Go for it...

Stanley James Robinson
1951-1989
 

     This is the only photo I had of my father, Stanley James Robinson (Stick).  He was born November 5, 1951, first born to Conrad J Robinson and Susan Ann Willis(CJ & Nanna Sue).  His parents were divorced in 1968, well before I was born, and his father returned to Arkansas, Susan and their three sons remained in California.  I was only about six years old when my father passed.      
     I remember as a child, looking through Nanna Sue's photo album and seeing pictures of my dad and uncles as kids. Sadly, those albums would be thrown out while my elderly grandma was moving years later.  I had no hope of ever seeing photos of my dad after that.
    In April of 2011 I decided to start a tree for my dads side of the family. I didn't know too much but I decided to go for it anyway. I found an Obituary for my grandpa and decided to google the names on the funeral program. I found a facebook page for one of the pallbearers and contacted him. Turns out he wasn't related, but a fellow church member and he told me who to contact. I found out that my grandpa had remarried and had more children. I had an aunt and uncle I didn't even know about! I sent sent her a message on facebook and she was great! She gave me lots of information for my family tree (more than she probably even knows, as last names and pieces of names can go along way in root digging). 
     Right around Christmas 2012, (last week) my Aunt went and got photo albums and scanned pictures of my dad and grandparents. Merry Christmas to me! LOL! I am and will forever be grateful for my Aunt taking the time to send me these photos. Being as young as I was when my father passed, I have limited, though vivid memories of him. Seeing the photos, my memories were validated, as he looked just like I remember him in the older photos.

My Daddy

     I thank God for technology, the kindness of strangers, and long lost relatives, even those you didn't know you had! I admit, I was a lil nervous to contact a stranger initially, but I'm glad I listened to my intuition (perhaps it was my ancestors nudging?) and not my fear. I listened to the voices in my head telling me to go for it, and now I have photos to accompany the stories I intend to pass along to my son, my nephew and those to come, AND I have found family I hope to meet in person one day.


Dad, Uncle Conrad, Uncle Bruce



 Sitting: Nanna Sue, Uncle Bruce, CJ
Standing: Uncle Conrad, Stanley(Dad).

    
   

Greetings!

    This blog is dedicated to sharing what I unravel while I dig up the roots in my father's family trees. I hesitated for years to start working on this side of my family, only because I felt I knew so little. To my surprise, I knew more than I thought. I have been able to connect with family I didn't know existed and begin the journey to learn more about the people from whom my father (and I) have come from.
     While some cannot fathom why anyone would be interested in "looking for them dead people" as some of my fam & friends put it, I feel alot can be learned about oneself and ones family from looking at the past. Amazingly, I feel like I actually "know" some of my ancestors and those of my friends I have helped to uncover.  Searching for and reading through old documents while chasing ancestors through time, I often feel like they are trying to tell me something.  It's as if they left clues scattered about to tell their stories, and it is up to me to hunt for the pieces and put the puzzle together. A treasure hunt of sorts...
      I've always loved puzzles, and have always been very inquisitive (or nosy!lol) , so I guess it was meant to be. What I absolutely <3 (and sometimes loathe) about genealogy is that every answer seems to give birth to new questions.  New questions that lead to new treasures. So next time someone asks me why I'm looking for "them dead people", I can tell them the dead said to keep doing what I'm doing on my treasure hunt to discover the people who contributed to the makings of me.    


Stay tuned... Rachel Starr(with the extra r) ... :)