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One day, out of the blue, I received an email from someone saying she thought she was my cousin and wanted to confirm that. My banking security background kicked into high gear. Was this a phishing email? The boys would say my “Spidey senses” were tingling.
Yet I was compelled. This woman really knew my family tree. She gave me a link to her MyFamily.com site. I had to create a registration but it was free. The information she gave me was convincing enough to push me onward, though.
What I found there astounded me. There was a picture of a man who my cousin, Pam, said was my great-grandfather. I no longer could in incredulous. Looking back at me was the spitting image of my great-grandfather. Who knows how long I sat and stared at this picture but it was long enough for my husband to ask me if I was alright. He says I jumped a mile high.
I suddenly felt like a hole within me had been filled. Here were my roots.
There were pictures of my great-grandmother, in her beautiful wedding dress, and my great-grandfather on their wedding day in 1911.
My grandfather and his twin brother (Pam’s mother’s brothers) in their christening gowns were so intricate and I smiled at their knitted bootie sticking out. There were pictures of my father’s with his brother and sisters, too. I knew these people but not when they were younger!
I struck up an online friendship with my cousin, Pam Rihel. She soon came to visit me with her two grandchildren. Both of us were instantly amazed at how much her grandson and my son resembled each other. Take a look, what do you think?
My cousin, Pam, gave me family I never knew I had. She confirmed stories I had heard about my father’s family. She also dispelled a lot of myths I had heard. Either way, I now had an even greater insight into who I am, where I had come from. I can’t thank the amateur genealogist in my family for giving me this present. Thank you for all of your work for the non-genealogist minded people. We really do appreciate all of your hard work.
Jackie Masek is a homeschool mom, writer, and IDG contributor who shares resources and information at her website. LJSkool.com.
© 2012 Jackie Masek
Photos used by permission.
What a great story. I have been the beneficiary of shared ancestral photos and experienced the same thrill upon their discovery. I continue to search, hoping that I am led to images of all of my gr-greats.
Wow! This is a family researcher’s dream come true. Congratulations and isn’t it great that you AND Cousin Pam now know more about the family tree you share? The fam resemblance looks quite clear to my eyes!
What a delightful story! You take us from your (justified) suspicions to your revelation and discovery. New photos and a new (old) cousin. I especially love the picture of your son and her grandson. And the sentence, “I felt like a hole within me had been filled.” I wonder how she found you. What a sense of fulfillment you must have!
Love this post. Brought tears to my eyes. Genealogy is a little luck and timing and it is so nice when that “luck” comes to us in magical forms that expand our families.
Wow! What a great story! I love when these connections take place. And those photos are so beautiful!
What a fun discovery. Thanks for sharing.
Jackie I was thrilled to read this story and I was very happy to have enlightend you and helping you find other family members. Genealogy to me is about sharing. What else would I have done with all my hard work, just let it rot on the shelf?
I was so very happy to have been able to meet you and your family before you moved all the way across the U.S.
Hopefully some day we can meet again. If you have any new information for me just send in our Dropbox.
Thank you for your kind words! It was providence that brought my cousin Pam and I together, truly. The picture of my great-grandfather resembled my own father so much when he saw it he thought it was of him! LOL. When Pam and I met she stared at my son while I stared at her grandson, then we both blurted out at the same, “He’s a RYAN!” It was one of those moments when you wish someone had been videotaping. Thank you to all of the genealogists! Pam is a diligent genealogist and works with the Lorain County (OH) genealogy society at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ohlorain/
What a heartwarming story! It looks like you won the genealogy lottery
By the way, I like the phrase “my spidey-senses were tingling.” My kids would have said the situation was very “stalkerish.” Gotta love the phrases they come up with!
Don’t you love cousin connections? You hit the jackpot with someone who had all the photos. Usually I get messages from cousins asking me for photos, and I don’t have very many. Did she find you through your blog?
Great story! I’ve had several “Cousin Connections” made through my research. There’s a special feeling about each one!