Jan, you are a good person and great mother. Since we met on line through laorlean@rootsweb.com about 3 years ago we have developed a personal friendship as I have with others on the list. What a wonderful way to meet people and welcome them into your heart and home. Merle Jan Strickland wrote: > Martha, Just wanted to say that your answer, I think, was right on > target. > > My daughter is adopted and will fight anyone who says she > is not fully and completely part of our family. Of course she does > work with foster and adopted children so understands the feelings > a whole lot better than most. Given the opportunity to try and > locate her "birth mother", she said no, it was not important and > she just wanted to thank her. So everyone is different. My other > adopted son knows his parents, but has not seen or contacted > them in about 25+ years. Says they are not important anymore. > > I would also have to question, that unless someone wants to join > some bloodline group what difference it could make, but that is just > me. My father's birth record is no where to be found, and an old > family bible was used to get a death certificate back in 1958, so since > that bible records stated the following: A. P. Baumgartner married > Bertie Byrd about 1911. H. L. Baumgartner was born about 1906" > should I assume that he was adopted, born "out of wedlock", or a > child of another man? Do I leave my father off of my tree, NO, I do not. > Does this make me any less connected to New Orleans where A. P. > was born? > > Leaving various ancestors out can really be complicated. Do what > feels right for you. If you find some "adopted" or "born out of wedlock" > ancestors, do what you want with that info. It is not necessary to announce > the fact. > For me, family is family is family. > But then I have (2) bloodline children, (2) adopted children > (4) bloodline grandchildren and (3) grandchildren of adopted children > and 3 adopted children of adopted children. Did you get all that???? > Do I love any of them differently? What do you think. > > Jan S - Orlando, FL > > > > > > -------Original Message------- > > From: Martha Carpenter > Date: 4/4/2008 7:28:16 PM > To: laorlean@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [LAORLEAN] adoption & genealogy > > Hi Allison > > I have double that situation. My father is adopted and my husband is > adopted. We know both my fathers birth parents and my husband knows his > birth mother. My dad, who is 68, actually met his birth grandfather, and > his uncle and his wife and son. They were very pleased to meet us and gave > my father alot of information. My dads adopted family has been nothing but > accepting of him and is even called son by most of his family, who all know > he is adopted. The only issue is that I just don't tell the adopted family > that I am researching the birth family. It would hurt their feeling because > they just don't concidered him differant from the rest of the family. When > I talk to extended family researchers from the adopted line I just don't say > > anything about him being adopted. If they don't already know I never bring > it up. My dad has the same name as my grandfather, is the oldest, and has > two sibling who where not adopted so it all "seems normal". > All that said, I believe that it really depends on the researcher. > Some are what I call "real bloodline snobs". Others are interested in the > entire family, whatever the family was. To me it is a differance between > Family History and Family Lineage. I say keep researching and connecting. > If they choice to be rude than that is their lose. They are the ones who > are missing out on stories of family, courage, and love. > > Martha Carpenter > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to LAORLEAN-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message > >