This weekend I combined my two hobbies, flying and genealogy, when my husband Steve and I flew to Richmond, Virginia to visit my second cousin Joe. Joe is one of many cousins I know only because I'm a genealogist.
A little background. My parent are both only-children. That means I have no aunts, no uncles, no
first cousins. Both my mom and dad moved
away from home when they graduated from college in the Midwest. Independently
they chose jobs located in sunny California and met while they were working for
Douglas Aircraft in Santa Monica. Later they moved to New Orleans, which I call
home.
How Joe and I are related. Although both sets of grandparents visited us
every year, we were so removed from family that we rarely met any great-aunts/uncles
or cousins. While growing up, I heard
stories about my paternal grandfather's brother, Uncle Lawrence, and his wife,
Aunt Ragna, in Chicago. In the 1960s and
1970s it was too expensive for our family of seven to visit so we didn't really
know them.
In the course of my family research, my dad suggested I contact Uncle Lawrence's daughters, Doris and Christine, who still live near Chicago as they may have more family information than he does. His suggestion paid off and eventually we realized a visit was in order. In 2007 my dad and I went to Chicago for several days and I can't begin to tell you how much fun it was. My Dad and I along with Doris and Christine and their husbands, Marion and Mike, chased down church records and tombstones. While I was in Chicago, I briefly met Doris and Marion's son Joe, my second cousin.
In the course of my family research, my dad suggested I contact Uncle Lawrence's daughters, Doris and Christine, who still live near Chicago as they may have more family information than he does. His suggestion paid off and eventually we realized a visit was in order. In 2007 my dad and I went to Chicago for several days and I can't begin to tell you how much fun it was. My Dad and I along with Doris and Christine and their husbands, Marion and Mike, chased down church records and tombstones. While I was in Chicago, I briefly met Doris and Marion's son Joe, my second cousin.
Flying to Richmond.
My dad emailed to let me know that Joe is temporarily working in Richmond which
is 95 miles or 1:50 driving time from my home in Madison, Virginia. My husband Steve and I decided that instead
of driving, we'd fly to the Richmond/Ashland Airport in Hanover County (KOPF) -
just 13 miles from Joe's hotel.
It was such a beautiful day, we took two airplanes. Steve flew his 1946 Globe Swift and I flew my 1957 Cessna 172. When we arrived, I took Joe for a sight-seeing flight over King's Dominion Amusement Park. Their 1/3 replica of the Eiffel Tower is so large that it's on the aviation sectional map as a landmark (see chart below).
It was such a beautiful day, we took two airplanes. Steve flew his 1946 Globe Swift and I flew my 1957 Cessna 172. When we arrived, I took Joe for a sight-seeing flight over King's Dominion Amusement Park. Their 1/3 replica of the Eiffel Tower is so large that it's on the aviation sectional map as a landmark (see chart below).
We lunched at Bass Pro (yes, they have an
excellent sea food restaurant) while I grilled Joe about his family to fill in
blanks in my database.
The flight from our home airport, Culpeper County (KCJR) to Hanover
County is just over 50 miles - under 30 minutes in the Cessna. Even adding in
time to drive to the airport (25 min) and do a pre-flight inspection on the
plane (20-30 min), we still saved about a hour (round trip) and significantly increased
the joy factor.
I learned everything I hoped for and Joe surprised me with a
few new stories. All in all, a perfect day.
Till next time, keep the blue side up ... Lynn
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