My Bio Grandma is…

After a few days, I received my first email from Katherine.

Hi Sarah – Kay (Katherine) doesn’t use the computer, so just write as if you were speaking to her as first person.

Welcome to our rather large family. 28,476 people to date in my tree, not counting you. My husband and I began genealogy not long after “Roots.” For me, it began when my brother-in-law had the local priest research the marriages for his family and the family of his wife. We have found lots of information, some sad, some joyful and some totally unexpected.

I see that your father is still living (always good news). Does he want to find his birth parents? Does he know anything from his adoption records, such as the names and ages of his parents? Any other clues at all?

I would rather we communicate via e-mail if that is alright with you? Our address is…I would appreciate seeing a photo of your father as a younger man. That could help with making a connection.

Kay

That is a big family! Is my dad still an only child? I wonder how far back it goes. Do they look like me? Are they redheads?

My brother, Peter, and I spoke about this and gathered some pictures. I wrote back and added him to the email conversation. The email had some further details of what I was told about the adoption and shared with them how good of an upbringing he had. How much love his mother, Grandma Roz, gave him and gave us. Shared these pictures with her. The only information about his adoption we had was anecdotal and it was that he was adopted at birth from a French woman.

Two days later, this email came:

Hi Sarah,

I know who your paternal grandmother is. I thought I knew when I saw your message through Ancestry but had to ask a couple of questions to be sure. She was living in Hartford in 1949 and is from a French family but she did not have other children.

I have written to her immediate family, advising them of the interest you and your brother have in locating her family. We also did a little on your family, which we included. I hope they will embrace your quest.

One never knows what reaction this type of news will prompt but I hope it will be positive. If not, them we will go from there and try some other approach. 

Kay

Ah, no other children. I guess I won’t have the Silver Spoons Christmas after all.  I was surprised that I began to feel disappointment. I couldn’t tell if she was alive. I thought it was possible she was alive and all of the possible scenarios of her life and who would be sharing this with her. Kay felt she couldn’t say anything further for the privacy of her family.  That must mean that there was some question about his existence to them?

She shared that among the shared that we are descendants of Catherine de Ballion. She was of French royalty. Ooh la la.

I waited some more. I pondered all sorts of possibilities. I couldn’t take my mind off of this. I talked about it a lot, to whoever would listen. I looked over the DNA Matches, but none were as closely related as Kay.

Kay sent off this quick email while we waited for her to get permission to tell me who my biological grandmother was. It seems she was super interested in this too.

Hi Kids,

I remember when people used to call myself and my husband that.

Anyway, here is a photo of one of your relatives. Can you make any comparisons? Also, your paternal grandfather was named Ricky Heart/Harte. He had blue eyes and blond hair and was either from NY or PA?

Yea, that’s my dad’s nose. This is amazing. We don’t know who this is, but we do see similarities. How incredible! Ricky Heart/Harte…

I did a lot more guessing about my biological grandma and guessing about who this man was. Kay said she knew who my paternal Grandmother is. Is this my paternal grandfather? Paternal Uncle? The picture and clothing are too old for this to be a sibling of my dad.

Well, I still don’t know who ‘grandma’ is?