Hello dear ones! Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve been fascinated with treasures from the past. As I studied old sepia wedding photos of my great grandparents, examined the details in my third great-grandmother’s cross stitch sampler, and ran my fingers over the bronzed high button baby shoes that belonged to my great-grandmother, I was filled with curiosity about the lives and stories of these people, my people. In my adult life, that curiosity has played out in a passion for genealogy and family history research.

Over the years, I’ve collected many photos and snippets of information about my ancestors and others whose stories have revealed themselves as I’ve followed the twists and turns of their winding paths. I have been wondering how I might share these stories with my family and anyone else who may be interested. I wanted a format that was easily accessible and not chock full of dates and details that could be tedious for all but true genealogy geeks like me. (My family and friends have been exceedingly polite, but I’ve seen their eyes glaze over!) One of my experiments was this website dedicated to my great grand-aunt, Florence Yemm, which was a lot of fun to create and share. However, for many of the relatives, I don’t have enough information to fill a website. And yet, there are stories to tell…

Enter “The Singing Oak,” a place to gather ’round and hear about those who came before us. In time, I intend to visit each of my eight great-grandparents and sixteen second great-grandparents. We will also hear from others in the family tree who have something they’d like to say.

And what of my grandparents? All four were born in the year 1908 in the State of Illinois. They each have their own interesting tales to tell. I could fill a website and write a book on each. But to kick off this series, the grandparents will simply make an appearance (each in a separate post) to introduce their immediate families and tell us a little about themselves. Grandpa Hank, the first-born of the grands, has whispered in my ear that he should go first. Yes, I think so too! Stay tuned.