Sunday, May 12, 2013

My Boss; My Cousin - Brent

I'm not really well connected to my extended family.  My parent, as mentioned in an earlier blog, were only children.   I have no aunts, no uncles, no first cousins.We were geographically separated from our grandparents and cousins. Most of my siblings left home after college and moved away.  I joined the US Air Force in 1982.

A few years after I retired from the Air Force, I worked for a defense contractor where I was assigned to a project in Charlottesville, Virginia. Brent was the project lead.  Brent had also recently retired from the Air Force.  One Friday we discussed our weekend plans; were were both headed to family reunions in West Virginia. The reunions were in adjoining but different counties.  I thought it would be interesting if I could find someone from Brent's family who married someone from my family.  With a little research, I determined that we were actually 5th cousins! Our common ancestors are our 4th great-grandparents: Robert Henderson (1772 - 1837 from Augusta, Virginia) and Hanna McClung (1780 - 1849 from Bath, Virginia). 

To this day, this is my favorite genealogically discovery.  When Brent and I met, I was immediately drawn to him and his family. We worked in a very tense environment and we knew we could trust each other. No one will convince me that it wasn't because we are family.

Till next time, keep the blue side up ... Lynn


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