A little help, please...

We've all been in the throes of a good ancestor hunt when we finally get to a point where we have to blurt out that little four letter word - HELP!

We may not realize it, but sometimes that help is already available to us before we can ask. Ancestry.com is one of my many resources for researching family history. Many times, before I begin a search of all records, I check to see if the name I am researching shows up in any family trees.

I decided to pick up the search again for my great grandfather on my maternal line. I really didn't have much information about his life - other than than knowing the name of his wife, the names of their children, and that he unfortunately died when he was 26 years of age (possibly 24 as his birth year may be off by a couple of years). I would check for trees on Ancestry and he never seemed to show up. I was able to check other databases and found documentation that lead me to discover the names of his parents and his siblings. After that discovery they all seemed to have joined the "Ancestor Witness Protection Program" (smile)!

Doing family research takes lots of time. You may not always get the answers you're looking for, but I'm a firm believer that those answers will come eventually.

I decided to search for great grandfather again today and wondered "Could he finally be listed in someone's tree"? To my surprise he was! And so was his entire family! I reviewed this person's family tree and they had identical information to what I have, plus LOTS of information that I didn't have. I was so excited because this part of the family finally has a story!

I noticed that the person who owned the tree had various other trees. I contacted them to explain who I was and ask their relation. The owner of the tree is not related but mentioned that she just likes to research and update her findings in her spare time. I gave her a hearty thank you and encouraged her to keep up the good work! Without her help I would've never been able to make this remarkable discovery!

Never give up on your search! Your help may be closer than you think and may also come from an unlikely source! I would've never thought that someone I don't know and who has no relation to my family would provide the information that I was looking for! Let's all do our part and help index information. Your one post could be the one missing link for someone to complete their family history!

And when you're tired of shaking your tree, go shake someone else's - you may be surprised to find that some of your ancestors may fall out!

Happy Searching! :-)

What Runs In Your Family?

Discussing what medical conditions run in your family is not always a popular conversation - but it is an important one! The reason for this post is to help encourage you to open the door to discussing medical issues that run in your family. Some things may be of minor significance and some things may be of major significance, so it's important to sort it all out.

May is National Stroke Awareness Month. That may not mean anything to you. It didn't mean anything to me until some years ago when it hit home and affected my mother and completely changed all of our lives. Prior to that I never thought to ask her about her medical history, or the medical history of her family.

As I gathered some family data recently, I began remembering that my grandmother also suffered a stroke which contributed to her death. Another family member was trying to convince me that wasn't the case but I could vividly remembering hearing that she suffered a stroke when I was a kid. I began going through my family papers and just as I thought, stroke was a major contributor to her death. "That's ironic" I thought, but I didn't think much of it again until I stumbled upon a copy of my great grandmother's death certificate. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that she also died as a result of having a stroke! What are the odds that great grandmother, grandmother, and mother would all succumb to the same disease! This was no coincidence to me!

I began asking other relatives what they knew of strokes in the family and other contributory causes that could put us at a higher risk. No one seemed to know and the people who could really answer these questions are unfortunately no longer here. Now that I have this information I can share with other family members so that we know what to look out for and try to prevent the same. If you're interested in learning more about stroke and stroke prevention, National Stroke Association is a great resource to look into.

I hope that you will take time today to discuss your family's health - it could save a life!

Happy Living! :-)