Like Mother, Like Child: Stunning Look-Alikes From Our Mother’s Day Competition

It’s always incredible to see which traits pass from one generation to the next. For Mother’s Day, we invited MyHeritage users to submit photos highlighting the resemblance between the mothers in their families and their descendants, and the results were nothing short of incredible. From identical smiles to the same sparkling eyes, these entries celebrate the special bond between mothers and their children and are proof of the power of our genes.

Thank you to everyone who shared their photos and stories, celebrating the remarkable resemblances within your families.

Here are some of our favorites:

Judi Gyory Missel

Judi was amazed to discover her strong resemblance to her great-grandmother, Terez Webermann. She has only two photos of Terez, one from her wedding and another in her 60s, and the similarities in their features are unmistakable. Terez was born in Kerescend, Heves, Hungary on June 18, 1870. She married Jozsef Klein in 1894 in Eger, Hungary, and they had 3 children who survived into adulthood. The family relocated to Budapest around 1906. While Terez’s sons, Judi’s great uncles, moved to New York and were known to her, her grandmother stayed in Budapest. Tragically, Terez’s descendants who remained in Europe did not survive WWII.

Judi also sent in a photo of her mother, Susan (the granddaughter of Terez Webermann) alongside her daughter, Deborah. Judi said “The genetic similarities are so strong with the women in my family!”

Tracy Louise

These photographs show Tracy’s mom on the left and Tracy herself on the right, both captured around the age of 3. We love their identical baby smiles!

Debbie Mary Parry

Here’s Debbie in 1980 alongside her eldest daughter in a photo from 2014, followed by her youngest daughter, Maisy, at 17.

Sharon Katzmann

Sharon shared a precious photo of her mother (left) who she looks like. The photo is very special to Sharon, as she was adopted and left without any other photos of her mother. Her mother died when Sharon was young, and Sharon was able to find her through DNA testing. Through platforms including MyHeritage, she built a family tree that traced her mother’s roots back to the original English colonists of Long Island. 

Marguerite Morris 

Marguerite shared photos that display a remarkable family resemblance across 3 generations. Below on the left is a photo of her mother, Marie-Therese LeBlanc-Arseneault (also known as Maria), who lived from 1929 to 2006, and Marguerite is on the right. The similarity between mother and daughter is striking.

Additionally, Marguerite sent a photo of her maternal grandmother (colorized and enhanced on MyHeritage), Angélique Poirier LeBlanc (1899-1963), whose features are echoed in both her daughter’s and granddaughter’s faces. 

Sandra Wade

Sandra shared a lovely side-by-side comparison of herself in her 30s with her mother, Sara Patricia Cressler, in her younger years. Sara was born in Panama City, Florida, on January 2, 1936, and led a vibrant life as the child of military parents. Her experiences ranged from swimming to playing the clarinet and oboe in her high school band, which competed nationally. Sara met Sandra’s father, Gordon Brown, while square dancing in Las Vegas, Nevada. A skilled bookkeeper, Sara lived in various places including Los Angeles and Encinitas in California before returning to Las Vegas. She cherished her Plymouth Barracuda with a 354 hemi and was also active in the Mormon church, where she taught Sunday school. They have the same expressions!

Catherine Bates

Catherine Bates sent in a comparison photo of her grandmother, Anna Catherine Faist, from around 1949, and herself in 2013. Anna was born in 1891, the eldest daughter of Jacob Frederick Faist and Caterina Mechtilda Schwartz, and was a first-generation American. She married Joseph Rohs, an immigrant from Hungary, in 1916 and they had 11 children, though tragically only seven survived into adulthood.

Catherine fondly recalls spending time in the kitchen with her grandmother, helping her peel carrots for her famous chicken and dumplings. These cherished moments in the kitchen left a lasting imprint on Catherine, who regrets not having more time to learn all of her grandmother’s recipes and hear more stories about her life. 

Eric Armstrong

Eric Armstrong shared photos that highlight the remarkable resemblance between his mother, Dorothy Hunt, and his daughter, Mary Armstrong Adam. Dorothy was born in 1911 in Brownsville, PA, and was a dedicated teacher for many years until she passed in 1992. She attended Seton Hill University in Greensburg, where this photo of her and her friends was taken in the winter of 1929 (colorized and enhanced by MyHeritage).

Mary, born in 1966, followed a different path, graduating from the University of Pittsburgh and building a long career with Merck Pharmaceuticals. She is now married with 3 children. 

The comparison photo shows how much she resembles her grandmother Dorothy at a similar age. Many people who see the 1929 photo of Dorothy and her friends often mistake Mary for having been part of that original group!

Tara Smith 

Tara Smith shared the striking resemblance between her sister Claire and their great-great-great-grandmother, Elizabeth. As she said “Genes are incredible 😳And it absolutely shocked me how much Elizabeth looks like my sister Claire”

The original photo of Elizabeth, which includes her holding her baby daughter on her lap — Tara’s great-great-grandmother — was discovered by Tara during her family history research with MyHeritage.

Emma Laffey

On the left, you can see Emma’s great-great-grandmother, Mary Anne Fanning, and her daughter, Eve Murray, is on the right. 

Mary Anne, born in 1880 in Garristown County Dublin, Ireland, served her community as a midwife. Her legacy continues to resonate today, as she will be featured in an upcoming exhibition by the Irish Community Archive Network at The National Museum of Ireland on October 3, 2024.

Eve, Mary Anne’s great-great-granddaughter, is currently channeling her own creative talents into a Fine Art degree at the Limerick School of Art & Design. 

Cheryl Badger 

Cheryl Kennedy Badger shares a heartwarming photo of herself and her mother, Valerie Kennedy, née Dyson, showing off their remarkably similar smiles.

Tiffany Percival 

Three years ago, Tiffany Percival made a significant family history discovery: she found her paternal aunts. While her paternal grandmother had sadly passed away before she could meet her, Tiffany quickly learned from her newfound family that she bears a striking resemblance to her grandmother, as can be seen in these photos below.  

Debbie Sinclair

Debbie Sinclair shared a black and white photo, enhanced on MyHeritage, of her grandmother with her siblings. Debbie’s grandmother passed away just a month before she was born — and exactly 27 years, to the day, before the birth of Debbie’s son. Despite never having met her, Debbie feels a deep connection through family photographs.

With no immediate family members left to tell her more about her grandmother, Debbie treasures this image, where she estimates her grandmother was around 19–20 years old, born in 1903. 

Nearly 100 years separate these photos, yet the resemblance is unmistakable. 

And the winner is! 

Congratulations to MyHeritage user Sharon Katzmann! You will receive a MyHeritage DNA kit to further explore your family’s roots and discover even more about your heritage.

Thank you again to all who participated. We are truly amazed by all your entries. Happy Mother’s Day!