Power of a Story

My parents had a family get-together tonight for some extended family who are in town from Florida to attend the OSU v. Purdue game tomorrow. It’s all about football & tailgating in my family!

My Uncle Mike, Aunt Marcy, their oldest son Matt, and his wife Lindsay arrived earlier today (Friday) and are staying through Sunday.

My Uncle Mike and Aunt Marcy both met at OSU and are very active (Mike is VP) in the OSU Alumni chapter in Sarasota, Florida where they live.

Matt and Lindsay are both Civil Engineers who met in college at Illinois, but they enjoy visiting and attending Buckeye games. I really think they visit Ohio for the bonfires my dad makes on cool, fall nights. According to them, there are only hot fall nights in Florida.

While we were all together tonight we celebrated two birthdays: my Grandma Rosie and my brother, Doug. I made S’mores cookie bars for dessert so that became the birthday “cake”.

Hannah helping Doug and Grandma Rosie blow out the candles

After dinner and cake, Matt brought out the family tree and history he’s been gathering. He showed the family tree from my mom’s side (his dad’s side) – the Kennelly’s. He’s traced my Grandma Rosie Kennelly Martin back through the Bell’s and Murphy’s to ancestors that arrived from Ireland and even back to an ancestor who fought in the Revolutionary War and was friends with George Washington (of course since I didn’t write the name down I can’t remember it – I need to get a copy of the family tree!). He also traced my Grandpa James Kennelly back through his ancestors that immigrated from Germany. 

Matt showing the rest of us the Kennelly family tree he has created.

The stuff he’s discovered is fascinating – he’s become a heritage detective!! He’s typed in different spellings of last names to try and find the information, and he’s searched military records, Ellis Island records, Ancestor.com, you name it, he’s looked for it. Now I need to get the knowledge he has collected and start to put it into a Heritage Makers book so that our heritage is recorded to share with everyone in the Kennelly family.

So all of the work Matt is doing is on my Mom’s side of the family. Before tonight I knew significantly more about my Dad’s side of the family as there are tons of records since part of his family tree comes from Mormon roots and they keep amazing records. I recently had another Heritage Maker’s Consultant contact me through this blog mainly with blog questions, BUT in the process of helping her we realized that we are related through my great-great grandfather Joseph Tanner. The world truly is becoming more connected.

Also on my dad’s side, my great-great-great grandfather is Erastus Snow, one of the first Mormon Pioneers, along with Brigham Young, to enter the Salt Lake Valley. Years ago, when my family was visiting Salt Lake City, we visited the “This is the Place” monument which has a statue of Erastus Snow. I have to dig up the photo that shows my brothers, myself and Erastus Snow  – not too many people can claim to have a photo with their great-great-great grandfather!!

What unique stories are in your family’s history? I know I need to start writing this stuff down so it’s not lost, so first I’ll starting with this blog and next a Heritage Makers book!