After my 5:00 PM shift ended, I was waiting outside the Carillon Brewery for No. 18 when some longtime members of Carillon Historical Park stopped to chat. They were waiting for the start of this evening’s Tavern Dinner at The Park.

We chatted about several interesting topics and then we turned to genealogy. I explained I had worked on mine since the age of twelve, now for forty-six years.

The gentleman asked, “Do you have anyone to carry on your work so that the following generations keep it alive?”

I don’t know. Many relatives are interested but I am not certain if there are any heirs apparent to assume the continuity and sharing of our genealogy through several different lines. I hope, that before my life’s chapter is complete, there will be some kind of book to pass along.

After the couple aimed toward the front entrance to enjoy their Tavern Dinner experience, I began thinking through the opportunities to keep our family stories and genealogy alive for future generations.

From the musical HAMILTON, the haunting refrain, “who lives, who dies, who tells your story?” played over and over in my mind.

I would hate to think these remarkable stories might fade out; however, it seems the further removed we are from events and people of the past, the less interest it is. I was quite unusual than many of my friends and classmates by wanting to learn and invest in my family history. US History and my family history has always fascinated me.