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From: Brad and Naida Geisler <>
Subject: South Africa Genealogy Mailing List Introduction Letter
Date: Mon, 28 Jul 1997 20:06:14 -0700


Hello Fellow Genealogists!

My dear late grandfather emigrated to Canada in 1927, leaving behind all
of his family and his beloved country. He made a life here, regretably
losing contact with his family in the early 1940's. My mother and her
siblings grew up knowing nothing about their family in South Africa.
Grandpa died in 1994, taking all information on his family to the grave.
There is a lesson here!

I came on-line about a year ago and immediately began looking for living
relatives. The only information I had was Grandpa's Birth Certificate.
I contacted the Dutch Reform Archives in Cape Town; they forwarded the
names and birthdates of his siblings. I then contacted the museum in
Malmesbury (Grandpa's birthplace). The staff at the museum was kind
enough to put an ad in a local Afrikaans newspaper stating that I was
looking for Reids in the Malmesbury area. Lo and behold, my mother's
first cousin happened to see the ad and contacted us. She was the first
member of my Grandfather's family we had ever spoken to. Needless to
say, we were elated. Unfortunately, she was not able to provide much
information regarding the rest of the family and I am still searching
for other living cousins.

Of course, this sparked a keen interest in family history. My
great-grandfather's name was Johannes Petrus REID(my grandfather claimed
he came from Scotland?!) and my great grandmother was Charlotta Letsia
BRINK. My great-great grandmother was Gertruida Susanna Maria RICHTER
and her husband was Jacobus Petrus BRINK.

If anyone is researching BRINK, REID or RICHTER, I would love to hear
from you. I have some great BRINK genealogical contacts. Also, the
High Commissioner For South Africa in Canada has been a great help in
obtaining documents, immigration information, etc.

I hope I haven't been too long-winded.

Kind regards,
Naida Geisler
Ladysmith, B.C., Canada

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