A Gift From My Grandpa

This was really monumental to me, so I decided to post it to both blogs.  From the Chart Chick Blog

George Alvin Carpenter About 1958

My father's father, George Alvin Carpenter was a great scholar.  He was a university professor who spent his career at UC Berkeley and then retired and taught 15 more years at Brigham Young University.  He was an agricultural economist who helped rebuild the economy in Europe after World War II.  He was involved in research and teaching his whole life.

But he was not a genealogist.  His father Joseph Hatten Carpenter was.  Joseph was a prolific genealogist who I've written about before.  I suspect that my Grandfather Alvin spent most of his life feeling that his father had done everything that was necessary with our family's history.  I don't think he was really very interested.

However, I do remember once, when I was about 7 or so, my Grandfather sat all of his grandchildren down on the swing on his back porch and told us about our family history.  I was the oldest, my cousins were probably between 2 and 4 years old.  I remember Grandpa was trying to tell us something important, but it was really boring.  I didn't understand much.  But I remember Grandpa was really proud of his heritage.

About 1973.  I'm on the left with my cousins on the porch swing.  If my memory is right, this is the day my grandfather tried to tell us about our family history.

Being a university professor, I know Grandpa was perfectly capable of real research and he could have been a good genealogist.  However my Grandfather performed only one genealogical act in his life that I know of. He wrote a history of his father, Joseph Hatten Carpenter--the genealogist.  This book is only 145 one sided pages.  But that one small act had a great impact on me.

The book was published when I was 10 years old.  Because I was one of the descendants, I got my very own copy.  It sat on the little white bookshelf in my room and on quiet nights, I would pull it out, and read about Joseph.  Even though I have many ancestors who were actually quite famous, Joseph was the one I knew the most about, and I became quite connected to him.  When the time came that I wanted to learn more about my family history, you can guess who I was connected to, and where I wanted to spend my time first.  I've traveled to the family history sites and archives researching along this line and I've learned alot about my patriarchal family because of this small book my Grandfather wrote.

Grandpa passed the year I turned 16. It is hard to quantify the effect he had on my life.  Certainly my ethic for education came from him and that has been a huge influence in my life.  I could go on and on about other things I've learned from him.  But this small book has been a real treasure.

When I started lecturing at Family History Conferences, my very first lecture was "Where to Start When It Is All Done,"  I talked about the family history my Great-Grandfather Joseph collected and what I've been able to do with it.  In that lecture, I often showed this book of my Grandfather's and talked about what an impact it had on my life and my family history work.  Diving into Family History when alot of work has already been done is challenging--just like it was for my Grandfather Alvin.  I tried to encourage the attendees by showing them his book and describing what an impact it had on me.  I told them that if they only accomplished one thing, it would be worth it in the lives of their descendants.  According to my records, I've given that lecture 34 times from coast to coast and my copy of Alvin's book has come along with me.

But the most amazing thing happened last month.  My son Matthew has been helping my Dad go through his family history boxes.  And they found this:  A copy of the book that my Grandfather had actually signed to me.  It reads in part:

I hope that you will enjoy reading about some of his wonderful accomplishments.  May you learn to appreciate the great heritage you have as his great-grand-daughter.  With love and best wishes, your grandfather, G. Alvin Carpenter.

When they gave it to me I just cried.  It was like a pat on the back from my Grandfather for the work that I have put into this industry, trying to help people with this important work.  I felt like I had been fulfilling my Grandfather's wishes, to learn about our amazing heritage and honor his legacy.  And even though he never saw it in this life, I had learned to appreciate this history that was so important to him.

Had I always had this copy of the book, I don't know that it would have had such an impact on me.  So you never know... you never know where the trail of breadcrumbs will lead your descendants.  How blessed I am for the people who went ahead of me and blazed that trail.

Decorating with Family History for the Holidays.

 My daughter Rachel and I had a great time making a fun family history tree a couple of years ago.  We've enjoyed this tree so much in the years since.  I hope you'll allow me: proud Mom here. She created this video to give you some ideas for your own family history decorating.  Hopefully it will help you inspire your family with their heritage at this time of year.

Time Capsules

When the family gets together at the holidays, a fun activity can be creating a time capsule.  My kids and I have created time capsules at the end of the year for short term storage and then packed them away with the Christmas decorations.  We include goals for the year and reflections on the year past. It's fun to open them next Thanksgiving weekend when we get the decorations out. 

