to Scotland. "She was reading the newspaper and when she saw me, I said we were from Ireland and she said 'I was born in Ireland'," Ms Macken said. "She was thrilled and she never let go of my hand." Ms Macken's mother will celebrate her 104th birthday this weekend. Ms Macken said she has been so happy since coming home from the trip to Scotland that she has not done any work in the house since. "I don't think I'll ever come down out of the cloud."