Years ago, before my children had even started school, I inherited a wonderful genealogy written in French by a nun, Marie Céline Ruel. She was my great-grandmother's first cousin. They were very close, more like sisters, because their mothers were sisters and their fathers were brothers. Céline had traced the Ruel and Goulet families back to the time of arrival of the original ancestors in Canada in the early 1600's. This tome is a fabulous resource that has allowed me to use my French, which had admittedly been neglected since my high school days. While French was my father's first language, he rarely used it at home.

In 2008, eight years after I received the 1942 "Généalogie de la Famille Goulet-Ruel", I decided it was time to try my hand at genealogy. Years ago, a business partner of mine had mentioned his strong interest in the hobby. However, it wasn't until I started my family tree that I realized how addictive genealogy could be. I loved to play detective! A year and a half later, I became a contributor to Find A Grave. Initially, I concentrated on members of my family tree. However, over time that has evolved such that I also photograph headstones and create memorials for people who are not related to me. Along the way, I have discovered fascinating people in my family tree, including diplomats, knights, artists, actors, writers, and politicians. My tree includes the artist Marc Chagall, author H Rider Haggard, and the premier of Spain Juan Negrin, as well as other intriguing characters.

I am available to assist anyone who has questions about translation of French genealogy records. I am particularly interested in the Ruel families of Québec, New Hampshire, and Maine, as well as the Faherty families of New Jersey who immigrated from County Galway, and can help people researching those families. With regard to transfer of memorials, please see the guidelines posted by Find A Grave, although I am willing to consider transfer of memorials that fall out of those guidelines. Please use the "Edit" button to suggest corrections, additions, or links, or to request transfers. You will receive the courtesy of a reply and a thank you, and I will be happy to include all pertinent, accurate information in my memorials. Please note, however, that I generally avoid transcribing newspaper obituaries from after January 1923, due to copyright issues.

Genealogists help to preserve family history. One of the primary reasons that I started my family tree was to be able to share family history with my children and extended family. With Find A Grave and other genealogy sites, we can share our history with a much larger family. And we make lovely friends and discover living family along the way.

Years ago, before my children had even started school, I inherited a wonderful genealogy written in French by a nun, Marie Céline Ruel. She was my great-grandmother's first cousin. They were very close, more like sisters, because their mothers were sisters and their fathers were brothers. Céline had traced the Ruel and Goulet families back to the time of arrival of the original ancestors in Canada in the early 1600's. This tome is a fabulous resource that has allowed me to use my French, which had admittedly been neglected since my high school days. While French was my father's first language, he rarely used it at home.

In 2008, eight years after I received the 1942 "Généalogie de la Famille Goulet-Ruel", I decided it was time to try my hand at genealogy. Years ago, a business partner of mine had mentioned his strong interest in the hobby. However, it wasn't until I started my family tree that I realized how addictive genealogy could be. I loved to play detective! A year and a half later, I became a contributor to Find A Grave. Initially, I concentrated on members of my family tree. However, over time that has evolved such that I also photograph headstones and create memorials for people who are not related to me. Along the way, I have discovered fascinating people in my family tree, including diplomats, knights, artists, actors, writers, and politicians. My tree includes the artist Marc Chagall, author H Rider Haggard, and the premier of Spain Juan Negrin, as well as other intriguing characters.

I am available to assist anyone who has questions about translation of French genealogy records. I am particularly interested in the Ruel families of Québec, New Hampshire, and Maine, as well as the Faherty families of New Jersey who immigrated from County Galway, and can help people researching those families. With regard to transfer of memorials, please see the guidelines posted by Find A Grave, although I am willing to consider transfer of memorials that fall out of those guidelines. Please use the "Edit" button to suggest corrections, additions, or links, or to request transfers. You will receive the courtesy of a reply and a thank you, and I will be happy to include all pertinent, accurate information in my memorials. Please note, however, that I generally avoid transcribing newspaper obituaries from after January 1923, due to copyright issues.

Genealogists help to preserve family history. One of the primary reasons that I started my family tree was to be able to share family history with my children and extended family. With Find A Grave and other genealogy sites, we can share our history with a much larger family. And we make lovely friends and discover living family along the way.