I could tell several serendipitous stories. My favorite, however, occurred when my husband and I were in Scotland. His grandmother came to the U.S. from Scotland when she was 17, and we were seeking the birthplace of her mother (my husband’s great grandmother) which was given on the birth certificate as “Ardler.” We found Ardler on an old map and were driving all around the area, unable to locate it. We drove into the small town of Washington, in the general area. While stopped at a stop sign in Washington, a man crossed in front of us, and my husband rolled down his window to ask if he knew of a town nearby called “Ardler.” The man said, “This is Ardler. The name was later changed to Washington. I am the town historian. If you’ll meet me at my house a couple of blocks away I’ll take a look in my materials.” We did. An hour later we were standing in front of the house where my husband’s great grandmother was born. This is a true story. We had impartial and completely non-genealogically-oriented friends with us who will attest to it. : ) Janis Walker Gilmore Pawleys Island, SC, & Seattle, WA

Has anyone compiled a small book of these wonderful stories of serendipity? If so, a second volume might be in order. If not, I'm guessing I'm not alone in saying that I would enjoy reading one. :) A blog would work, too, but the delight of holding a book seems to match the spirit of this subject material ... Cyndy Richardson Orange County, CA

Hank Jones (the other FASG Jones) did two volumes called "Psychic Roots" back in the 1990s. One of my stories is in volume 2. They are fascinating to read. Along with "They want to be found" (except for Elizabeth's ancestors who don't want to take her fun away from her!), I also say "Serendipity is when a well-prepared mind meets an opportunity." Not everyone would recognize an opportunity without the prep work it took to get there! Elissa Elissa Scalise Powell, CG , CGL www.PowellGenealogy.com www.GRIPitt.org 25-30 June 2017 and 16-21 July 2017 in Pittsburgh, PA CG, CGL, and Certified Genealogical Lecturer are service marks of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, used under license by board certificants after periodic evaluations. Certified Genealogist and the board name are trademarks registered in the US Patent and Trademark Office. -----Original Message----- From: TRANSITIONAL-GENEALOGISTS-FORUM [mailto:transitional-genealogists-forum-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of ccr Sent: Thursday, March 16, 2017 4:40 PM To: Transitional Genealogists <transitional-genealogists-forum@rootsweb.com> Subject: Re: [TGF] Never give up and Serendipity Has anyone compiled a small book of these wonderful stories of serendipity? If so, a second volume might be in order. If not, I'm guessing I'm not alone in saying that I would enjoy reading one. :) A blog would work, too, but the delight of holding a book seems to match the spirit of this subject material ... Cyndy Richardson Orange County, CA ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to TRANSITIONAL-GENEALOGISTS-FORUM-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message