
Episode 8
Season 11 Episode 8 | 58m 4sVideo has Closed Captions
Carolen meets her father. Kantrelle meets his birth mom.
Thaddeus ends up in his hometown and meets family with a deep connection. Carolyn meets her father and learns what happened when she was young that led to her adoption. Nolin opens the door and sees himself in the mirror! Kantrelle finally meets his mom and learns how much they have in common.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback

Episode 8
Season 11 Episode 8 | 58m 4sVideo has Closed Captions
Thaddeus ends up in his hometown and meets family with a deep connection. Carolyn meets her father and learns what happened when she was young that led to her adoption. Nolin opens the door and sees himself in the mirror! Kantrelle finally meets his mom and learns how much they have in common.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipDan: Previously on Relative Race.
Nolin: "Welcome to Day 7 of Relative Race."
Carolen: "Today's first place prize..." - "...is immunity."
- Ooh.
- We want that.
- Oh, you the bomb, Tia.
- You're the bomb!
Look at you go.
Carolen: You're the bomb.com.
- "Are you ready to fill your face?"
- Today's challenge was the most fun.
Thaddeus: Disgusting.
- [laughs] - Egh.
Karen: Ah, I know what this is!
- Okay, describe it!
Dan: As the day moved on, Nolin met another brother.
Nolin: Do we have any other siblings?
Raul: We do.
We have four... Nolin and Raul: Four other siblings.
- I'm related to you, Tia.
I'm your nephew.
- Hi!
Vincent: Hello.
♪ Dan: As Tia embraced her nephew, Thaddeus met a new cousin.
- Oh my gosh.
Dan: And Jon made a very special discovery.
- I'm your father.
- I figured.
It's nice to, it's nice to finally meet you.
[emotionally] I have a dad and he wants to be a part of my life, and honestly, dude, I could be done with the race right now.
I, I don't need the money.
I don't need it.
I met my Dad, that's all I need.
You know?
Dan: In the end, Team Green got a much needed turnaround.
Finishing only one minute over their allotted time, congratulations Team Green.
- [laughingly] Let's go.
Dan: And Team Red edged closer to elimination.
You have picked up your second strike on Relative Race.
DNA tells us who we are and where we came from.
Following their own DNA, four teams are racing... Jon: It's gonna be right here.
Kentrelle: Go, go, go.
Dan: ...to win $50,000... Nolin: We made it.
Dan: ...and to find their family.
[knocking] Singer: ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh-oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh-oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ ♪ Oh, oh-oh ♪ ♪ Dan: It's Day 8 of Relative Race, and all four teams are still racing to discover new family.
With seven days and countless miles behind them... Tia: You've got to turn around.
- All right, relax.
What, you want me to make a U-turn right here?
Dan: ...and challenges... Thaddeus: Yes, we got it!
Karen: Woo!
Dan: ...all teams still have persevered.
- Let's go.
Dan: And in the end, new relationships have begun.
With only two days left in the race, lives are still changing.
Singer: ♪ I'm comin' home ♪ - [laughs] Bunny: That bond, that connection, was automatic.
I could feel God in the mix of it all.
- [laughs] - But now you belong.
You belong.
- [crying] - Who?
Tommy: Your father.
Oh, oh wow!
Tommy: Yes, your father.
Thaddeus: [laughs] - I'm your father.
Singer: ♪ I'm comin' home, home, home ♪ - I'm your only brother.
- Oh!
Kentrelle: The new Kentrelle has a sense of peace.
I'm so glad I took the journey.
Singer: ♪ I'm comin' home ♪ ♪ [phone dings] - Oh, we got a text.
- We just got a text from, from Dan.
- Uh, as usual.
- "Good morning, Teams, and welcome to Day 8 of Relative Race."
- "Team Red will be traveling to Snellville, Georgia."
- "Team Blue will be traveling to Slidell, Louisiana."
- I don't know where that is.
- Slidell?
- Yeah, kinda got me there.
- Yeah?
- "Team Black, you will be traveling to Eugene, Oregon."
- "And Team Green will be traveling to LaBelle, Florida."
- Okay, sounds nice to me.
"Today's first place prize..." Thaddeus: "...is the benefit of using both hands during tomorrow's challenge."
- Your time starts now.
- All right, let's go.
Jon: Thanks again.
I appreciate it.
Thaddeus: Thank you so much.
- You're welcome.
Thaddeus: Thank you.
Karen: Thank you.
Going into today, I have to admit I'm extremely nervous.
In fact, I'm downright scared because I know a lot is riding on the line today.
We have our second strike, and if we get a third strike today we go home.
♪ Leah: We have immunity today, so we're definitely still going to try and get first place, but the pressure's kinda off.
If it's one of those days where things just don't go right, that's gonna be okay too.
Kentrelle: We are technically in first place.
Um, every other team has two strikes, however Green does have immunity, so it's gonna be a very heavy day because if we don't make a strike, then we're guaranteed to make it to Day 10.
Leah: Bye!
- Bye!
Leah: We'll see you soon!
- Eugene, Oregon.
Let's go.
Leah: Sorry.
It said Livingston.
I didn't see that it was 881 till we got really close to the... - No, that's all right.
- Turn around or turn here.
We gotta get ar— yeah.
We're driving down Vanderbilt looking for the next highway, we see the numbers on the map that we're looking for, but we just keep seeing named highways, and we don't know which one it is until the last second, and we miss it.
And so we actually go past the highway that we needed to get to 75, and so we did have to turn around.
Dan: Not getting their best start this morning is Team Green, but Nolin and Leah aren't too worried since they have immunity.
Today they'll be traveling from Naples, Florida to LaBelle.
They have a total allotted time of 1 hour and 25 minutes.
♪ - Oh my gosh.
- What?
What?
- I know this area.
I shot a movie over there.
Karen: Did you really?
