Retired- U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps.

A tip that helps me - before making edits to another member's memorial, view their profile- some members have specific preferences that we should be considerate of.

Lately I've come across a few rude people on here. I'm done dealing with rudeness. From now on they're being forwarded to the site admins. Luckily, it's the people on here that are appreciative of the work we do which keeps me going.

Always willing to transfer a relative's memorial to you unless it is a relative of mine. I consider myself a "temporary steward" for many of these. NOTE: I will NOT remove the rank from a memorial, as per guidance received from the site admin's and legal references as stated further into this profile.

If you have information that you want placed in the bio, EDIT THE BIO. Do not send the information in the notes while editing it to ensure it won't be overlooked. The same with transfers- please do not send them with an edit. Send it separately for the reason stated above. Do NOT send the requests through a email. Too many times I get an email with no memorial numbers or member number. I am not going to do the research to figure out which one you want transferred.

Please, DO NOT justify a change by using Family Search or a family tree on Ancestry.com as a source. These are merely facts created by people and I see way too many errors (i.e.- a family tree on Ancestry with 20 copies of the same thing)- please use actual facts such as documents (which contain their own share of errors as it is).

I have been involved with genealogy since around 1982 and have published several books on area cemeteries (Somerset/Cambria County, PA) as well as local history. I have transcribed over 300 cemeteries in the Somerset/Cambria County area. I've create memorials in this area using these transcripts and/or from sites that I have personally visited because I believe that a memorial represents a person's life and is deserving of more than just the minimum of a name and date.

I go above and beyond by adding as much data as possible through research because I treat each memorial with the same care and respect as if they were my own family. I am NOT a memorial collector. All of these years of transcribing cemeteries allowed me to create memorials long before many others joined this site. Many were transferred to me by prior members, entrusting them to my care. This is a quest to preserve our heritage for future generations.

This is a year-round endeavor. If requests are fulfilled during the winter months and you wish to have a better photo in the summer, just let me know.

If you want something added to the bio- PLEASE USE THE EDIT TAB, not in the "Notes," or it may get unintentionally overlooked.

If you want to see why what we do is so important and photographing headstones in order to preserve the information for future generations is vital, check out Blough Cemetery to see how a cemetery's condition can change in 15 years.

If you have a minute, feel free to visit my mother's memorial Connie Ensley #43042891 and if so inclined leave a flower if you wish.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ancestry® Copyright Policy:
Content contributed to public area of the Ancestry® sites by users remains the property of the submitter or of the original creator, and we are a licensed distributor of such content. When a copyright violation occurs, the submitter, and not Ancestry, has violated copyright. Please credit me if using my photos elsewhere. This includes Ancestry.com, your personal genealogy page, etc. I don't mind if you use my photos, just please cite your source!
∼
I've taken over the responsibility of maintaining memorials from other members that either died, quit or were booted from this site. Please be patient as I try to add more information to them. Edits are always welcome as well as transfers to family members that I ALWAYS encourage. However, this does not mean a request for every single person with the same surname that may be a 9th cousin 8x removed. I try to be as complete and accurate as possible, and I do so with the same care and respect as I would for my own family member.
∼
Please do not ask me to change a person's birth date based solely on a death certificate. Death certificates in PA (especially older ones) are notoriously wrong when it comes to birth dates. I will gladly make the change IF you have supporting documentation to go along with the death certificate, but not just based on it alone.
∼
As for MILITARY RANKS: I received clarification by Find-A-Grave admin's that rank CAN be entered into the drop-down field OR in the bio. Find-A-Grave provides a drop-down field for this for a reason- to ensure our veterans are honored with the rank they achieved as per:

https://www.defense.gov/Help-Center/Article/Article/2746328/use-of-military-rank-by-retired-military-members/

and:

https://law.justia.com/codes/us/2014/title-10/subtitle-a/part-ii/chapter-45/sec.-772#:~:text=10%20U.S.C.%20%C2%A7%20772%20%282014%29%20%C2%A7772.%20When%20wearing,Air%20National%20Guard%2C%20as%20the%20case%20may%20be.

10 US Code 772 Section (e). A person not on active duty who served honorably in time of war in the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps may bear the title, and, when authorized by regulations prescribed by the President, wear the uniform, of the highest grade held by him during that war.

