I am finding a node in the treeview by id and then by uid and setting it as selected , but the selected node is undefined ?

here is my code so far:

            id_node_to_select = Id <---that is a property on the node object
            var treeview = $("#mytree").data("kendoTreeView");
            var getitem = treeview.dataSource.get(id_node_to_select);
            treeview.findByUid(getitem.uid);
            var selectitem = treeview.findByUid(getitem.uid);
            var node = treeview.select(selectitem);   <--- this is undefined ?

How can i do this ? Also I am adding a parent node to the grid and then gettting that parent and adding a child , all from reading a jsn string. Surely there must be and easier way by setting children on the schema like kendo grids ?