- Yeah, it was that street I passed.
[gasps] Oh my gosh!
I know where we are!
[laughs] Wait.
[laughs] I know where we are.
[laughingly] We're going the right way.
That totally helped us in the drive.
I knew exactly where we were going.
Um, I knew the highway, where we were, it would take us straight there.
- Oh yay.
[laughs] Oh wow.
Dan: Very excited and knowing exactly where they are is Team Red.
Thaddeus and Karen are racing today from Jonesboro, Georgia to Snellville.
They have an allotted time today of 1 hour and 2 minutes.
♪ - And tomorrow is, like, the last day of having to do this, so we got this one in the bag.
- Happy about that.
Dan: Feeling extremely confident is Team Blue.
Kentrelle and Jon are cruising today from Biloxi, Mississippi to Slidell, Louisiana.
Their allotted time is 1 hour and 13 minutes.
♪ - No, this could be a real issue.
We are on the clock and— - I know we are.
Take a deep breath.
Carolen: We were on a very tiny, narrow road.
It was just two lanes.
Um, we were in-between mountains.
This is extremely new to me because I'm used to city streets.
I didn't know what was going on.
We saw a little construction, and with only two lanes, we end up having to come to a complete stop, which scared the mess out of me.
- [laughingly] Right.
- Yeah.
Carolen: It looked like a red light, but, I mean, I'm from the city.
Our lights is 30 seconds and we back rollin'.
Maybe— I, no, like, I've never s— It's a stoplight on a semi-highway or... - I know.
- Tia, we don't got time— - Take a deep breath.
We'll, we're, we're not gonna get excited.
Dan: As Team Black is at a complete standstill and worried about possible elimination, every minute counts for them today.
Carolen and Tia will be racing... or sitting from Crescent Lake, Oregon to Eugene Oregon.
Their total allotted time for the day is 1 hour and 50 minutes.
Tia: Finally the lane opens up.
We're able to start gettin' back to speed again.
Eugene, 70 miles.
Carolen: Oh.
- See?
- We are good.
[jazzy music] - That's my job!
[laughingly] Right there.
And this light right here, if I make a left, that's my house.
[laughs] When I got into town, I got so excited because it's my hometown.
Um, we drove by my house.
We drove by my job, and it was great to just be back home.
- Oh, it feels so weird being here.
- We should be getting a text soon.
- You think so?
- Yes, this is Snellville.
[phone dings] Karen: We just got a text from Dan.
- All right, let's do it.
- All right, here we go.
♪ - I see the table.
- You got it?
Okay.
- Let's go right.
- Oh, I see it.
- Woo-hoo-hoo.
Nolin: Oh, there it is.
See it?
♪ - "Today's challenge is Getting Hosed."
Dan: Today's challenge is Getting Hosed.
Using a water gun, one teammate wearing blackout goggles must try and fill a bucket being held by their partner.
Teams will rotate between four zones every 30 seconds.
Once all zones are complete, they will transfer the water into a jug to float a key to the top.
This key will unlock a chest to reveal envelopes.
Rip open the right envelope to find your relative's address and complete this challenge.
♪ [valve squeaking] Thaddeus: [distorted, deep yelling] Leah: [distorted, deep yelling] Kentrelle: Down some, just a little bit.
Down, down!
Carolen: To your right, right th— No, right there, right— No!
Tia: When you're shooting the water, you're completely blind.
All you can do is rely on your partner on where to shoot the water.
Thaddeus: Oh my gosh, to your— Towards your right!
Right, slow, slow!
Oh my goodness!
Karen: Up or down.
- When I first got out there, that water, that cold, icy water, it hits you.
It's just, like, a thousand needles just punching you.
It was terrible.
[laughs] ♪ - I don't know what kind of water this is, but it smells like rotten eggs, and it tastes like it smells.
- All right, go a little bit to your left!
[panting] Yeah.
Hoo!
First time I stepped up to the mat, automatically I'm just soaking wet, and I'm, like, Oh, oh Jon.
Both: [laugh] Thaddeus: Bro!
Oh!
I don't like this!
Okay, it's cold!
The water's cold!
[ding] Ooh!
Okay, um, to— Forward!
Forward!
Karen: When the bell went off, it signaled us to move to the next mat.
[ding] And so each time we heard the bell we moved to the next mat until we had moved counter-clockwise.
- My shoes are soaked.
Nolin: How full is it?
[ding] - 'Kay, front mat.
'Kay, this way, no.
[ding] Carolen: Straight ahead, Tia.
I am soaked.
I was not prepared for this today.
♪ Nolin: Once you hit all four spots, then you go over to another bucket with a small nozzle and try to fill it up as much as you can.
We can redo.
Good.
- Uh, it's a little bit harder than it looks because the water just wants to come all out, and it's better to pour it slowly so we get more water in there.
Kentrelle: Slowly, Thaddeus.
Thaddeus: This is just not efficient.
The water is pouring everywhere, but into the jug.
Karen: [laughs] ♪ Kentrelle: No, I, that's not working.
Jon: Okay.
- Pouring the water into the little spout wasn't hard at all.
We just wanted to make sure we got every drip of the water, um, especially at the very beginning so we wouldn't have to keep going back and forth so many times.
Jon: Yeah, slow and steady wins the race, so... - Mhmm.
Leah: Full enough?
[grunts] Nolin: Good, good, good.
All right, go.
After Leah finishes dumping all her water we switch, and it's my turn to try to catch as much water as I can.
Woo!
Okay.
Now go a little bit my way.
Okay, now up a bit, up a bit.
Right there, whoa!
Karen: Okay, take— [screams] Wait!
To your right a little.
To your right.
And as I was trying to guide Thaddeus.
The only thing he wanted to do was spray me in the face.
Thaddeus: Absolutely.
Both: [laugh] Tia: [laughingly] Just keep sending it.
