QUEBEC-RESEARCH-L Archives

From: "KFrog" <>
Subject: [Q-R] Thank you, merci beaucoup, muchas gracias, mange takk!
Date: Sat, 7 Apr 2001 11:27:31 -0700

Hi, Everybody!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart! What Mary Taffet started for me has
been indeed a blessing and my sister and I are so very grateful! This list
is so very accepting and kind and caring.

My sister, Mary Olsen Parish, is the mother of 7, the grandmother of 20 and
the great-grandmother of 3-or is it 4 (I lose track!) Needless to say, she
has never had the time to pursue any genealogy, but she is tremendously
excited over what you have found for me. She was not even aware of what her
daughter, Elizabeth Farnsworth, had posted-which one of you sent to me and I
must get Liz to correct, as she has some errors).

Someone was amazed at how little I knew to start out with:

*the name of my father, but spelled wrong (Wilken Francis Olsen)
*his birthdate, but two years off (February 18, 1887)
*the fact that he was a Christian Brother in Montreal, which he never
revealed to us
*his date of death (February 14, 1960) and his grave, which I found last
summer (about five miles away from me)
*my grandfather's name (Rudolph Olsen-and thank God it was not "Ole"! At
least Rudolph stands out like a...well, like a red nose!)
*my grandfather's country of birth (Norway, but I do not know where as yet)
*my grandmother's name (Catherine McGreacy/McGreavy/McGreevy), never having
seen it in print

My mother's side is impossible, I am finding, for-having been adopted c.
1904 in Cook County, IL and just having her "real" birth surname (Barrett),
there are no stones to peek under. There would be no point in trying to
track her adoptive parents' side, I guess-or do any of you ever attempt
that? I see no reason why or if that is necessary.

One thing I have learned is to share every wee tidbit with our two sons.
They know their mom is an ex-nun (Sister Mary Benedicta, SNDdeN). They know
my real name (Catherine Florence Olsen). I just want to learn-and to
share-every little thing I can with them, so that they will not feel as
"mongrel" as I have always felt. I can tell that some of you also feel kinda
"mongrel"-knowing that, of course, you *do* have ancestors out there, but
not knowing who or where or when.

Thank you-a million times thank you-for you are making me feel, not only "at
home" on this list, but also like a puppy with, perhaps not a pedigree (no
AKC here, for sure!), but at least a family to call her own!

(((((hugs)))))

Kay Olsen Pearsall, Campbell, CA

This thread:

• [Q-R] Thank you, merci beaucoup, muchas gracias, mange takk! by "KFrog" <>