Pinelawn Memorial Park to help people find their family history at genealogy workshop series
A free eight-part monthly genealogy workshop will begin Saturday at Pinelawn Memorial Park and Arboretum in Farmingdale. Credit: /Tom Lambui
Growing up, Kerri Tannenbaum only knew a single story about her maternal great-grandfather — while bringing him lunch at his railroad job, her grandaunt found he had died.
Years later as a professional genealogist, Tannenbaum used only her grandaunt's name and birth year to expand her great-grandfather's story, learning when he immigrated and which county in Ireland he was from.
Using basic information is one of many tools Tannenbaum will teach participants at Pinelawn Memorial Park and Arboretum's new free initiative: “Uncover Your Family History: A Genealogy Workshop Series.”
In the eight-part, monthly program, which will launch Saturday, Tannenbaum will guide people to explore their ancestry by sharing databases, websites, record sets and best practices to find relatives, as well as DNA matching.
“Genealogy is using all different types of records and documents to verify relationships,” Tannenbaum said. “I always say there's lots of tools in the toolbox.”
She also will go over how to decipher facts from reliable sources, similar to how a detective gathers evidence.
“For example, on a census, you don't always know who gave the information. It could have been a neighbor gave the information because that person wasn't home,” she said.
Tannenbaum, owner of the genealogy service company Family Dot Connector in Merrick, said she hopes participants feel empowered to uncover the gaps in their family history.
“You are the result of all the generations that came before you,” she said. “They played such a role in you being here today. What a wonderful way to honor that they existed.”
Participant Kelly Barratt, 58, of Ronkonkoma, plans to do just that. Born in Miami Beach, Barratt grew up estranged from her father, Seymour Prince, who forbade her to reach out to his side of the family.
After taking AncestryDNA and 23andMe tests, she connected with cousins she hadn't known and took up genealogy as a hobby, uncovering her family tree and obtaining important documents.
“I put together a whole written history, extremely detailed, and I mailed it to my cousins,” Barratt said. “Everybody loves it.”
In the workshop, she hopes to learn how to find her parents' wedding certificate. Barratt also said that before taking DNA tests, she felt genetic identity trauma. She was raised Catholic by her mother, but her father was an Ashkenazi Jew.
After developing relationships with her cousins and researching her history, she feels more confident and attends the Suffolk Y JCC to learn more about Judaism, she said.
Barratt hopes to find camaraderie with other participants who may have similar experiences.
But above all, Barratt, who owns a burial plot at Pinelawn, hopes to leave her adult son happy stories, just like her ancestors left her to find.
“Someday I am going to need the plot at Pinelawn,” said Barratt, who attends member events. “When he goes to visit my grave, I want him to remember 'Oh, Mom went to the DNA seminar here. Mom went under the stars here.' I want him to have positive memories.”
For more information about the genealogy workshop, contact Christin Alexander, Pinelawn community outreach coordinator, at calexander@pinelawn.com or 631-249-6100, ext. 120.
Growing up, Kerri Tannenbaum only knew a single story about her maternal great-grandfather — while bringing him lunch at his railroad job, her grandaunt found he had died.
Years later as a professional genealogist, Tannenbaum used only her grandaunt's name and birth year to expand her great-grandfather's story, learning when he immigrated and which county in Ireland he was from.
Using basic information is one of many tools Tannenbaum will teach participants at Pinelawn Memorial Park and Arboretum's new free initiative: “Uncover Your Family History: A Genealogy Workshop Series.”
In the eight-part, monthly program, which will launch Saturday, Tannenbaum will guide people to explore their ancestry by sharing databases, websites, record sets and best practices to find relatives, as well as DNA matching.
“Genealogy is using all different types of records and documents to verify relationships,” Tannenbaum said. “I always say there's lots of tools in the toolbox.”
She also will go over how to decipher facts from reliable sources, similar to how a detective gathers evidence.
“For example, on a census, you don't always know who gave the information. It could have been a neighbor gave the information because that person wasn't home,” she said.
Tannenbaum, owner of the genealogy service company Family Dot Connector in Merrick, said she hopes participants feel empowered to uncover the gaps in their family history.
“You are the result of all the generations that came before you,” she said. “They played such a role in you being here today. What a wonderful way to honor that they existed.”
Participant Kelly Barratt, 58, of Ronkonkoma, plans to do just that. Born in Miami Beach, Barratt grew up estranged from her father, Seymour Prince, who forbade her to reach out to his side of the family.
After taking AncestryDNA and 23andMe tests, she connected with cousins she hadn't known and took up genealogy as a hobby, uncovering her family tree and obtaining important documents.
“I put together a whole written history, extremely detailed, and I mailed it to my cousins,” Barratt said. “Everybody loves it.”
In the workshop, she hopes to learn how to find her parents' wedding certificate. Barratt also said that before taking DNA tests, she felt genetic identity trauma. She was raised Catholic by her mother, but her father was an Ashkenazi Jew.
After developing relationships with her cousins and researching her history, she feels more confident and attends the Suffolk Y JCC to learn more about Judaism, she said.
Barratt hopes to find camaraderie with other participants who may have similar experiences.
But above all, Barratt, who owns a burial plot at Pinelawn, hopes to leave her adult son happy stories, just like her ancestors left her to find.
“Someday I am going to need the plot at Pinelawn,” said Barratt, who attends member events. “When he goes to visit my grave, I want him to remember 'Oh, Mom went to the DNA seminar here. Mom went under the stars here.' I want him to have positive memories.”
For more information about the genealogy workshop, contact Christin Alexander, Pinelawn community outreach coordinator, at calexander@pinelawn.com or 631-249-6100, ext. 120.
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