4. Book of Revelation(s)

Some of you may have noticed that in my first post I neglected to mention what ultimately happened to my late Aunt Kay as I was documenting the triumphs and tragedies of the Kauffman males.  Kay reportedly had the rockiest stay in foster care, and unfortunately she...

3. Deaths and a new beginning

My sister Kathie discovered our first real paper documentation about my Dad’s family probably circa 1993 or so.  It may seem like a “minor” issue to find birth and marriage certificates, but in a largely pre-internet era, it was really quite a feat...

2. Inventing names

As 2016 draws to a close, I look back on what is one of the more momentous years in my by now pretty long life, one that was capped in the summer when I flew to Toronto and met a ton of “new” relatives on my Dad’s side, including (rather incredibly)...

1. Stories our parents tell us

The Kauffman family history reads like something out of a Dickens novel, which is probably why I’m still expecting some random stranger to walk up to me and hand me several million dollars.  In our particular case, there wasn’t just one abandoned orphan who went on to...