Lost and Found: How Genealogy Reconnected a Family

Have you ever wondered what secrets your DNA might reveal? From long-lost siblings to unexpected ethnic origins, the world of genealogy research is full of surprises—both heartwarming and potentially unsettling. In this candid exploration of ancestry research, we dive deep into the methods both old and new that people use to trace their roots. Whether you're a seasoned genealogist or simply curious about your roots, this episode offers practical resources, personal stories, and thoughtful perspectives on the journey to self-discovery through family history. Be sure to tune in to part two of our ancestry journey.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to Ancestry and DNA
• 8:15 Old-Fashioned Genealogy Research Methods
• 10:04 Ellis Island Records and Church Documents
• 16:27 Why We're Fascinated with Our Origins
• 19:45 Jim's Family Reunion Story
• 24:03 Pet DNA Testing Revelations

Transcript

DJ Nick: 0:07

Welcome to the Dysfunction Junkies.

DJ Nick: 0:08

Podcast. We may not have seen it all, but we've seen enough. And now here are your hosts, Chrisy and Kerry.

Kerry: 0:20

Hello Junkies, I'm Keri

Chrisy: 0:23

and I'm Chrissy.

Kerry: 0:24

Nick, I thought you forgot my name for a second there. Dramatic pause, dramatic pause. I was like I'm like looking at him like no, it's me I'm Kerry remember? That was great.

DJ Nick: 0:37

I'm just trying to change it up a little bit.

Kerry: 0:39

I love it. I love it.

DJ Nick: 0:41

Yes, you know, I got, you know, got so inspired by Jim. He said I don't know what episode it was.

DJ Nick: 0:46

He's like I really liked your intro.

Chrisy: 0:48

I know.

Kerry: 0:52

He wrecked your mojo, but it just goes to show. We do everything live here. We do not have canned intros or whatever. But yeah, thank you, nick. Thank you. So we talked about last episode. We started dabbling in these whole ancestry and the DNA and everything and there was still a little bit more we wanted to talk about. So we're just going to kind of pick up where we left off Now. You know, back in the day before we had all this computer and technology and DNA testing. We had to do things the old-fashioned way, chrissy, go.

Chrisy: 1:26

Well, I don't know how old-fashioned it was, I still was able to utilize a computer to some extent because, as you can tell, I'm not one to be traveling.

Chrisy: 1:37

So I'm not visiting these lovely far-off lands. I wish I could, but I am my own worst enemy as far as being free to do these type of things. Back before these type of companies really came out there in popularity and just knowing about them, I mean, I guess probably some people were paying to do this in a lab and you probably still can foot the bill for that if you want to. Probably One thing that came out fairly before this was the Ellis Island, yeah, and they had a database that they had put online and you could join. You know you signed up for it, which I think I did Well, I know I did. It was free just to give your email and they would keep you updated on things.

Chrisy: 2:30

And the difficulty with that is and I'm sure with anybody because now you're not dealing with your you have to go solely off of names and what year time period you felt your ancestors came here or came through Ellis Island. You needed to have that type of information. The lovely thing about that was is that when you were able to sort of be able to hit the mark with a grandparent, great grandparent, you could see how the manifest or whatever they would keep track of these historical coming in and out of the country was they would write the name, your purpose for being in this country, where you, your destination was in the country, I think, who you were going to be staying with.

Chrisy: 3:15

I mean it was a lot of information. You can kind of see how I know that that's a hot button topic. I'm not going to get into right now with immigration, Right, but this is just what this was looked like, I guess, 100 to 150 years ago, yeah, and it's a lovely record. You can even see what ship that they came over on. Sometimes you can even actually they have a picture of the ship Really. Yeah, I mean it's a nice resource and I haven't been on there in a really long time because that kind of gets drowned out. I think a little bit with this whole thing. But if it's still like it was, it may even be better now Not to give them a plug, not a sponsor. But if you did want to do something, I found it to be enjoyable.

Chrisy: 4:03

But in my case I had to basically really focus because the names, as everybody knows, especially my movie, shout out what was Don Corleone's real name. It was not Corleone, I don't know.