That's good.
- Down.
Kentrelle: Right, left or right?
- Over— No, left.
- Come on, we need to go fast.
Tell me more.
Kentrelle: When you have the goggles on, you can't see anything.
All you see is black, so it's like you really have to rely on your hearing, you know, each other's voice and the water going into the bucket.
- [yelling] ♪ Nolin: Yeah, beautiful.
Beautiful.
Right there.
Carolen: Okay, it's fine.
One more.
Tia: Okay.
Carolen: Go!
One more.
One more.
♪ [water sloshing] Karen: Okay.
Slow.
[water pouring] ♪ Nolin: Now we're real close.
Now we're real close.
I got so much more control.
Kentrelle: Okay.
I got it.
Jon: You got it.
Kentrelle: Okay.
I didn't really think it was hard using the chopsticks.
I love sushi, um, and it was just getting that, that, the key out of it.
Jon: More, more, more.
Got it.
Karen: Try to go under it.
Oh.
Hoo-hoo-hoo!
Come on!
Nolin: Up.
More.
Good.
Beautiful.
Let's go.
[water spraying] ♪ Tia: Oh, you got this.
You got this, girl.
♪ Thaddeus: After my mom drowns me, we get the key, and we run over to open the chest.
- Take a handful.
Take a handful.
And we find a ton of Relative Race cards, over 50.
[laughingly] This is crazy.
[lock clanking] Jon: Oh my.
Opening up the chest, I was like, I was like, okay, maybe there's like a couple cards, you know, you just have to quickly find the right one, but there was, like, 30 in there.
So we're just, like, ripping and reading, and there's nothing and nothing and nothing.
Carolen: [gasps] I don't know.
Fingers, no fingers!
Tia: Oh!
Carolen: Okay.
- Just rip them open.
Rip them open.
[tearing] - Ouch.
- Without hurting yourself.
- I know.
- Found it, found it, found it.
Tia: Come on.
Carolen: Okay, yes.
I was shakin' the envelopes.
I was bending the envelopes to see if I could feel something inside, if one envelope was heavier than the other envelope, and I just tried to feel what I've been used to feeling.
- Right here, right here!
Okay, "your relative lives 738 Rockbear Drive, Stone Mountain."
- "Your relative lives at 728 Laperuse street."
Let's do it.
Come on.
Thaddeus: Right here.
Come on.
Karen: [laughs] Nolin: Let's go.
- Ah!
Found it, found it!
I felt it.
Um— - "Your relative lives at 365 Brae Burn Drive, Eugene, Oregon."
- Let's go!
♪ Leah: Here we go.
♪ Dan: After Teams cooled off with the challenge, the race heats up.
♪ - Another day.
No strike.
Dan: Having won immunity, Team Green will have a stress-free trip navigating to their relatives.
Meanwhile, two teams, Red and Black, both face possible elimination... - Okay, let's go.
Dan: ...as Team Blue has the opportunity to clinch Day 10 if they pick up the pace and don't receive a strike.
- What street is this?
- I'm leaving' this on you.
This is your territory.
I don't know.
I, I don't know where we're going.
Thaddeus: The stakes are high on this small leg to our relative's house.
One strike and we're out.
Karen: I am so stressed out.
We've had a pretty good day, but we cannot afford to get another strike.
Tia: You can't go that way.
It's road closed.
You can't go that way.
- Okay.
- So that way?
Since we already have two strikes, I just hope one of the other teams struggled today.
Carolen: Stop right here.
Tia: Okay.
Carolen: Excuse me, excuse me.
Tia: Honk the horn.
[honking] Carolen: Hi.
Can I ask you a quick question please.
Do you know where Brae Burn drive is?
Woman 1: Oh, no.
Carolen: No.
Okay.
♪ Kentrelle: Oh, St. Bernard.
Okay, what else?
Find the compass.
♪ - North is that way.
- Rock Bridge?
Thank you.
Do you know where it's at?
- Yeah.
Carolen: Double digits.
We gotta go to triple, so just keep going.
Kentrelle: I think we went the wrong way on St. Bernard.
We might have to turn over back that way.
- Okay.
- [sighs] - Right here?
- Yep.
- This green one?
Yeah, here it is.
Leah: There we go.
- Yay!
We found it!
Kentrelle: The [indistict] up here, right?
Jon: Yeah, right in front of this car.
- 738!
- Where?
Where?
Where?
- On the corner!
- Yes!
Tia: I saw 365.
Carolen: Oh, there it is.
365.
Okay, perfect.
[ding] ♪ - I hope that we're, like, an example of people out there who are looking for their families that will do it— - Yeah.
- that will do it before I did.
I waited too long and look where I'm at.
My mom's dead.
My dad's dead.
I think what you're doing is— you're getting to see your dad and your family before it's too late.
- As I'm gettin' out of the car, I notice a older gentleman walkin' down the stairs.
I get this nervous feelin' because I might know who this is.
[car door slams] - Why hello!
Tia: Hi there.
- Hi.
Tia: [chuckles] - I'm Carolen.
Man 1: My name— - I'm Tia.
- Hi Tia, hi Carolen.
I'm Henry Watson Sr. Tia: Who are you related to?
- Well, I'm Carolen's father.
Hi, I'm your father.
♪ I'm Henry Watson.
I'm 80 years old and I'm Carolen's father.
♪ Carolen: Today was a special day because I got the chance to meet my father.
I'm happy, [chuckles] overwhelmed with joy.
I'm excited.
I'm lookin' forward to just, you know, spendin' so much time with him.
It's almost, you know, like a feelin' is hard to describe.
It's life changing.
- Good to see you.
Carolen and Tia: [laugh] Carolen: It's good to see you too.
Henry: It felt like, it feels like my other daughters, very similar.
You could feel the genuine affectionate, you know, and you said— like she said I hold the hug a little longer.
