Bio
-Note: I am 70+ years old. I have found a few memorials managed by non-responsive managers -SO- if you want to take over management of any of my non-family memorials, you just need to ask. I get messages through both the [Suggest Edits] links and my email. Conditionally I Will transfer some of my family memorials as long as you, too, are related and younger.
- Our direct family names include Baker, Bernier, Butterfuss, Coffey, De Long, Douthett, Hazen, Himes, Jackson, Kessler, Lucas, Mohney, Myers, Peck, Ruth, Simon(s), Smith, Terrill, Timblin, Trimper, and White.
- I was the first New Yorker born into our family. I spent 8.5-years in the Army signal corp, 2-years as an OSVET on a Navy coastal mine sweeper, 35-years maintenence in a bar/restaurant and 8-years as a pressman's assistant, reporter, and photographer for local newspapers. The Good Lord timed my life right as I moved to Ridgway, Pa. helping our mother care for a younger brother. I retired as Mom was diagnosed with dementia and I became a caregiver to both her and Mark. Now she lies in Brandy Camp Cemetery, and I'm caring for my brother who, although having difficulty reading, enjoys helping me in our volunteer work for FindAGrave.
- We are literally 'Headstone Hunters' as we walk our volunteer cemeteries in a search pattern so as not to miss any. If a headstone is readable with or without any minor cleaning, we are confident we've read it. Yes, we've had to set some upright, and, once finding exposed probable information, have even done a little digging to expose buried information trying to stay as close to the headstone as possible and still read it.
- With our efforts it is very disappointing when we are out on a search, accompanied by a current list of photo requests, and don't find a marker. In these cases I can only suggest the marker is unreadable, buried beyond manual recovery, maybe it's unmarked grave or the memorial is registered in the wrong cemetery.
- I've had one among several that was supposed to be in southeastern New York that I found buried next to his sister here in Ridgway. No one ever would have known he was here except I found these matching, side-by-side markers and knew the sister's maiden name and family. The request was for the sister as she was the wife of one of Ridgway's founding citizens. I had to request a memorial transfer in that case.
- I am a paying member of All Access Ancestry.com that includes Newspapers, Military records and have learned to use the National Archives, so doing deep research is my way of getting my money's worth. That could also be a rub-off from my reporting days.
- As far as my GPS coordinates, I started off using a Garmin GPSMap 64sx (uses U.S. & Russian satellites), then added a Garmin GPSMap 64st (using U.S. and European satellites). These are among the best handheld units, but even they can have an error of 10-15 feet.
- I now use the free Google Earth Pro app, using their satellite images, zooming in on the cemetery's headstones and getting as close to a pinpoint location as is currently possible.
- This is equivalent to putting pins on a map. The lines and objects do NOT move. I use the Google Earth Pro image from September, 2017 as the headstones are all very visible, though for newer markers I have to use the old headstones to triangulate the new ones location.
-Note: I am 70+ years old. I have found a few memorials managed by non-responsive managers -SO- if you want to take over management of any of my non-family memorials, you just need to ask. I get messages through both the [Suggest Edits] links and my email. Conditionally I Will transfer some of my family memorials as long as you, too, are related and younger.
- Our direct family names include Baker, Bernier, Butterfuss, Coffey, De Long, Douthett, Hazen, Himes, Jackson, Kessler, Lucas, Mohney, Myers, Peck, Ruth, Simon(s), Smith, Terrill, Timblin, Trimper, and White.
- I was the first New Yorker born into our family. I spent 8.5-years in the Army signal corp, 2-years as an OSVET on a Navy coastal mine sweeper, 35-years maintenence in a bar/restaurant and 8-years as a pressman's assistant, reporter, and photographer for local newspapers. The Good Lord timed my life right as I moved to Ridgway, Pa. helping our mother care for a younger brother. I retired as Mom was diagnosed with dementia and I became a caregiver to both her and Mark. Now she lies in Brandy Camp Cemetery, and I'm caring for my brother who, although having difficulty reading, enjoys helping me in our volunteer work for FindAGrave.
- We are literally 'Headstone Hunters' as we walk our volunteer cemeteries in a search pattern so as not to miss any. If a headstone is readable with or without any minor cleaning, we are confident we've read it. Yes, we've had to set some upright, and, once finding exposed probable information, have even done a little digging to expose buried information trying to stay as close to the headstone as possible and still read it.
- With our efforts it is very disappointing when we are out on a search, accompanied by a current list of photo requests, and don't find a marker. In these cases I can only suggest the marker is unreadable, buried beyond manual recovery, maybe it's unmarked grave or the memorial is registered in the wrong cemetery.
- I've had one among several that was supposed to be in southeastern New York that I found buried next to his sister here in Ridgway. No one ever would have known he was here except I found these matching, side-by-side markers and knew the sister's maiden name and family. The request was for the sister as she was the wife of one of Ridgway's founding citizens. I had to request a memorial transfer in that case.
- I am a paying member of All Access Ancestry.com that includes Newspapers, Military records and have learned to use the National Archives, so doing deep research is my way of getting my money's worth. That could also be a rub-off from my reporting days.
- As far as my GPS coordinates, I started off using a Garmin GPSMap 64sx (uses U.S. & Russian satellites), then added a Garmin GPSMap 64st (using U.S. and European satellites). These are among the best handheld units, but even they can have an error of 10-15 feet.
- I now use the free Google Earth Pro app, using their satellite images, zooming in on the cemetery's headstones and getting as close to a pinpoint location as is currently possible.
- This is equivalent to putting pins on a map. The lines and objects do NOT move. I use the Google Earth Pro image from September, 2017 as the headstones are all very visible, though for newer markers I have to use the old headstones to triangulate the new ones location.