Kerry: 4:19

What movie are you even referencing?

Chrisy: 4:20

Don't say it because I have to think about it or I'm going to be mad at myself.

Kerry: 4:24

What movie are we referencing?

Chrisy: 4:25

The Godfather oh so.

Kerry: 4:27

I'm trying to think Okay let me think oh my gosh. Yeah, because I'm remembering when my padre Chiamo my name.

Chrisy: 4:39

my father's name was I know it now Andolini Andolini. Yes, don Corleone's family name was ah, I know it now andolini andolini. Yes, don corleone's family name was andolini. Okay, and then when he got shipped over here, solo because his father and was it the father and oldest brother were killed by a don in italy. And again, this is a movie reference. Godfather, every better, everybody, every butter they, they to save him. The mother went to plead for her son. Godfather, every butter, everybody, every butter they to save him. The mother went to plead for her son's life to this Don and say, please do not this is my only child.

Chrisy: 5:16

This is the opening of the Godfather part two. Everybody, you know, don't kill my only son. And she's trying to plead for this young boy's life. And Don wasn't having any part of it because he said, any ages, he's going to come back for revenge and that's that. Well, the mother basically sacrificed herself to try and save her son. Okay, don corleone andolini took off and he found some nice gentleman in in the village where they were from, in Sicily, to basically hide him and then get him on a boat to America. They changed his name.

Chrisy: 5:48

So when he came over on the boat and he's through the line and they were looking at his tag, they saw where he was from, which was an area in Sicily, corleone. Oh yeah, so instead of his name being Andolini in Americaica, it ended up being corleone, because we're right yes uh, francis ford, you can give me a call and thank me for paying that much attention to your film. Yes, I did so. That's how name what I was getting to his name.

Kerry: 6:17

I was gonna say focus christy, I'm sorry as soon as I get on a movie reference I can, can't stop, so your chances are.

Chrisy: 6:26

your name is not what it was originally.

Chrisy: 6:30

In this case trying to research my Italian heritage. Coming through Ellis Island was a little complicated because certain letters in the name had been changed. Usually it's the vowels. Yes, they move the vowels around, cut some of them off. But I was able to find that out and then I was able to sort of, which is kind of fun. You kind of see how often they were coming in and out of the country, because they would come to america and then, for whatever reason, they would go, go back to Europe and then they would come back, you know. So that was the resource. But then I took it another step further and I was like this has got to be, it is. It's over 20 years ago when I did this. It's actually interesting, I was able to find it. The one thing anybody who does this type of stuff or is involved in history knows is that the churches in Europe is probably your number one resource.

Kerry: 7:26

Wow, if you're looking for family, genealogy, things like that they are the ones that house the birth, marriage and death records.

Chrisy: 7:35

Yeah, and I did happen to know the area where my Italian ancestry the one part of it was from, so I did locate. I guess somehow I got into a church that was there and I was able to then through marriage I think it was through marriage certificates actually, but then there's baptism certificates, there's all this kind of stuff but for some reason the marriage certificates, I think, are the ones that I was able to keep going backwards on because I knew my great-grandfather, and going backwards on, wow, because I knew my grand, great grandfather and great grandmother's names and I knew my great grandmother's maiden name. Yeah, and I just kept going backwards. It is a rabbit hole.

Kerry: 8:13

Oh, it's a rabbit hole and I kept writing somewhere.

Chrisy: 8:15

This list I hope still exists, because I did sit there and write it, because I didn't know any better to print it.

Kerry: 8:21

Yeah.

Chrisy: 8:21

And I just kept making a log of these names and the dates. Oh, I'm sure you have it and you would think, but I think I was able to go back all the way to the 1700s, that's crazy. So if anybody's really interested in it. It is an interesting thing to do crazy. So if anybody's really interested in it and it is an interesting thing to do, and if you don't already know that, which you probably do, if you're interested in doing this, the churches are your best resource.

Chrisy: 8:43

I really do think that so one of my family members.