It was more powerful than that 'cause you don't wanna let go, you know?
Yeah, lucky to be here, to be able to hug her, you know?
But I keep sayin' I just wish it had been all along but I'm glad it finally did happen.
Still consider ourselves lucky because some people never get to this point, you know?
They— it's always wonderin' throughout their whole life.
So that's a big plus right there.
Would you guys like to come in?
- Sure.
♪ [ding] - You got it?
- Yeah.
- All right.
♪ - Hello.
- Hello!
- Hi!
Karen: Hey!
- Hi, how are you?
Thaddeus: Pretty good.
My name is Thaddeus, this is my mom, Karen.
- My name is Kathy, Thaddeus.
- Okay, I know who you are.
Kathy: Yes, yes.
You completed the trio.
Kathy: Yes, yes!
Thaddeus: Hi!
[laughing] Woman 1: [clapping] - Hi.
[laughs] Kathy: So Thaddeus, this is my daughter, Olympica Anderson, my oldest.
And this Camira Ervin.
- Ervin, I'm a fellow Ervin as well.
Camira: Okay, okay, T. That's good!
All: [laughing] Camira: That's great.
Thaddeus: Wow.
Kathy: Yes, yes.
I'm Kathy.
I'm Thaddeus' great aunt and these are my daughters, Olympica and Camira.
Olympica and Camira: And we're his cousins.
- Thaddeus, this is the oldest.
- Okay.
Kathy: Lynee is next.
- Okay.
- That's my other daughter.
And this Camira.
- Wow.
- And then it's Imani, so all of them are my daughters.
- Four girls.
Kathy: Yes!
- Wow.
Kathy: And they— Olympica: Yes.
Kathy: Yes.
Olympica: Yes.
- I've been surrounded by amazing and powerful women all my life and now I'm just adding more and more and more-- [laughs] which is amazing.
- I seen Tiambe comin' up the sidewalk and I was like, whoa, he looks just like Jarris.
He's the spittin' image of his brother.
Camira: Nothin' else I could think about besides Jarris.
The-the glow, the attitude, the walk, the-the confidence just drew out to me Jarris all over it and I was like wow, that's— Olympica: That's family.
- Yes.
- You could see it in his eyes.
- Now can we get out the rain?
- I'm ready, let's come and get out this rain.
[laughing] Thaddeus: I can't wait to enjoy the rest of the evening with my Aunt Kathy and my cousins Olympica and Camira.
I can tell it's gonna be a great night.
♪ [ding] - You think this is him?
Yeah?
♪ [car doors slamming] - How you doin', my name is Jaiden.
- I'm Nolin.
- Leah.
- Uh, I'm your full brother by the way, same mom, same— and same dad.
- Wow.
[laughs] - [laughingly] Crazy!
- That's crazy!
Full brother, wow.
Wow.
♪ - My name is Jaiden Forbes and I am Nolin's full brother.
How old are you?
- 20.
- 20, 20.
I'm 18.
- It's like lookin' into a mirror.
Yeah, for real, like... - That's crazy.
Jaiden: Yeah.
It's a real moment, I'm not gonna lie, like, like none of my siblings really look like me but you, like— Nolin: [laughs] Jaiden: Yeah, he looks like me a lot so.
And to actually have someone that looks like me and acts like me that's also athletic like me, it's a win in my eyes.
- I can't just keep looking at you guys.
That's wild!
- Yeah.
- The last few days, all my relatives have been tellin' me I look exactly like someone in the family and I've just been so eager to find out who that was.
Everyday I'm like, hopin' to see someone that looks like me.
And so, they've been hypin' that up a lot and talkin' a lot of secrets and stuff that they couldn't share with me yet.
And so yeah, I'm— I found out who now.
[laughs] - I'm in college.
I go to Florida Gulf Coast.
It's like ten minutes away.
- Okay.
So dude that's a big school.
- Yeah.
I'm a freshman majoring in exercise science, with that degree.
- Wow.
That's awesome.
- Where— you go to college?
Nolin: Yeah.
- What college are you?
- I go to Bethel University.
Jaiden: Where is that at?
- It's in Indiana.
- I heard of it.
Nolin: South Bend— You heard of it?
- Yeah, I heard of it.
- So I play basketball there, run track.
- You hoop?
Nolin: [laughingly] Yeah.
- Oh, so you like that.
Nolin: [laughingly] Yeah.
- Okay.
- What about you?
You play any sports?
- Yeah, I used to like hoop, play football growin' up and stuff.
Nolin: Okay.
Jaiden: But I wrestled in high school mainly.
I was third in the state.
- Third in the state?
Jaiden: For wrestling, yeah.
- I see you.
As we started talking more, we just— I just— seeing all the similarities and it was crazy.
I've never had that before and I thought it was pretty special.
- So you wanna go inside and... - Yeah, for sure.
Jaiden: All right.
Leah: 'Kay, let's go.
Nolin: Same shoes too?
Jaiden: [laughs] ♪ [ding] ♪ ♪ - Hey!
- Hey Mom.
Woman 2: Hey baby.
- How are you?
Woman 2: How you doin' sweetie?
- I'm Kentrelle.
- Angela.
[sighing] [sighing] ♪ How are you?
- I'm good.
Angela: Good.
- You so short, Mom.
Angela: You can't talk, you didn't get much taller than me.
- [laughs] Angela: Mmm.
- Hey.
Angela: This is, this is unreal.
You here.
You here.
You're here.
♪ - My name is Angela and I'm Kentrelle's mom.
[patting] I can't believe this.
Oh, you got a beard!
You are grown!
Kentrelle: Mhm.
Angela: [laughs] I can't believe this.
[laughs] I don't know.
I'm so nervous.
I don't know.
Kentrelle: There is no way.
- I don't know.
I'm just, I'm just nervous.
