From Generation to Generation

Every now and then, I'll hear talk about intergenerational wealth, those gifts passed from parent to child—or in some cases, passed on down from grandparents—that help young struggling families to obtain key purchases they might otherwise not have been able to afford for years to come. Help with paying for a grandchild's college education, for instance, or providing a down payment on a starter home would be examples from our current era, though anyone who has read an ancestor's will can realize the help such gifts represented for those in the distant past.

This week, though, I ran across another example of passing gifts from generation to generation. The other day, our local genealogical society held their annual potluck in the park. We often encourage members to bring a friend to this social event, so one of our longstanding members invited her daughter, who was visiting from out of town.

What we discovered, as this member introduced her guest to others at the meeting, was that the daughter is also an avid genealogical researcher. Unlike the many stories people share of family members rolling their eyes at yet another family history story—a symptom I suspect is a main incentive for people to join genealogy societies so like-minded friends can share in those "happy dance" research victories—this member has a daughter who is just as consumed with this research passion as her mother is. In this case, at least, the genealogy "gene" has successfully been passed from generation to generation.

It is always refreshing to learn of researchers who have been able to share their family findings with others. Usually, though, those family members with whom we share our discoveries are distant cousins. Many are contacts we've made online, when we meet those who also are pursuing the stories of our mutual great-great-greats. It was quite refreshing to meet someone who likely gained this passion not from a distant relative in a one-off passing of pages gathering dust in a closet or attic, but from the day to day example of a parent who consistently pursued those elusive roots.