My Book Led to a Cousin Connection

A Book.

 In 2011 my years of research on my paternal grandmother’s Mark family became a book, ‘The Mark Family Story: The Story of the Mark and Other Related Families’.

A Library.

I published the story of this family branch because I wanted to share it with my family, both the family I know and scattered family members I have yet to meet. In order to reach out to unknown family members I donated copies of my book to Pennsylvania & Ohio libraries where I had done research and where our family had lived. I have wondered how often those books are taken off the shelves and read.

A Cousin.

Last month I got a message from Troy Book Makers, the publisher of my book. They told me someone wanted copies of my book but they no longer had any. They gave me the phone number of my second cousin, once removed. I was very happy to give Melvin a call. It turns out we had met several years ago at a family gathering in Ohio. He recently decided to research his Mark family roots. We went to the Wayne County, OH library, a small friendly library with a terrific genealogy section, and began his research. After a couple trips to the library he wondered if there could be a book published about the family. He went to the shelves and found my book.

A Connection.

As is turned out, my husband and I were about to visit Ohio for a family wedding. Melvin,

my husband & I met up at a Bob Evans Restaurant for iced tea, pie & conversation. We had a delightful time reconnecting and I was able to hand over the copies of my book in person. He hopes to extend my research further back in time. We both hope to stay in touch and share future discoveries.