May I Introduce You?

Geneabloggers is a great site for people involved in both genealogy and blogs. It is a great place to learn & share. Gini Webb runs a posting there called "May I Introduce You?" where she tells about people who write genealogy blogs. Last week I was pleasantly surprised when she contacted me, wanting to do a post centered on me. She sent me a list of questions which I was happy to answer. Thanks, Gini!

How Colleen Got Started in Genealogy

Colleen didn’t realize genealogy existed until about 1990, when she had come across and purchased a book titled: Do People Grow on Family Trees? Genealogy for Kids and Other Beginners, by Ira Wolfman with a forward by Alex Haley. Within its pages Colleen had made a marvelous discovery. She could discover more about her family than just the stories. Colleen had always thought family history was an oral history; stories told by family members and then passed on to the next generation.  She grabbed a notebook and trotted off to her local Family History Center where she learned about microfilm and microfiche.

Colleen traveled to the National Archives in Pittsfield, MA to find census records and city directories. Each time she would come across an ancestor’s name, she was “thrilled.” Soon, family vacations included trips to cemeteries to search for ancestors. Colleen’s notebook grew into several binders, a filing cabinet and a small library of genealogy books.

Colleen’s mother Alberta Joy (Gardner) Brown and her mother, Colleen’s grandmother, Helen (Coyle) Gardner, would share the stories of their lives as little girls, growing up in New York City with Colleen.  As a little girl herself, Colleen wanted to go back in time and have fun with those little girls.  “When I learned that I could do genealogy for my family, I began with the Gardners and the Coyles in New York City.

Go to http://www.geneabloggers.com/introduce-colleen-pasquale/ 

to read the rest of the interview & please leave a comment here or there.