DJ Williams: ABC ’20/20′ Tells Story Of Houston ‘Manger Baby’ Found Abandoned In Christmas Nativity Scene At Church In 1971

DJ Williams, a man who was abandoned as a baby 44-years-ago in a nativity scene at a local church in Houston Texas, is the subject of the next episode of ABC’s 20/20. Television newsmagazine 20/20 will go behind the scenes with Williams, who became known as “manger baby,” when he was found tucked inside some blankets at St. Anne’s Catholic Church by two women in December 1971. In addition to hearing his story, ABC’s 20/20 viewers will get to witness a reunion between Williams and the family he lost over four decades ago.

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Williams’ story begins on January 29, 1971, about one month after Christmas, when he was found inside of St. Anne’s Catholic Church. Old newspaper articles from 1971 say that two women reported finding the baby on the marble stairs leading from the nativity scene. By the time officers arrived, the girls had disappeared, leading many to wonder if one of the women could have been the birth mother, according to a 1971 article found at the Mobile Register. A search ensued to find the woman or girl who had given birth to the baby.

Before the women left the scene, they reported coming upon the nativity scene, where they observed an infant Jesus. The women said they could also see what looked like another baby placed near the baby Jesus. As they got closer, they realized that the baby, who was crying just a little, was actually a real baby. According to detectives, the baby who was just a few days old, was wearing a blue suit and had several diapers near him. The birth mother had also taken the time to wrap the baby boy in warm blankets.

Detectives were never able to find out the identity of the birth mother. Eventually, the little infant, dubbed “manger baby,: was adopted by a couple in Dayton, Texas. According to Chron, DJ Williams grew up in Texas and had a wonderful life with his adopted family. Despite the loving relationship with his family, he never really felt a part. By the time he was 15, his adoptive parents decided to share the truth about his past by showing him old newspaper articles featuring stories about the “manger baby.” Fascinated by his backstory, he wanted to know more. The revelation also explained why he would often feel different from his adoptive family at times. DJ Williams believes that it is good to know your blood relatives. ABC-13 News relates his statement this way.

“Knowing someone exists who looks like you, maybe has you same nose, whatever it might be. You want to have that connection.”

As an adult, DJ Williams drifted from place to place trying to find himself — trying to find his identity. Eventually, he decided to go public with his story a few years back, in the hopes that someone would come forward and give him some insight as to who his real parents were. He finally got his lucky break when ABC’s 20/20 caught wind of his story and decided to investigate for themselves. It was then that DJ Williams submitted his DNA and it came back with a match, according to WCVB‘s description of how the reunion finally came together.

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“So the DNA results came back in and much to my shock, I was able to see that there were two first-generation relatives, meaning that there were two people who came up matching his DNA very closely. What I eventually found out was that the first person, who was Rose, that matched DJ was actually the niece of the male DNA match. Then I realized ‘oh my gosh,’ the uncle must be the brother to the birth mother and the niece must be either a niece to the birth mother or her daughter.”

ABC’s 20/20 will show viewers how DJ Williams was finally reunited with his siblings. Sadly, his adoptive parents and his birth mother are deceased. Watch tonight at 10/9 central on ABC. In 2015, a woman left her baby inside a nativity scene at a church in Queens, New York. The mother was eventually located but was not charged in the case.

[Image via ABC/20/20/Facebook]