Kerry: 8:47

They went down that rabbit hole and they really did some extensive and I remember at one point in my life was given like a little binder book that has all of this and they traced, they did the same thing and it's and I'm so grateful that they did. I. I really like the. I think it just shows like why, why do we do this? You know, we were asking like why are we doing this? And I think it's because we all are trying to figure out who we are and why we do, why we do the things we do or whatever, and that's what starts this rabbit hole. So trying to figure ourselves out.

Chrisy: 9:16

Yeah, when you think about it, it sounds so lovely and everything, but really, let's take it down to what it is. We're fascinated with ourselves this is true and we want to know more about ourselves. We want to get to know us. Forget you, I'm about me. I'm not learning about your answers. It's mine, it's me. What about me? What me? I'm not learning about your answers. It's mine, it's me. What about me? What's?

Kerry: 9:38

going on with me. Well, I know last episode you were kind of on the leery side of doing this DNA because you don't know what you're going to uncover, you don't know who you're going to find or who's going to find you or whatever.

Chrisy: 9:48

In my opinion, you're probably going to uncover something that's not pleasant. Yes, but maybe not.

Kerry: 9:54

No, and in our particular situation, we found something very pleasant. Well, that's good. Yes, and I do have permission from my sister in love, which is my sister in law we talked about that episode or two ago Right To share this story and for my husband to share this story. So this is full disclosure. Permissions have been granted to share this story. So this is full disclosure. Permissions have been granted to share this.

Kerry: 10:20

So long, long story short, my husband's family just there was a lot of different things that happened in his childhood, growing up were separated from siblings, okay, and he was very, very young, so he knew that he had some half siblings kind of out there in the world and at one point one of them had found him or whatever. But you know they were young, 18, you know, whatever. Just the whole family thing, it just didn't click, it didn't stick, whatever. So but he, but he knew of well, through these send your DNA away, kind of things my son actually had done this, partly because he wanted to try to figure out a little bit of missing family history that my husband did not know. You know he didn't know where their family was from. You know he grew up in foster care, you know. So he didn't know his parents. And so when my son was having children, you know he was kind of like people you know, so he didn't know his parents. And so when my son was having children, you know he was kind of like people, you know, they always ask you what's your family history or whatever. And he really didn't know this half of the family. So by doing this, you know, you kind of know where you're. Oh, okay, you've, you know German roots or Italian roots or whatever, and it does kind of help lead into what might be some medical concerns, whatever, just by by those ancestry things.

Kerry: 11:42

So in doing that, this conversation came up in our family about Jim's side of the family and Jim was saying, well, I kind of remember you know this person, or a kind of I did meet my mother once, and so I started with my son going down this genealogy rabbit hole and we ended up finding my husband's mother birth mother's obituary and in reading that we were reading the names of her children and this one particular daughter's name came up and Jim was like, oh, I remember I met her once, but she was really young and you know he was like 18. So I went on to Facebook and Googled and I found her on Facebook. And so Jim reached out and sent a message to this person saying you know, hey, I think I might be your brother, and didn't hear anything but he messenger. And so then you know no response and he's like, well, maybe she doesn't want to know me and I go well, it's messenger, not everyone gets their, you know, instant messenger. I said, you know, she may not have just not have seen it right. And so then a couple weeks go by and somehow, like he was intrigued enough to well, let me try one more way. And he happened to find that she was selling and she lived on the other side of the country. You know, we're in Ohio and she was on the other side of the country. He found that she was selling something on Facebook marketplace. So he put a message on that saying you know, I forget exactly what he said. Well, no response. So he's like, okay, chalk it up, she's not interested or whatever.

Kerry: 13:15

Next thing, you know, we get a phone call and is this wonderfully hysterical woman answers. We answer the phone and it's it's his half sister and she's like oh my gosh, oh my gosh, you're my brother. I've been looking for you my whole life. And here she didn't see the Facebook Messenger and just so happened that marketplace thing popped up and so then she, you know, we got connected and it's been wonderful because he's been reconnected with his long lost sister. I have a new sister.

Kerry: 13:46

Like I said, we call each other sister in love and so sister in law. It has really been a great thing. And because of that then now he she, you know grew up with the mother and so we do have a little bit more family history on health and things like that and circumstances of why things ended up. But it really was a good story. But here's the crazy part when we were living out in Las Vegas before we moved back to Ohio, there was a TV show that we really liked to watch. It was a reality TV show and we loved watching it. Come to find out that his sister was, her husband, was part of this reality TV show and here we had been seeing her on TV because of that show. And so here we didn't even know we were watching his sister.

Kerry: 14:27

Oh, my gosh, I know it was crazy, but but so see, there are good things that happen from it. We got reconnected and it's been a wonderful relationship.

Chrisy: 14:36

Yeah, no, that is wonderful and yes absolutely, if you can locate someone like that, a lost sibling?

Kerry: 14:46

fool or half I guess that's wonderful. But it is a coin flip because it could have gone the other way. Well, it could have, I mean.

Chrisy: 14:55

And he didn't have to put his DNA on the grid. That's your whole big. Thing well, yeah, but well no, but see this I am glad to hear something like that, because if he didn't do that, then you would not have been able to accomplish what you did with this lovely person that's now in your life and is very important to you.

Chrisy: 15:13

So I I love that story and I like hearing that. Yeah, because you do hear a lot of the other things. I mean I've heard where people found out they had children they didn't know they had. Yes, and I'm sure that that doesn't only affect their life yeah, but then it affects the lives of the family that you knew you had. This is true, good. And now what you can make of that in a positive way and I bet there are people who can be like that's wonderful. Yeah, we love the fact that we have someone else in our family and but that's, I mean we're talking, this is severe dysfunction here. Oh, yeah, it is. I mean it just really does, because you really find out exactly what you are made of.

Kerry: 15:59

Who do you think you are? What do you?

Chrisy: 16:01

think you're made of. That's my show.

Kerry: 16:03

Who do you think you are and what do you think you're made of? It's like it's Maury Povich. I mean, wasn't that whenever they did the who's your Daddy episodes, the DNA episodes, you know you are the father, well yeah. Those were really good. I used to love those shows. They will possibly breed a female dog with two different males a male that's been known to produce with a new incoming breeder male. So that way, hopefully, one or the other will take.

Chrisy: 16:47

So sometimes they get puppies in the litter that literally could be from two different dads. This is like that movie Twins with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito.

Kerry: 16:52

Leave it to Chrssy to find, but no, go ahead. Leave it to Chrissy to find, but no, go ahead. So, anyways, when we get puppies from these litters, you know they'll tell us, you know, okay, well, here's the mom, but we don't know who the daddy is. But they'll do DNA testing and then, you know, a couple weeks after we'll find out, oh, this was the dad, or whatever. So when we get one of those we always would joke around and we'd be like, you know have, like a Maury Povich post, you know saying and you, you know, you are the father. So you know, wooly, you are the father of these puppies. Or you know, jasper, you are the father, so anyway. So, but yeah, pet DNA, so that is useful for it.

Chrisy: 17:31

The DNA is fascinating, but there are people. Now I understand why you're doing that yes, the service dog and all of that but there are just people who have pets, and I understand you're rescuing these pets, which I applaud. Yes, please do rescue when you can.

Chrisy: 17:52

Lots of these lovely pets do need wonderful loving homes. So I guess I understand the fascination to do this Right, because you are rescuing a dog that you're not sure. You can kind of tell, maybe, what type of dog it is, but to what level you're gaining anything out of this. Is this going to stop you from loving the dog? I would hope not. The only thing I can say for sure is that I know that they do use that type of DNA testing for animals. Dogs, the one I've been mostly exposed to, is defined what they're for health reasons. Yes, is this dog more likely to have heart conditions or hip dysplasia type issue?

Kerry: 18:35

It's just like the people like with my son. You know he was wanting to know his ancestral line of as far as like, where'd you come from to know if you're going to be predispositioned to certain health things? Same thing with the dog Right. What breed will you know?

Chrisy: 18:49

predisposition it Right and so yeah, but again, I also look at it as just another way for another industry to make some more money.

Kerry: 18:59

I just worry about the validity of some of them. I think some of the ones really have a good database to compare to, because other ones I feel like everything ends up being a poodle or a golden dude or a golden retriever. It's like it seems like they always have the same four breeds and that's it, no matter what the starting base yeah well, have we not seen to that over the last decade or more?

Kerry: 19:26

because I do have, yes, golden doodles, right but what I'm saying is like I just don't think that some of those pet dna places have enough. They don't have the full spectrum of the dog breeds, so they're only using some of them.

Chrisy: 19:40

Their resources may not be able to provide them with the best information.

Kerry: 19:45

That's what I'm saying. Yes, I'm not saying anything about the breeds.

Chrisy: 19:48

I'm just saying, like I just feel like oh, yeah, no, no, no.

Kerry: 19:51

Not no, Just what they're able that maybe those are just the easiest ones to fall back on when you can't fill in the blanks yourself with the actual data.

Chrisy: 19:58

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes so they wouldn't be able to identify a basenji or a kubaz or something right, right, it's gonna end up being, you know, a cockapoo.

Kerry: 20:10

your russian wolfhound is really a great dame, because they don't have all the With the hair defect.

Chrisy: 20:19

Yeah, a Russian.

Kerry: 20:20

Yeah, your Russian Wolfhound is a Great Dane. Afghan hound mix, right.

Chrisy: 20:25

Well, the other thing too, going back to how Ellis Island's records were so wonderful and such a great resource, as well as the European churches and things like that they still are I went to Ellisslncom. It's still a pretty good looks like a pretty robust resource for people.

Kerry: 20:41

Is it still free you? Know, I didn't go that far. I would bet.

Chrisy: 20:44

I think when I first and this would be over 20 years ago when I first signed up for it, it was free, but I do think that as I was going on it more and more, and because I think it gained some popularity that there were levels of information that you would be able to access with a membership.

Chrisy: 21:00

But if you knew you had family that came through that way, that would be a resource Right. And what I was going to say is I hit a little bit of a wall with that resource when trying to look through my other side of the family's documentation, because it appears that and again I know this sort of touches a little bit I'm not touching at all on anything going on now in the world, but that other side of the family did not come through Ellis Island into the United States. Oh well, there you go, and I'm not saying that they were coming in in a way that was not correct, but I guess there was also another port of entry, if you call it that and it would have been through Canada.

Chrisy: 21:45

And that was generally based on what your ethnic background was at that time. So this ethnic background was not more of the Italy or Southern European type areas. This was more of the Eastern European, I guess, areas that came into Canada and then decided to also come to the United States as well. So I don't know what that version of Ellis Island is. I never really looked into it but as far as that part of my family, I was never able to really use Ellis Island as the resource to find anything.

Kerry: 22:22

Another website that we have used is findagravecom. So again, not a sponsor, but they could be if they want to. Yeah Well, that's funny.

Chrisy: 22:32

You mentioned that Findagravecom. That's been really good that pops up. All that used to always pop up when I'd be looking at people.

Kerry: 22:42

I'd be like and it's a gravestone, I know, but that tells you so much. And then as more people go on there, then sometimes they have pictures attached of that person. It's a good resource too, how this became a how-to. Researcher genealogy from the dysfunction of genealogy.

Chrisy: 22:55

I don't know.

Kerry: 22:55

You never know what you're going to get here with us.

Chrisy: 22:57

No, not at all, but it is a fascinating subject.

Kerry: 23:01

It is.

Chrisy: 23:02

Enter it with caution everybody. Absolutely, because that's what my message is to everybody. And don't lick your envelopes, don't Stay away from the envelope. Thank God, the stamps you don't lick anymore.

Kerry: 23:19

Yeah, that's true, they become pretty sticky. Yeah, because once you put your garbage out of the street, it's free for anybody to go through Possessions nine-tenths of law, or whatever. Oh, this is another fascinating topic that we're covering here. So thank you for joining us, but we'd love to hear your ancestry or DNA or genealogy stories.

Chrisy: 23:40

Surprises.

Kerry: 23:45

So be sure to check us out on our Facebook page, leave us any story ideas or your feedback, or you can also go to our website dysfunctionjunkiesbuzzbowlcom. We'd love to hear from you. Yes, we would All right.

Chrisy: 23:57

See you next week. Bye-bye.