February -

This month was grandpa's birthday as well, February 27th. As I have mentioned in a couple of blogs ago, I have been looking into our heritage and tracing it back. I found the manifest where grandma's ancestors came across from Altona, Germany on a ship named "Catharina" on December 12, 1836 into New Orleans, Louisiana. On the manifest it said that a "daughter" was born on ship, and I was looking at the ages of the family - they ranged from 68 (grandmother) to 2 years old. Can you imagine leaving everything behind, coming to a land they never saw only heard about. They held on to God's hand as they stepped from the comfort of their hometown in Germany to the unknown in a foreign land. They defied opposition and worked tirelessly to satisfy the requirements imposed by the U.S. Immigration Department to enter the country and establish residency.

Once in the states, they had to overcome humiliation, intense loneliness, helplessness and uncertainty. They endured ridicule due to their lack of fluency in English, but they pressed on. And they managed to gather enough money for the basics. They held on to their faith in God, one of the first things they did was set aside a portion of their land and the first church in Lee County was established.

By example, and with profound appreciation, our forefathers gave us a wonderful heritage of determination, tenacity and faith in God. They demonstrated the commitment to family and the importance of setting priorities.

And with that all said, I want to say thanks to our marvelous heritage no matter if we find out the real name behind Umthun or not.