A Tauranga woman adopted from a hidden Romanian orphanage 23 years ago is hoping to get the chance to thank her birth mother for letting her be adopted and having a better chance at life.

Claire Thomasen, 25, has lived in New Zealand since being brought here from Iasi, Romania, by her adoptive mother Sue Thomasen when she was two-years-old.

Claire Thomasen and her adoptive mother looking at photos and newspaper clippings of her growing up. Photo Bruce Barnard.

After searching for two years, Claire has managed to track down her birth sister who has since told her birth mother.

'She is in shock since hearing the news and I haven't spoken with her yet,” explains Claire, who is hoping to visit both her sister and mother in Romania and is trying to raise money to get her and Sue to south-eastern Europe.

Mihaela Hliboceanu gave her daughter up for adoption in 1988 because she couldn't afford to keep her.

'I was pushing two and couldn't talk, walk, had little hair, no teeth and never had hard food,” adds Claire.

She was one of 30 children who sat in a silent room rocking themselves in an orphanage which had been hidden during the rule of Nicolae Ceausescu since around 1988.

News of the orphanages spread to New Zealand once the Romanian leader had been tried, sentenced and executed for genocide and sabotage.

Claire, whose Romanian name is Georgiana-Dumitrina Hliboceanu, was born in Lasi and put up for adoption after her birth mother couldn't afford to keep her.

Claire at the age of two in a Romanian orphanage.

Claire says she spent two years in the orphanage before Sue chanced upon her.

Sue couldn't have children of her own and after adopting two children in New Zealand, she wanted to try overseas.

'She had her ticket,” says Claire, 'and was all ready to go to Sierra Leone in Africa.

'Just a few weeks before flying out, she was watching the news and a story about Romania came on about the hundreds of orphanages and thousands of orphans that had been hidden from the world.”

Sue immediately decided to go to Romania with five other families to adopt.

'As she (Sue) walked up and down the cots she finally came to me,” adds Claire. 'I reached out and grabbed her arm, which children didn't do there.

'She finally found my birth mother and then had to go to court to convince a judge that she didn't want me for body parts or to be a slave. I was allowed to be adopted.”

The hurdles, however, weren't over, as Claire was refused entry to New Zealand when Sue tried to bring her home.

She was eventually allowed into the country following a documentary about the Romanian situation by Paul Holmes, along with battles with lawyers and the high court.

Since coming to New Zealand, Claire lived in Waihi as child before coming to Tauranga to attend Aquinas College.

'I have lived in Tauranga my whole life,” she says.

Claire is now trying to raise money for both her and Sue to visit her family in Romania when the time is right.

A Give a Little fundraising page has been set up and has so far raised $470 – the goal is $4,000.

People who would like to donate can do so at: http://www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/Getclairehome?usedesktop=true