I have always been interested in family history and even as a child I collected bits and pieces of information, photos and mementos from relatives. When I took an early retirement several years ago, I began my own research while not attending to family responsibilities. This also allowed me to spend much more time with my parents in their later years. My Dad always loved to hear what I'd discovered on my research trips and my Mom loved to talk about things I learned about her 'cousins'.

I have been married for over 40 years and have four children and one grandchild with another on the way. My oldest, a son, is a college professor with his PhD in history. His wife is beginning her first year as an elementary school teacher. My younger son lives in Orlando, FL and is a civil engineer with a large firm there. His wife works from home for a national company. They are expecting their first child later this year.

My older daughter is a district coordinator for a large grocery chain and lives nearby so I am fortunate to be able to spend a lot of time with my granddaughter. My younger daughter is a senior pharmacy tech at a national chain and also lives nearby.

Other responsibilities over the years have prevented me from spending more time on my research. I was very fortunate to receive help from other more experienced researchers when I started so always try to 'pay it forward' by helping others any time I can.