Both: [laughing] Kentrelle: Interacting with my mom for the first time, it was hilarious.
I had all these family members tell me how much alike we were in every bit, but you know, seeing it for myself in person and us just literally going tit for tat immediately, I was like, Oh yeah, this is my mom.
[laughs] Yeah, I'm excited.
This'll be fun.
- It is!
Both: [laughing] - 24 years later.
Kentrelle: Mhm.
- Whew.
Seeing my son's face for the first time was surreal, uh, it was unbelievable.
I've been waiting on this day and the day has finally come and I feel a sense of freedom, like I'm free from all the worrying, the-the pain, the sleepless nights, the crying at night just wondering how he was and this— it's just a sense of relief.
It just free, just free.
[sighs] Okay.
This'll be interesting.
Kentrelle: Yeah.
- You got my personality.
- Of course.
Both: [laughing] Angela: You have my personality, the quirkiness, the sarcasm.
Kentrelle: Mhm.
Both: [laugh] - It's like lookin' in a mirror.
Both: [laugh] Angela: It's like talkin' to myself.
Kentrelle: You are talkin' to yourself.
Both: [laugh] - And I thought I was unmatched and I met my match.
I thought I would be crying and just overwhelmed with emotions, but what I felt when I saw him was freedom.
I felt free.
I have the rest of my life, you know, to live for him, just to be his mom and I'm so thankful for that.
- I could tell that this is what she's been waiting for for a long time and, you know, it hurt because I didn't even know.
- I have so much I wanna share with you.
You wanna come inside?
- Yes.
Angela: Come on here, boy.
Come on here.
[laughs] Get over here.
♪ ♪ - Just one thing I always wonder— - Mhm.
Carolen: was, you know, like, did you— do you know my mom or did you know anything about her?
- Not really.
Carolen: No?
- I only really remember her from the name.
I was tryin' hard to realize, you know, name— first name and didn't really right a bell, you know.
We probably met very briefly.
Carolen: That was one of the biggest questions along this journey, wonderin' if I would get answers to how my mom and dad knew each other.
I really didn't get a story from my mom, so it was a little disappointing not learning anything new from my dad.
Did you know about me?
- I never knew anything about it until I— until this happened, just the last few months you know.
Not until I got in touch with my grandson was doin' the-the DNA and the family tree thing.
Carolen: Mhm.
Henry: And uh, and that's when I know.
- Okay.
- That's the worst thing I would've wanted for you to think that I knew about you and didn't make a effort.
Trust me, I woulda been there but I just had no clue until all this happened.
Hopefully now I don't think she held anything against me 'cause as all my daughters told her had I known, it wouldn't have been this long before we connected, you know.
- I appreciate it.
I know that, you know, that's the truth and because I know, you know, my mama has other children— - Yeah.
- and it's— we got five siblings and none of our siblings know their father.
Henry: Wow.
- So when I tell you it's a level of understanding that I have, I know.
How did you feel when you found out that you might have another daughter?
That you did have another daughter?
- Anxious to meet you like I have, you know, your sisters, they were as excited as I was or more.
They couldn't wait.
Man, it's been the talk of the whole family how they can't wait to see you, they wanna meet you.
- Yeah, I-I-I feel that.
[laughs] - Yeah, yeah.
- Every single person I've met, they've just been so warm, so welcoming.
- And that's a real feeling too, you know.
Carolen: Yeah, it is.
- I keep sayin' it, I just wish I'd have known sooner so we could've known each other better but we just gotta go from this point forward.
Um, so I'm supportive of all I can be because man, she's-she's focused.
Carolen: And I'm looking at how I act and how I talk and-and it's just like scary almost but it's like you say, you just feel like you fit right in.
Henry: Yeah.
- It's-it's hard to describe but...
I've heard from uh, my sister, Renita and only brother [indistinct] that you play the congas.
- Yeah, we'd play them drums, man, at the park everywhere and had different festivals.
- That's really cool.
It's crazy to see how music just runs in my blood.
My dad plays the congas, I play the drums, what are the chances of that?
My dad invited Tia and I down so that he could show us a few things on the congas.
[conga beat] Henry: One, two, and then push on this and slap.
[playing conga] Henry: There you go, just like that.
Now hold it down and when you slap it, pull it that way.
Slap.
[playing congas] That's it.
'Til you get the swing of it.
[playing conga] Keep doing it, keep doing it.
[playing conga] Carolen: It was so much fun to learn how to play the congas from my dad.
He's so good.
I'm usually playing with sticks in my hands but it was so excitin' to change it up and learn how to make music in a new way.
[congas] Henry: See after awhile you-you wrist gets loose and you just flow with it.
But you got the basic idea.
[congas] Yeah, it was relaxin', concentratin' on something together that you both enjoy doin'.
There was no pressure there.
As they say, music is like a universal language, you know?
You know, you make music out of everyday harmony and uh, it draws you closer, you know?
Carolen: It-it was just a special moment for me.
It was the last thing I thought I would be doin' today.
I was just kinda caught in the moment.
Speechless.
But it was a lot of fun.
[congas] ♪ Jaiden: First things first, I wanna ask you a question.
Nolin: Okay.
- A little personal, but how do you feel growin' up in a white family— Nolin: Right.
Jaiden: like did you feel like a outsider?
Black sheep of the family?
Nolin: Yeah.
Jaiden: How did you feel?
- I felt no different than anyone else.
Uh, my parents, my family did a great job of uh, just treatin' me like yeah, I was, I was blood.
Um, so I always felt love.
I had a big family.
I have four siblings, two brothers, two sisters and yeah, we just have a great relationship.
There's always you're one of us, you are adopted but they're not gonna— Jaiden: Yeah, treat you any different.
Nolin: If I have any questions, we'll ask.
