What?? WE have a family blog??? Well, yes, in a way... it's a start at a family blog.. a place where we can connect and share family history and stories.
I am new at all of this, and to be quite honest, not sure how I feel about all this lack of privacy that comes with the internet. So as a first note, let me say that for now, I am just using first names of the living family members. As we all get accustomed to "blogging", then I may be more specific. But for now...
Hi, it's Mariellan!
Several years ago, Lucretia sent out an email asking for a family "volunteer" to accept responsibility for a box of scrapbooks she had. As some of you may remember, the box contained some scrapbooks of Charles Sisson Weaver, my great-grandfather and some items of interest from Uncle Rat. (What? We have an Uncle Rat? Yes, more on this later!) Lucretia thought that these should be placed in the Weaver Family Library at The First Baptist Church in Talladega, AL. So I thought I would be that volunteer! Little did I know the journey that this box of memories would take me on!
Poor little box! It sat in the hall closet floor for a few years. I would open the closet to find a tote bag or get the vacuum, and there would be the box. Maybe that is why I never wanted to vacuum because I was always reminded that I had one big family project ahead of me!
So let's fast-forward to the year 2007. Our daughter, Rebecca, had gotten married that July, so when in October, Alice and Bob invited me to come see them in Blowing Rock, NC, I accepted, having all this "free time!" My sister, Rebecca, and our parents, Nancy and Tommy, were also going.
Rebecca and I rode together, and we packed the scrapbooks in our car. What better time to try to make sense of all this family memorabilia than with four of our family's awesome historians and story-tellers, Mama, Daddy, Bob, and Alice as our captives in a mountain cabin! After sneezing our way into Knoxville-4 hours later, we realized just what we had in store for us during our mountain escape.
After a few nights of good food and cozy fires, most of the pictures were identified and lots of stories were told to Rebecca and me, surprisingly, for the first time. Rebecca and I stacked and labeled most of this and then immediately tied it into big plastic bags-no, not to throw away! Remember, we ARE Weavers (and DeWines! We don't throw away!) We tied things up so we could ride home without the sneezing and coughing from the dust-filled scrapbooks.
Fast-forward again...this past Spring 2014, sister Rebecca and I began disassembling the books and sorting all the items. It was obvious while in Blowing Rock that these family treasures could not go into the Weaver library in the condition they were in. Nor should we let them get away from us, just yet. So we sat outside and had a great time tackling this treasure.
No, this had to stay with family! We had unlocked a family treasure chest! We were pirates of a different kind! What would we do with all of these jewels? What did we find?
Postcards, greeting cards, hand-written letters, newspaper articles, church pledge cards and Sunday bulletins, wedding announcements, obituaries, photographs, telegrams......oh, I could go on. But then, we would have no reason for our family blog.
Every week, I will post something new-or most likely, old! on the blog. It may be something we have all heard a hundred times, or it may be something new, or from a different perspective. Mainly though, I want all of you to have an opportunity to dig into this with me. Daughter, Rebecca, is my mentor, directing me in all things digital, as she is great at this! I'll be learning to scan and post, and soon you all will be reading and enjoying Pace/Haynes/Weaver news. Sister, Rebecca, is my helper in all things to do with family history. And all of you can help by spreading the word to your family about how to follow this blog. Please feel free to correct me if I have something wrong.
So, The Family Trail is calling us ...let's get started.
Love, Mariellan
Thanks for setting this up. It will be a fun and interesting way to keep in touch.
ReplyDeleteThank you ! I am so excited to get the first comment! Some folks say they can't pull this up. I 'll work out kinks, but plese go ahead and share with family. I do not have any Kiser Weaver family emails except Ann D.
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