As a retiree of the U.S. Army from both the Adjutant General Corps. and the Judge Advocate Corps., I know a little about researching and if you have hard proof that goes against this policy, I'd be more than happy to have an open dialogue about it to share your thoughts. I often get notes that have the same comment- "Military rank is not suppose to be used as prefix, unless Killed in Action or retired with that Rank." I'd like to see the exact source of this. Upon request, I will send a copy of the position that the site admin's have taken on this subject. And really-...? This is just a grave website. I think the sun will still rise in the morning.
∼
Please use the EDIT tab to request changes. NO CORRECTIONS WILL BE MADE FROM THE MESSAGE SECTION ON THIS PAGE. This is what the feature was developed for. For those that have had that "team approach" and have helped fix and/or add information to these "orphaned" memorials, thank you!!

If you submit a typed version of an obituary or any other TEXT for a bio, PLEASE proofread it for errors. It is on the submitter to ensure spelling is correct and no excess spaces/gaps between sentances, etc.
∼
Please do not message me after you have found duplicate memorials. FAG has made it very simple to report them on your own. If you already have all of the information, contacting me or the other person (if applicable) is just duplicating our efforts. The same goes for establishing links, etc.- use the edit tab. DO NOT LOOK ME UP ON FACEBOOK to discuss Find-A-Grave. Keep these conversations here on this site where they belong.
∼
If I post a photo on a memorial in which you had already posted one, please don't take offense- sometimes additional photos under other conditions (ie- light, weather, etc.) can provide a whole different perspective. Many times, I've swapped out my own photos when conditions were different the second time around and the new photo had more detail, especially with worn stones. If you are the owner of that memorial and don't want someone else's photos just ask and I will remove it. Likewise, if you have a photo to add to mine that can help enhance the memorial, please feel free to contribute. Twice I have lost thousands of photos with computer issues before I was able to back them up. By posting these, duplicate or not, I've been able to go back and save them from the memorials.
∼
I will post obituaries to my memorials as long as the proper citation is made to give the proper credit for the source. If family members want their information private, then they should consider not having it published in the local newspaper/website and funeral home website. There is no legal expectation to privacy when the information has been made public.

STOP tracking me down on social media to ask me questions. This is why my email is public on this site. I find this to be very intrusive when there is a method to contact me here, especially when I answer all messages (and process edits) within a day or two. And especially- DO NOT TRACK MY WIFE DOWN OF FACEBOOK in order to find me. And yes, it happens or I wouldn't have to post this.

I appreciate all of the hard work my fellow volunteers and contributors have made to this site!

Retired- U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps.

A tip that helps me - before making edits to another member's memorial, view their profile- some members have specific preferences that we should be considerate of.

Lately I've come across a few rude people on here. I'm done dealing with rudeness. From now on they're being forwarded to the site admins. Luckily, it's the people on here that are appreciative of the work we do which keeps me going.

Always willing to transfer a relative's memorial to you unless it is a relative of mine. I consider myself a "temporary steward" for many of these. NOTE: I will NOT remove the rank from a memorial, as per guidance received from the site admin's and legal references as stated further into this profile.

If you have information that you want placed in the bio, EDIT THE BIO. Do not send the information in the notes while editing it to ensure it won't be overlooked. The same with transfers- please do not send them with an edit. Send it separately for the reason stated above. Do NOT send the requests through a email. Too many times I get an email with no memorial numbers or member number. I am not going to do the research to figure out which one you want transferred.

Please, DO NOT justify a change by using Family Search or a family tree on Ancestry.com as a source. These are merely facts created by people and I see way too many errors (i.e.- a family tree on Ancestry with 20 copies of the same thing)- please use actual facts such as documents (which contain their own share of errors as it is).

I have been involved with genealogy since around 1982 and have published several books on area cemeteries (Somerset/Cambria County, PA) as well as local history. I have transcribed over 300 cemeteries in the Somerset/Cambria County area. I've create memorials in this area using these transcripts and/or from sites that I have personally visited because I believe that a memorial represents a person's life and is deserving of more than just the minimum of a name and date.

I go above and beyond by adding as much data as possible through research because I treat each memorial with the same care and respect as if they were my own family. I am NOT a memorial collector. All of these years of transcribing cemeteries allowed me to create memorials long before many others joined this site. Many were transferred to me by prior members, entrusting them to my care. This is a quest to preserve our heritage for future generations.

This is a year-round endeavor. If requests are fulfilled during the winter months and you wish to have a better photo in the summer, just let me know.

If you want something added to the bio- PLEASE USE THE EDIT TAB, not in the "Notes," or it may get unintentionally overlooked.

If you want to see why what we do is so important and photographing headstones in order to preserve the information for future generations is vital, check out Blough Cemetery to see how a cemetery's condition can change in 15 years.

