For many years, the Good Genes Genealogy team — Mark and Ann Lineve — did not know much about the man pictured above, our maternal Grandfather Eugene Gibson Owen, Jr. The short story is that Grandpa Owen moved away from the Midwest city and state, Omaha, Nebraska, when our mothers — Lyla and Angeline — were small children in the 1940s. The stories that were whispered around the family was that Grandpa Owen followed his desire to be discovered by Hollywood executives and become a music and movie star.
In 1982, Ann traveled to Los Angeles, California to locate her Grandpa Owen. She did. He was living in a nursing home as a double amputee. For three days, Ann and her husband learned all about the once mystery man in the Owen and Wead families. A few years after that visit, Grandpa Owen died. The deep wounds from his absence in the lives of our relatives were still there. Yet, it was made a bit easier to forgive because our ancestor’s explanations for following his passion, was remembered. Therein, lies the glimpses of healing.
There are mental health benefits in learning more about one’s family. The ancestry and genealogy researchers who are our clients and participated in our workshops, have had similar feelings of joy when learning more about their long-lost ancestors.
Here are a few examples from individuals’ recent finds in their family trees:
- The Good Genes Genealogy team’s aunt-by-marriage located a family Bible that traces her tree through several generations to its African family members. The names and their geographical origins are included in this precious Bible.
- A deceased father’s family was located and his maternal tree was greatly expanded to include three generations. His maternal great grandfather once owned hundred of acres in western Tennessee, was a decorated military veteran and highly respected in his community.
- The enslaver and enslaved ancestral families were joined through a truthful communication exchange that was initiated by a novice genealogy researcher. It led to other discoveries that included finding the graves of great grandparents in an abandoned cemetery in Kentucky.
- The dots were connected for another relative on her deceased husband’s missing high school years. It was discovered that he lived with other relatives as a high schooler before moving to Virginia where he met his wife.
In an ancestry and genealogy workshop conducted in 2022 and this year by the Good Genes Genealogy team, we reminded participants to find mental health benefits from their discoveries. We advise that the deep dives into family heritage is:
- •A faith walk
- •A spiritual relationship
- •A healing experience
- •Sacred work