Anne Penne
I was 16 when I read "Roots" and just like Alex Haley my grandmother played a pivotal role in inspiring my ancestral search. Grandma (Penne) Hiller was the family historian and her "gift of gab" lent itself quite nicely to storytelling. As the years went on she talked while I took notes, many notes. When Grandma eventually entrusted the precious original documents inherited from her parents-Slovenian baptismal certificates, marriage documents and naturalization papers-to me at age 20 the torch was officially passed.
After many years, the amount of family history documentation - photos, documents, film, newspaper clippings, prayer cards, etc. - was so sizable my office was beginning to look like an archive. At the same time I was searching for the most efficient way to not only compile the information in a storytelling format but also a way to make it accessible to family. The idea of a blog seemed like an excellent solution. So, each month I will write a short introduction on a person place or subject
which can be viewed under the Blog page. From there you will be directed where to find the "main story", generally under one of the family surname pages. Happy reading!
Documents from Grandma's "Ma & Pa".