I understand where my brother was comin' from when he was talkin'— when he was just askin' me questions about growin' up and so I'm just grateful that I had the opportunity to let him know that I had a good childhood and I just enjoyed my time with my family and I'm just grateful, uh, for my sister, that she was here with me throughout the journey.
What was it like for you growin' up?
What was your relationship with Mom, siblings?
- If I were to describe it, I would say... two words: poverty and hardship.
Nolin: Okay.
Jaiden: Pretty much uh, you know, I never really had the most growin' up.
I just really had to make the best of my situation and my circumstance at the time.
- Right.
Jaiden: You know, everything through and stuff.
Uh, the aunt you met, Shella— Nolin: Yeah.
- you remember her?
I lived with her for like-like, a lot of my lifetime.
My mom, I didn't live with her because she had to get her stuff straight so— Nolin: Right.
Jaiden: it was better for me to live with my aunt and stuff.
Nolin: Right.
- Made it a little bit easier for my mom.
- Right.
What years did you do that for?
Like how old were you?
Jaiden: Uh, probably I'll say like when I was born till like, like 10 or 11.
Nolin: Man.
- So like, never really had like a stable house to call home.
Nolin: Yeah.
Jaiden had then told us about some of his experiences growing up and some of his trials and things that he went through and that's something that you don't wish on anybody.
I'm glad that you at least have family.
- Yeah.
- If you— if not the stable home, you at least have family to fall back on.
- That's one thing I could say, like, my family always had my back, like through whatever.
- It hurt my heart hearin' that because, I mean, you don't want family goin' through that ever.
I wish that things were different for him as well.
Jaiden: How do you feel about her givin' you up for adoption?
- I, I love her.
I mean, I think she— I know that she wanted the best for me, um, especially hearing about just some of her story and um, I heard about a shirt that she used to wear uh, with me on it and just these different type of things that just showin'— - Yeah.
Nolin: how much she cares.
I'm thankful that um, I was adopted into a family that loved me as well.
And we lost 20 years, but the way I look at it, we got more than 20 years to make that up.
We got more than 20 years— - I love it, I love it.
Nolin: to build that relationship.
We're all still young.
- Yeah.
- I got— we got a lot of young siblings— - Yep.
Nolin: and so I'm just lookin' forward to that growth and meetin' everybody.
- That's fire that you said that.
Like, like love is something you do in spite of what you feel.
And like even though you might feel some type of way about her giving you up— - Right.
Jaiden: you love her regardless.
- Yeah.
Jaiden: If our mom woulda kept him, like, the hardships would have magnified like, because she has more on her plate as far as responsibilities.
- I think we got a lot of good years ahead.
The family has a lot of good years ahead and I can't wait for that.
I can't wait to grow with y'all and just learn more and— - Stick together, thick and thin.
Nolin: we gotta support each other.
Yeah.
- Uh, meeting Nolin was special today.
Like, talkin' having a whole conversation, like I see him as like a older brother.
Like, hands down, like, we relate in so many different ways, it's just so natural.
- I feel like it was very easy talking to Jaiden.
It was just felt like we were family and we've known each other our whole lives.
It all just flowed so smooth.
♪ Kentrelle: So like, can you tell me like, the days leading up to me being like, born and like the five days you had me?
- I want to say that was the hardest thing I ever had to go through, was giving my baby away.
No matter what, that was the hardest thing.
I was 15 years old and we were living on the south side of Jackson and I wanted my baby to have everything in life that I know I could not give at that moment, um, at that time.
And I prayed about it.
That was the best decision at that time.
But parting with you, that... I-uh... nobody should have to experience that.
That was the worst thing I had to go through and I-I was a child.
Then a few weeks later I had to go to high school, go back to school.
Took a long time for me to find full peace with-with my decision.
Um, you were loved from the moment I laid eyes on you, little baby with the little receding hairline.
Both: [laugh] - It's not receding no more, this line is here.
Angela: I'm glad you got hairline now.
I mean, that [sighs] no [sighs] this— the pain was unimaginable.
I cannot— there is no words that could describe what I feel.
No words.
- Hearing my mom's story was exactly what I needed to hear.
I can see it was a difficult decision and she was so young.
Only 15?
I can see why she did what she had to do.
- All right, you gotta tell me about, like, everything I missed— - Okay.
- of you growing up.
Kentrelle: Okay.
- So how was your childhood?
How was-how was everything?
- Um, it was okay.
Um— Angela: It's okay?
- It could've been better.
- How old were you when you found out?
Kentrelle: 10.
- [sighs] Kentrelle: Where— literally been asking years before, like, years.
- What made you think about it?
- Because I don't look like them, I don't act like them.
When I'm around their family, like, [clears throat] it's cool and all but it's not the same when I was with the family that I met, seeing similarities and stuff like that.
Like I didn't see my face in anybody, I didn't see my personality in anybody, I feel like a singularity my entire life.
And that's cool and all, but when you're around family, you're supposed to see that.
Angela: Yeah.
Well you have it now, you have it for the rest of your life, even after I'm gone, you have it, so.
I mean, we love, we love hard.
When I saw Kentrelle say that, you know, talk about the things he didn't have, the hurt he went through and you know, all those things, uh, it-it was hard to hear, very hard to hear.
And it was-it was kinda heartbreaking because I don't want him to just keep dwelling on that.
In order to heal, you have to release it, you have to let it go and just understand other people's perspective and the whys and why they did the things that what they did.
And I don't think they had any intentions to hurt him, not at all, and they just did it from a place of love.
He may not understand why, the whys or not agree with the way they did things, but they did it out of love.
Um, just like, you know, what I— I did what I had to do out of love and it's just something he has to learn, that his way of seeing things is not right or wrong, there is multiple ways to do things, to see things.
So, he's just, you know, that's just a journey, that's just comes with age and you know, you live and learn.