A time capsule is “a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a method of communication with future people” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_capsule). They are a great way to capture this moment in time for the future. Creating a time capsule can cause your family to pause now and reflect about what is important to them and what brought them to the point they are now. The creation of a time capsule can spark some good discussions in your family about what is important to you.
You can ask everyone in the family to contribute to a time capsule. They might want to contribute a tangible item, but also encourage them to add something that will really tell about their lives now. A personal note, pictures, or a schedule of what daily life is like could be really interesting down the road. The capsule can be any container as long as it is labeled and kept sealed in a safe place. And it needn’t be sealed for long. One year, five years, or ten years, can give the observer great perspective on life.

If you want a really safe time capsule container that will last a long time, check out:
https://www.futurepkg.com/
http://www.amalco.com/time-capsules.html

And for complete instructions on creating long term archival time capsules check out the Smithsonian Institutions ideas at:
https://www.si.edu/mci/english/learn_more/taking_care/timecaps.html

Good luck.  I'm sure it will cause lots of reflection for your family and give them a broader perspective on life--one of the best benefits of family history.  

Decorating Boredom Buster

Yes, you read that correctly. It is entirely possible to give your children a boredom busting activity this summer that you will actually want to decorate the walls with later on. And what I mean by that is there will be nary a piece of glitter in sight. Save that stuff for your fridge and keepsake boxes. This idea will demand a prime display spot in your entryway or sitting room.

This idea comes from Brigitte. While the article is in German, I think we can all get the idea of it just based on the pictures. Family pictures printed onto canvas, placed into embroidery hoops, and then accented with colorful embroidery stitches. Tweak this one to use family history pictures and  you could create some beautiful new masterpieces. How cool is that? As you can see, they are simple cross-stitches and because your children will not have to follow a pattern, their imaginations can run a little wild. How great would this look in your house? Or what about as gift ideas for grandparents far away? I can just see the buttons busting from pride over the fact that a grandchild embroidered something for them. The fact that it is also a lovely decoration is just an added bonus.

The next time you hear, “I’m bored,” try busting out this activity and have some fun. It’s short enough to keep your child’s attention span but interesting enough to engage him or her into learning a new skill. Perhaps it will even start your child onto a new hobby path, too. Winning all around with this one.

This Way Be Treasure… Arrr!

Look at this great idea I just found the other day and pinned to my Youth and Genealogy Pinterest Board. A Family History Treasure Hunt from Homemaking With Heart. I love this! The idea is that the next time you go to spend time with an older relative, create a treasure hunt for the children to complete while they visit. You may want to call ahead and arrange this with whomever you may be visiting, just to make sure everyone agrees to having the homestead looked over. Some of the ideas she gives for searchable items are really amazing and they have the potential to create fun story-telling opportunities. She lists things above and beyond the typical family photos, such as: quilts and old clothing, letters/correspondence, family bibles, trophies, old toys, and the list goes on. Can you imagine the fun children could have with a grandparent’s old yearbook?

 You could even take this treasure hunt one step further by introducing it at a family reunion. I once heard of a family who split everyone up into teams (every age group represented on every team). Each team was given a list and a digital camera and sent off with a time limit. The goal was to record digitally as many things as possible on the teams’ cameras. I heard this family travelled to gravesides and old homesteads local to the reunion. It was a highlight of the reunion for the family that year.

Our extended families are a treasure trove to our past. By learning more about them, we will learn more about ourselves. Creating a game for the discovery is a brilliant idea to draw children into family history without them even realizing it. All the children will know is that they’re having fun and discovering treasures from long-ago. Dressing up and speaking like pirates is optional, but the fun will be guaranteed. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

How To Archive Family Keepsakes--Digital Wills

So I wrote a blog post over on The Chart Chick about my good friend Denise May Levenick's book How To Archive Family Keepsakes.  It is a really great book and I would highly recommend it for anyone who is concerned about protecting their family treasures for future generations.  But I also want to tell you about a particular chapter here that has to do with specifically making sure that your family information is organized and ready for your children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews.  It is chapter 5 "Organize for the Future."

In this chapter she gives you step by step instructions for planning your legacy.  And she has a wonderful form for creating a digital will.  Have you ever wondered what will happen to your online assets should something happen to you?  Who will know the passwords and who will take care of the pictures, blogs, genealogy information etc that you have out on the web?  This form will help you get that all organized. 

I love how Denise has written about standing back and really thinking about the theory behind how you are treating your family treasures.  She is very forward thinking in having you plan out what your goals are and what the future of these items will be.  Check out the book at Denise's website The Family Curator and read about all of the other suggestions she has for making sure your family gets to enjoy all of the treasures of their past.