Greetings, WikiChatterers, and welcome to the Weekend Chat!
Posting this a little early due to lightning in the area. If I don’t answer you right off the bat, it is because I’m offline to protect my computers.
On the Home Front: Here in Cathey’s Creek we’ve had more rain (and are expecting more today, and the creek is about two feet from cresting. We are still repairing some of the damage from the flooding that occurred, and I was out this a.m. sealing off the four vents in the front of our house… just in case. My heart goes out to all of you who live in the Blessed Realm who are also experiencing this very serious storm.
And now for a special message to all my fellow members on WikiTree
On the Genealogy Front: Today is my One Year Anniversary of receiving my confirmation as a member of WikiTree! I was greeted, confirmed, and followed-up on by three members of the Greeters. This may seem like a small thing, but to me it was a HUGE discovery! WikiTree wasn’t just a site, it was people! It seems so long ago! So… here’s some things I want to say about the past year:
If I were to start naming members who helped me to become a better genealogist there wouldn’t be enough room here AND I’m sure I’d still leave some folks out! That’s just to say that WikiTree members believing spirit of collaboration and having the willingness to assist others in this community accomplished this.
I remember the first time I had a personal communication from a member. I posted a photo of my grandfather in the Mt. Holly Band (ca. 1909). Grandpa had written down the names of the men with whom he played. A WikiTreer jumped on it and started looking for them and found some great information, including one man whose daughter married into a collateral line of my grandmother’s.
I believe that one of the most important things I was able to participate in this past year was the Orphan Trail of the England Project. Two very wonderful and patient Trailblazers led me through the Trail, and I learned more about how to do genealogy rather than always asking someone else to do it for me.
I have made friends in so many different countries, as well as coast to coast in the States. I’m thinking of one that I nicknamed The Texas Ranger who has become a mentor and personal friend. Another member in Missouri saw that I was having such a difficult time with DNA that she offered to talk to me on the phone so she could walk me through Gedmatch. Yet another member has spent (an inordinate amount of) time with me on coding sources and the use of spreadsheets. Another member and I send photos of our families’ goings-on to each other on a regular basis. And The Greatest Gang (my fellow Greeters) always keep my spirits up. Such are just a few of the very many examples of relationships I have been able to discover and enjoy, and they all started here on WikiTree.
We laugh and call each other “cousins,” and the primary purpose of WikiTree is genealogy, but truly, this community has become like a second family for me, and I am forever grateful to all of you who share your lives with me, genealogically and personally, on the Weekend Chat, on G2G, within projects, and via email. I am a blessed man, and I just wanted you all to know that.
There is so much more that I want to say, but there is just not enough room for it all, so… Everyone, enjoy the Chat!