Feature Story 2: Separated Brothers Name:

Bewildered.
When Daniel Karast saw someone that was almost a mirror image of himself at his
school’s track meet he couldn’t believe it.
Daniel is the adopted son of Bill and Jana Karast. His birth parents died after a car
accident when he was only a year old. He is a senior in high school and is in track, baseball,
and wants to pursue engineering at Texas A&M. At his track meet, he saw a person almost
identical to him, it turned out to be his brother. Donald Stephens, his brother, is also in track,
baseball, and also wants to pursue engineering at Texas A&M just like Daniel. While the
brothers are close friends and like similar things, they’re competing against each other at the
regional playoff baseball game on Friday, May 27.
“When I was at that starting line, I had only one thing on my mind — win the race,”
Daniel said. “Then, I looked to my left, and there I was. I mean, we look exactly alike. Same
curly brown hair. Same wide brown eyes. Same build. We even have the same crooked front
tooth. I kind of freaked out until I heard the starting pistol.”
Even though Daniel got second in the track meet, he said finding Donald was incredible.
After the track meet, the doctors confirmed that Daniel and Donald are brothers. They both have
spent a lot of time getting to know each other. They like the same food, subject, and sports.
“I always knew one day I would find my brother, but I had no idea he was only 30 miles
away this whole time,” Donald said. “When I saw him at the track meet, I knew instantly it was
him. I just knew. I think that’s why I ran so fast at that meet. It was my best time ever.”
Daniel’s parents had no idea he had a brother. There was a mix-up at the hospital, and
the doctors forgot to tell child services that Daniel and Donald were brothers. By the time, child
services realized that they were brothers, Daniel was already adopted.
“When Daniel called us from the track meet and started babbling over the phone that he
had a brother, we didn’t know what to think,” Daniel’s mother, Jana Karast said. “My husband
and I had no idea that Daniel’s birth mother was pregnant at the time of the car accident.”
Donald and Daniel have both been practicing baseball together. Donald’s coach was
worried about him playing against his brother because he felt like it would stop him from playing
his best. However, his coach realized that Donald got better, and both of the brothers were
pushing themselves, competing against each other to improve every day.
“I’m not going to lie, I want to win the games this weekend, but I am not going to be
devastated if we don’t win”, Donald said. “Win or lose, I still win.”
The Leaguetown varsity baseball team is undefeated for the season. Daniel has a .420
batting average, which is well above average. The Southside varsity baseball team goes into
the playoff games with only two losses. Donald has a .333 batting average. Southside is 30
miles west of Leaguetown. For the regional playoff, Leaguetown and Southside will play the
best two out of three, starting at 7 p.m.
“We’ve practiced baseball together a few times, so we know each other’s pitches,”
Daniel said. “He has a better curve ball, but my fast ball is faster and a bit more accurate. I am
excited about the games. It’s going to be an even match up this weekend. The great thing is,
both of us will go to the UIL State Baseball Tournament. One will be a player, and the other a
fan.”
Feature Story 2: Separated Brothers Name: