Sunday Search: Land

The photo above is the barn on the original homestead for the Teaford family on Kerr's Creek, Virginia.  

Land is an important part of family history. It gives us the connection to previous generations, decades, centuries, and sometimes millennia after the lives of our ancestors. Knowing where we come from and finding those roots has always been something that has been of particular interest to me. This is part of what has driven me in recent years to find that land of our own where my wife and I can raise our family… and actual place, a piece of this earth, that we own. This was also important to the first generation of my family in the late 18^th century.

From Nellie Teaford Wood’s book which is included on the family website:

In 1780 Jacob Düfford bought his first farm in Augusta County at the foot of Sugar Loaf Mountain, a small round hill on property now part of Silverbrook Farms. With his wife Christenah and six children he came from Shenandoah County, where he had resided since 1774 on land in the Fairfax Grant.

Düfford had arrived in Philadelphia on the ship Hero on 27 October 1764, but his origin has eluded researchers. That he spoke and read and wrote German is established by his signatures in Philadelphia and in October 1792 in Virginia. He joined 193 residents in petitioning the Virginia General Assembly, citing their unacquaintance with the English "language" to publish laws in German so that "they may more cheerfully comply" because they have "always contributed their part of the support of government."

Virginia State claims show that he, along with other "Augusta Germans," did his part by furnishing flour for the Revolutionary army in 1780. 

…

The immigrant Jacob died intestate in 1801, owning three farms. The papers settling the estate in Augusta County Courthouse offer a wealth of genealogical and historical information. 

We didn’t have much when came to this country, colony actually, but we worked and slowly accumulated land. This was particularly important during this time in history as only landowners could vote and have any say in such petitions as the one to which he affixed his name in 1792. In the end, over the course of his life, Jacob had acquired over 200 acres in Augusta County. Makes my nearly 3 acres, purchased 235 years after Jacob bought his first farm, seem almost inconsequential in comparison.

In the years since that first generation, the family has seen land come and go in the family but those original farms, while not in the family, still exist. They still remain as a connection to our past regardless of who currently holds the deed. Being able to go down to Virginia, gather with those who have this same connection, and enjoy the area where we know our family has been for hundreds of years is something that we were able to enjoy over the summer and an experience I look forward to revisiting many times over in the future.

Sunday Search: Exploring The New Ancestry

It has now been some time since I updated my ancestry.com account to the new format. I was a little hesitant to do so as I felt I was just starting to really get a handle on the old site. Besides, what would I really get out of the new format if I wasn’t able to find everything that I wanted? But, not having the time that I used to have to comb through the digital volumes that I once had and getting tired of the constant requests to upgrade, I finally just decided to go ahead and make the change. After all, the constant promotions promised an enhanced experience far superior to the supposedly antiquated site that I had been using so let’s see what all the fuss is about.

Well… there isn’t much difference between the old site and the new one. At least, nothing significant that I have noticed in my occasional browsing through files, searching for documents, and skimming across the vast family tree that I have constructed. While I can clearly see the shiny new layer of digital shellac, where is the revolutionary change in functionality? It was really a letdown when the new site was laid out before me on the computer screen.

With that said, there is one minor feature that I particularly enjoy but it isn’t anything that will rock the genealogy world. While I am constantly cognizant of the world and sometimes local events that took place during the lifetime of my ancestor, ancestry now has those historical reminders integrated into each family member’s timeline. And I have to admit that it is helpful from time to time having those simple reminders clearly displayed on the screen.

Other than that, I haven’t come across anything that is making things easier or more interesting… of course, my family history is already deeply fascinating so it would be hard to enhance that. At the same time as the update were occurring, ancestry.com kept making more and more collections available for search… these have been more useful than the prettier package that the website is now offering. This is what made me think, what if they put their money and effort into making more documents available rather than redesigning the website? How much more data would we all have access to? What could we have already discovered?

That is, first and foremost, where the focus should always be not on how fancy the site looks but what information the site contains. So I ask ancestry.com to spend those membership dollars on data not on spit and polish. After all, the reason why we give you our hard earned money is to learn more about our family not the fanciness of the page framing the digital document.

Perfect Weather For An Open House

Yes, I know, this is an old stock photo. I keep forgetting to take a picture.

Friday night, just like I did on Thursday evening, I headed over to the lodge as soon as my work day came to an end. It was a much more relaxed drive as I didn’t feel as though I had to rush to make before any given time. Despite our big clean out having yet to happen, it was Open House time when we swung the doors open, put and Alex’s Lemonade Stand on the corner, and chatted with every person with whom we crossed paths. This is the first time that I have done this with the lodge and it was a great experience socializing with the brethren and those from the community, greeting new petitioners, and generally getting to know each person a little bit better.

Of course, during the slow moments during the night I was able to get a few things done and discuss a few potential projects with the Worshipful Master. Might as well, we had the time and it saved us from having to circle up over the weekend. Every now and again, a few new faces would round the corner with a few old faces sporadically walking up the front steps as well. We gave a few tours, accommodating everyone that asked to see the building, and made sure to promote the two businesses in the basement owned by brothers from the lodge.