- After meeting all this family and meeting you and um, just hearing what everyone has to say, like the outpouring of love, like, it's honestly so unbelievable, like I'm in shock.
Like I just been waiting and I'm just, I'm ready.
- Me too!
Kentrelle: [laughs] - I mean, we got the rest of our life, I mean, this has been the best day ever.
I am so ready to give him his love, he already has it.
I mean, he has everything he wants from me, everything he needs from me.
I'm willing, I'm able.
Kentrelle: What I hope for the future with my mom is um, lots of vacays, lots of visiting, mom and son time, just making up for a lot of time that wasn't there, you know?
And um, healing together because it's needed.
♪ Thaddeus: So I kept on hearing so much about you, The Trio, The Sisters, The Dream Girls.
Kathy: Right.
- Um, and— - That's what you named us?
Thaddeus: Yes, yes I did.
Kathy: Okay.
All: [laughing] - I was gonna say, I had to get that clearance.
- I, I named that, okay?
I did that.
Kathy: Okay.
Olympica: That's great.
- But I was waiting to meet you.
You guys, all three, it's a warmth about you guys.
Kathy: Yes.
- It's a welcome.
- Yes.
- Like, you are so welcoming.
- You say that you have a lot of women, but you look just like your brother Jarris.
Oh my— Thaddeus: [laughs] Olympica: Oh my goodness.
Kathy: It's scary!
I believe that you are that angel for your brother because he really— we all try, but I think with this, I think it's gonna break everything that he ever possibly wanted.
So I think you that angel that's sent for him.
- My Aunt Kathy said I am an angel in disguise.
I was an angel for my mom, I was a gift to her.
So seeing Jarris, my heart poured out because I saw someone that I could possibly help.
- Um, I don't know if you remember back in 2017 and no we didn't fight and we weren't friends.
But I just so happened to see, you know I'm sayin', a post, one of my friends, I was goin' through a lot.
[emotionally] And I was pregnant with my little girl, you know.
And I-it was to the point where I didn't even wanna have her.
I didn't want life, I didn't want anything.
And I was on Facebook and I just so happened to come across one of your posts.
And I was reading it with my friend Paige and I seen how suicidal a lot of people was tellin' me, you know, Camira, you gotta sometimes toughen up because you never know what other people in this world are goin' through.
It could be ten times worse than what you goin' through.
You gotta be tough, you gotta pray, you gotta get through it, and you gotta pray for the next person 'cause that person might need a prayer from you even though you're going through.
So I was on Facebook and when I came across, I'm sorry, your post, you know, I kinda commented on it.
[sniffs] ♪ [Camira crys] It was a long paragraph you had wrote on Facebook and it was just expressing exactly what you just said, you know, I'm going through, I just don't know what-why it's always me.
I really don't wanna be here.
It was just— you was just sayin' everything that I couldn't say out my mouth.
Thaddeus: Mhm.
♪ Um... the post was a send-off, a goodbye, a last message.
♪ - And when I seen it it just— it took away everything, every pain, every sorrow that I had, it took everything away, even before this.
That was real deep for me and it-it helped me in so many ways, they didn't even know.
- [emotionally] It's crazy how God works.
[sniffles] ♪ At the time of posting the post, I did not think about anyone or any feelings towards it.
I did not expect to be there the next day so it was just, uh, the last send-off.
I did not know that post would help people, specifically family.
♪ - But you know, it also says that suffering complete gladness.
So all the suffering that you went through, look at what you got now.
Look at how many people now you can communicate with 'cause she was goin' through the same thing you were goin' through.
Olympica: At that time— Kathy: She was goin' through it.
Olympica: And you're out there and— - So you still got a lotta cousins and you have ke— you are a overcomer.
Now is, now is your time.
♪ - I'm, I'm 100% glad, um, moments I look back and I'm disappointed in myself in getting to that level.
But from five years ago to now, I always look at moments like wow, if I was out I wouldn't have this moment.
I wouldn't have that moment.
I wouldn't have this big moment right now.
♪ I'm-I'm glad that I'm still here.
♪ Dan: Night descends on Day 8 as all of the teams prepare for today's results.
And the stakes are high for two of the teams facing possible elimination.
- How do you think that we did?
- Um... Tia: That construction kind of timewise I felt like, ugh, just seemed like we were there forever.
- Yeah, that was a complete stop, not just a slow down.
Thaddeus: I feel worried about goin' to the call tonight.
I feel like we did pretty okay.
- Well, I hope we did better than the other teams.
Tia: Everybody's comin' back super strong.
They've been, it seems like daily, they just come back stronger and stronger, so.
- We'll see.
♪ Dan: Here we are, Day 8, and we still have four teams in this race.
That is good news.
Let's get right to what happened today.
And Carolen, safe to say that tonight was a night that you'd been waiting for your entire life.
Who did you meet?
- Yes, Dan.
Um, tonight [clears throat] I had the pleasure of meeting my father, Henry Watson Sr. Dan: Hello, Henry.
- Hey, how are you?
Dan: Carolen, tell me what was going through your mind when the words come out that, I'm your father.
- Dan, it was a bit of a blur.
I'm usually talking a lot but it made me speechless.
It was a lot of emotions in one, I can't even find the right words right now, but I felt grateful, I felt, um, prioritized, like I really do appreciate this show... ♪ Tia: It's okay.
It's okay.
Carolen: I like, just, I see what it take, you know, to make this show happen and I know, you know, I'm seein' now what people are goin' through.
It's not easy, um, it's, you know, we— it's not walkin' up, meetin' family so, it really did make me feel prioritized.
- Well, um, I can tell you that... this becomes personalized to us.
I can honestly tell you that it's moments like this that bring all of us joy.
We are just really happy for you.
- Thank you.
- Thaddeus, um, overall a real good day for you guys, but it got even better when you found your relative.
Who was waiting for you?
- I got to meet three beautiful women.
