I became interested in my family's history about 20 years ago. Since then I've located many relatives, some living, most not, mainly through internet research. My family lines are Wilder, Watson, Pearson, Howell, Hazel, Marberry, Young, and Robinson. Several distant cousins who found me online very generously gave me the Hazel family Bible with the names of my forefathers inscribed in it & a Hazel photo album of my ancestors. Prior to receiving those, I hadn't known the names of my Hazel ancestors, much less what they looked like! What gifts they were!
I have also worked on my husband's family tree and the main surnames in his tree are Lane, Bryant, Shepherd, Barnett, Potts, Armstrong, Killick, White-West. Working on these lines with other family members (Sue, Mitchell, & many more) has cemented lifelong friendships that I cherish. For me, the last chapter of documenting an ancestor's life is finding their final resting place and hopefully, getting a photograph of their grave. It is my way of honoring them and preserving their memory for generations to come. Find-a-Grave has been such a great tool in completing the stories of so many of my ancestors. Many wonderful volunteers have provided photographs for me and I hope to be able to do the same for others. Any photographs I have posted on FindAGrave may be used without my permission or any credit given. The more people who share the photos the longer our departed loved ones will be remembered! I have been married for over 40 years. I have 3 adult children, 2 grandsons and 1 shelter dog. Now that my kids are grown and on their own I am able to devote more time to what I love to do - work on my family tree! They all think I'm a little over the top with my passion for genealogy, and I would have to say, I agree with them!