Up on the corner where better foot traffic prevailed, a few other brothers (of various experience and degrees) ran an Alex’s Lemonade Stand. While the weather was beautiful with calm and cool temperatures and a bright blue sky slowly fading to star speckled black, there wasn’t much of a crowd out on the streets of Ardmore that night. Maybe we were too early, maybe we were too late, maybe the fact that it was the last day of school had something to do with it. Regardless of the crowd, or lack thereof, it was a great night for us all to get out, open the lodge up, and bond as brothers.   
Of course, the night would have been a little nicer had we raised more than $200 selling lemonade. However, we do have the opportunity to rewrite memory. Our generosity does not have to be confined to one evening selling lemonade along Lancaster Avenue as there are still a couple of ways that we can contribute to the cause. You can visit the lodge’s Alex’s Lemonade Stand event webpage and contribute by clicking the donate button near the top right of the page. The other option available for those who would like to contribute is to text “Lemonade E1113739” to 85944 (this will be recorded as a $10 charge and will be listed on your bill from your wireless carrier). Obviously, please feel free to share this information with any friends or family that would like to donate.

So, that was my exciting Friday night at the lodge. While it was slow this first time around I am sure that we will improve upon this experience in the fall when we will, once again, open up the lodge doors and welcome you all to the lodge. I hope to see you this fall!

Don’t Be Intimidated By A Perfect 10

As Rotarians, like Dudley Moore, we all strive for that perfect 10. Sometimes the results can be as beautiful as Bo Derek. However, they can sometimes more closely resemble something that Dave Letterman recites around midnight.

What we need to keep in mind is that the perfect 10 is a purely subjective number. What may be a perfect list of goals for one club may be disastrous for another.

·        50% Increase in Membership: As a smaller club this is a goal that does not require a huge number of new members. It is generally anticipated that Rotary clubs will lose 10% of their membership every year. As a general rule of thumb, clubs should set the goal to compensate for that loss and add an additional 5 members. Our goal this year will be to add 9 members.

·        150 Hours of Community Service: This figure should be derived from the current membership total. 10 hours of service per member per year is a very low number and should be easily achievable. Of course, this excludes the work that officers put in and organizational hours. This should only include hours at events, hours serving the community.

·        12 New Club Banners: Exchanging banners with other clubs is frequently overlooked by Rotarians however it is essential in strengthening the connections within the Rotary community. We are all working toward the same goals and we can all offer help to other clubs and work with other clubs on projects. This is particularly important for smaller clubs as we can frequently be overlooked. Get out there and visit other clubs… 1 per month should be the absolute minimum and remember not to duplicate existing banners.

·        Networking Events and Local Business Outreach: You have to give something to get something and by providing the community with a networking event and a place to promote their business you can, generally speaking, gain new members. That is reality; you must demonstrate the value that Rotary brings to their business and, by actively involving them, allow the value of service to develop within the new Rotarian. We must promote growth within the individual if we are going to actualize the growth of our club and Rotary as a whole.  

·        New Member 1^st Year Program: Give your new members some guidance by outlining some basic goals for them to reach during their first year. Encourage them to visit other clubs and collecting banners, give them the opportunity to exceed 10 hours of community service, have them bring 10 guests during the course of the year, make sure they give a presentation to the club, send them to RLI to complete Level I. These are some of the basics that will certainly set them up for success. Also recommended is to ensure that their mentors accompany them along the way. Don’t forget to acknowledge those who have met or exceeded the goals.

·        Establishing a Rotaract Club: This has been an ongoing project. This is the year that we are going to get it done. Our focus has been a little off in the past but now we know the right department and the right approach to take. This is a case where we need to make our presence known not only to potentially new Rotarians but also future Rotarians because our present has little value if we don’t have a future.

·        Connecting with After School Programs: How can your club enhance the current after school programs in your area? What better way to impact the next generation in your community than to instill the values of Rotary in each of them and reinforce the fact that they are a valuable part of our community. By being of service to them they will, in turn, be of service to others but setting the example for their community and their contemporaries.

·        Expanding the Literacy Program: Our current program consists of handing out dictionaries to third graders in the local area with recent expansion of the program to consist of an essay contest in those same classrooms. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great program but we can do more and we need to do more to remain in their minds. Start off early by reading to second grade classrooms ("Rotary Clubs Help People" is the perfect book for this project) and expand the essay contest by implementing it as a multi-year endeavor that follows the children as they grow. This can easily be spread across four years by having the children write about the four way test one item at a time. So, instead of one year when they are in third grade you can have an annual presence in their lives for six consecutive years (with the possibility of longer continuous involvement if the aforementioned goals are achieved).   

·        Honoring Veterans and Service Members: Simply put, pay respect to the heroes in your community. Twice a year, the weeks of Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day, invite a veteran or active service member to speak to your club. Let them choose the topic but make sure to honor them for their service as well. Make sure you let them know that they are always welcome at Rotary and their fellow veterans and service members are welcome as well. Rotary is a safe place, a place of peace, a place of service to others. They have already served us so let us return that service to them.

·        Website and PR Overhaul: This is where I am personally going to focus my efforts this year. I am not going to speak much on the PR side as it has been discussed in the last two Rotary related posts (“Don’t Forget The Mint On The Pillow!” and “Either Get On The Card Or Go To The Mattresses!”). However, what was not really discussed was the importance of having your own functional website. It doesn’t have to be pretty (or a perfect 10) but it has to be functional, informative, and look good. Make sure the content is up to date, a schedule is available, list where and when you meet, and have a way for prospects and fellow Rotarians to connect with officers of the club.

Lists are nothing but a sequence of numbers if no action is taken. Careful thought and consideration must be taken to ensure that the members of your club and the officers are on the same page. Whether by vocation, connections they may have, personal motivation, or simply enough time to see it through, match the initiatives that your club has with the member that is most likely to succeed at achieving that goal. And if someone runs out of gas be there to help them push the project forward.