May I please caution you who wish to use Babelfish or some other computer-generated translation service - you risk the whole thing being trashed because it just does not work with the German language due to the convoluted and idiomatic construction, on top of the German people being very sensitive to their language; they are often insulted and angered by those attempts and cannot make sense of them. There are excellent letter samples written by the incomparable Larry O. Jensen on the familyseach.org website under Search - Research Guidance - Germany. Also the excellent site of the fabulous Dr. Don Watson, http://members.cox.net/hessen (covers all of Germany, not just Hessen). Each of these gentlemen is fluent in the language and culture of Germany. If that is not possible, then a simple letter in English without slang or contractions is far better than any computerized translation. This comes from people far more experienced than me, and I have 20 years' worth under my belt. Maureen Schoenky ************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com.