I got to meet my Great Aunt Kathy and my cousins.
Olympica: Hey.
Camira: Hey, yes, hello.
Kathy: Hey.
- So glad that you guys are with us!
- Thank you!
Dan: And again, so happy for you, Thaddeus.
Nolin, this was a good day for you as well.
Tell me, after you got soaked at the challenge and you dried off and you arrived at your relative's home, who was there waiting for you?
- [sighs] Well, waiting for me tonight was my full— first full brother, Jaiden.
[laughs] Dan: You guys look like twins.
- I know, that's what I— that's the exact same thing I said when I first met him.
Dan: What was this— again, what are you thinking when you look at this person, you know, three feet from you who looks exactly like you?
What-what's running through your mind?
It's something that, um, I've been waiting for my whole life and I've been talking about it a lot, about meetin' someone that looks like me.
Um, I've been talkin' to family that they've been like whoa, you look exactly like somebody.
And now, um, meeting him face-to-face, it's so surreal.
It's like man, I'm looking in the mirror.
And it's just exciting because we look alike but we act a lot alike too.
Um, we got a lot of the same mannerisms and it's just exciting for real and I can't wait to get to know him more.
- Jon, yesterday you met your father.
Today, Kentrelle, what a day for you.
Who did you meet today?
- [sighs] [clears throat] Dan, please don't give me a strike in front of my mom.
- Hi!
[laughs] - And now I see where you get your good looks Kentrelle.
Kentrelle: Didn't I tell you?
All: [laughing] - What a good day for all of our teams.
The day ended the way it should, with newfound family.
[intense music] Team Green, you had immunity today, so no matter where you finish, you are safe.
Team Red, you have two strikes.
Team Black, you also have two strikes.
Team Blue, you have one strike.
If you do not receive a strike tonight, that means you're the only team guaranteed to make it to Day 10.
For the first time this season on Relative Race, we have a team that finished under their allotted time.
That means everything has to go perfectly and you have to do better than the allotted time at the challenge.
The second, third, and fourth place teams, the difference was only seven minutes total.
This might be the closest day that we've had on Relative Race.
Finishing one minute under their allotted time, and safe for another day, Team Red.
Kathy, Olympica, and Camira: [cheering] Dan: Congratulations Team Red.
Karen: Thank you.
Thaddeus: Ooo.
- Finishing three minutes over their allotted time and now guaranteed to make it to Day 10, Team Blue.
Angela: [clapping] Jon: Yessir!
Dan: Team Green and Team Black, it comes down to the two of you.
But, since Nolin and Leah have earned immunity, that means they cannot earn the strike and that means unfortunately Carolen and Tia, you have picked up your third strike on Relative Race.
Team Green, you finished seven minutes over your allotted time and finished in third place.
Team Black, you finished ten minutes over your allotted time.
However, this season, we created this.
It's called the Mega Family Ticket.
And if any team had struck out anywhere along the race, because our fans understand how important it is that this show is all about family, this ticket was created so that no matter when a team struck out, while their race for the $50,000 was over, they would continue on to meet every relative that was waiting for them.
Team Black, you have this ticket waiting for you that will be presented to you tonight.
And your journey will continue tomorrow.
♪ I can see everyone else happy for you and I wonder Team Red, Team Green, and Team Blue, what are your thoughts?
What would you like to say to Team Black at this time?
We'll start with Team Blue.
- [clears throat] Well you know, we're #strangerteams, um, forever and ever.
You know the love we have between you all.
You guys' experience has been so beautiful and I'm so glad that we were both able to kind of like experience it.
- Thank you.
- Thank you.
Dan: Team Red.
Thaddeus: We're doing this race as a family, um, so I'm so happy to have you guys in my family and in my mom's family.
- And we love you guys.
- Absolutely.
- We love you guys too.
Thank you.
- Thank you.
- Nolin and Leah.
Leah: We'll definitely miss seein' you but I'm so happy for you guys and tomorrow you get to meet more family and there's nothing better than that.
- Absolutely, thank you.
- Thank you.
Absolutely, thanks guys.
- Tia and Carolen, what are your thoughts about this journey?
- It's beautiful Dan, it's a journey, I mean, I'd do it again.
I don't regret one minute of it.
I got to meet Tia, my race partner.
We did the best we could, I mean, the main thing is we met family, we found those that we were lookin' for and I mean— Tia: It's been life-changing but it's been awesome and wouldn't change anything for the world.
- And I really think today was like, one of the best days of my life.
- It, it doesn't get better than that.
Tomorrow is one more day of discovery for you guys.
And for the rest of the teams, the only one that is guaranteed to Day 10 is Team Blue.
And so, Team Green and Team Red, you better be at your best tomorrow.
We may have two teams going on to Day 10 or we may have three.
That remains to be seen.
And we'll find out tomorrow for Day 9 of Relative Race.
Tia, Carolen, you'll forever be a part of our Relative Race family.
We love you.
Both: We love you too, thanks Dan!
- Bye.
- Have a great night everybody.
Carolen: You too.
- We'll see you tomorrow.
All: [goodnights] Team Red and Family: [cheering] - We got ours and I got a new sister!
Thaddeus: [laughing] Karen: Yes.
- It's wei— I don't know, I mean, I'm proud of myself, I'm proud of you.
- I'm proud of you too.
- Um, like, we did what we could do, we just got our last strike and... Angela: Yay!
We got this!
Jon: I still say we should try though tomorrow.
Kentrelle: No, seriously.
Jon: Like we gotta— Kentrelle: Oh, absolutely, because we gotta kick somebody out.
Jon: Yeah.
Mmm, nothing's done yet.
I don't want, you know, one against two.
Kentrelle: Mm-mm.
Jon: You know?
- No, 'cause they already comin' for our necks 'cause now they see that we really are a threat.
- Yeah.
♪
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