If you have a minute, feel free to visit my mother's memorial Connie Ensley #43042891 and if so inclined leave a flower if you wish.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ancestry® Copyright Policy:
Content contributed to public area of the Ancestry® sites by users remains the property of the submitter or of the original creator, and we are a licensed distributor of such content. When a copyright violation occurs, the submitter, and not Ancestry, has violated copyright. Please credit me if using my photos elsewhere. This includes Ancestry.com, your personal genealogy page, etc. I don't mind if you use my photos, just please cite your source!
∼
I've taken over the responsibility of maintaining memorials from other members that either died, quit or were booted from this site. Please be patient as I try to add more information to them. Edits are always welcome as well as transfers to family members that I ALWAYS encourage. However, this does not mean a request for every single person with the same surname that may be a 9th cousin 8x removed. I try to be as complete and accurate as possible, and I do so with the same care and respect as I would for my own family member.
∼
Please do not ask me to change a person's birth date based solely on a death certificate. Death certificates in PA (especially older ones) are notoriously wrong when it comes to birth dates. I will gladly make the change IF you have supporting documentation to go along with the death certificate, but not just based on it alone.
∼
As for MILITARY RANKS: I received clarification by Find-A-Grave admin's that rank CAN be entered into the drop-down field OR in the bio. Find-A-Grave provides a drop-down field for this for a reason- to ensure our veterans are honored with the rank they achieved as per:

https://www.defense.gov/Help-Center/Article/Article/2746328/use-of-military-rank-by-retired-military-members/

and:

https://law.justia.com/codes/us/2014/title-10/subtitle-a/part-ii/chapter-45/sec.-772#:~:text=10%20U.S.C.%20%C2%A7%20772%20%282014%29%20%C2%A7772.%20When%20wearing,Air%20National%20Guard%2C%20as%20the%20case%20may%20be.

10 US Code 772 Section (e). A person not on active duty who served honorably in time of war in the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine Corps may bear the title, and, when authorized by regulations prescribed by the President, wear the uniform, of the highest grade held by him during that war.

As a retiree of the U.S. Army from both the Adjutant General Corps. and the Judge Advocate Corps., I know a little about researching and if you have hard proof that goes against this policy, I'd be more than happy to have an open dialogue about it to share your thoughts. I often get notes that have the same comment- "Military rank is not suppose to be used as prefix, unless Killed in Action or retired with that Rank." I'd like to see the exact source of this. Upon request, I will send a copy of the position that the site admin's have taken on this subject. And really-...? This is just a grave website. I think the sun will still rise in the morning.
∼
Please use the EDIT tab to request changes. NO CORRECTIONS WILL BE MADE FROM THE MESSAGE SECTION ON THIS PAGE. This is what the feature was developed for. For those that have had that "team approach" and have helped fix and/or add information to these "orphaned" memorials, thank you!!

If you submit a typed version of an obituary or any other TEXT for a bio, PLEASE proofread it for errors. It is on the submitter to ensure spelling is correct and no excess spaces/gaps between sentances, etc.
∼
Please do not message me after you have found duplicate memorials. FAG has made it very simple to report them on your own. If you already have all of the information, contacting me or the other person (if applicable) is just duplicating our efforts. The same goes for establishing links, etc.- use the edit tab. DO NOT LOOK ME UP ON FACEBOOK to discuss Find-A-Grave. Keep these conversations here on this site where they belong.
∼
If I post a photo on a memorial in which you had already posted one, please don't take offense- sometimes additional photos under other conditions (ie- light, weather, etc.) can provide a whole different perspective. Many times, I've swapped out my own photos when conditions were different the second time around and the new photo had more detail, especially with worn stones. If you are the owner of that memorial and don't want someone else's photos just ask and I will remove it. Likewise, if you have a photo to add to mine that can help enhance the memorial, please feel free to contribute. Twice I have lost thousands of photos with computer issues before I was able to back them up. By posting these, duplicate or not, I've been able to go back and save them from the memorials.
∼
I will post obituaries to my memorials as long as the proper citation is made to give the proper credit for the source. If family members want their information private, then they should consider not having it published in the local newspaper/website and funeral home website. There is no legal expectation to privacy when the information has been made public.

STOP tracking me down on social media to ask me questions. This is why my email is public on this site. I find this to be very intrusive when there is a method to contact me here, especially when I answer all messages (and process edits) within a day or two. And especially- DO NOT TRACK MY WIFE DOWN OF FACEBOOK in order to find me. And yes, it happens or I wouldn't have to post this.

I appreciate all of the hard work my fellow volunteers and contributors have made to this site!