52 Weeks to Better Genealogy - Week 51: Goals for 2011

Happy New Year! In a few short hours most of us will gather with family and friends to ring out 2010 and welcome the new year. Thanks to the wonder of technology, we can literally celebrate the new year as it makes it way around the world. As I reflect back on the 2010, I find myself counting the many blessings that I have been given and thinking about the moments that were, well, feeling anything but a blessing. And yet, I realize that even these moments were in my life for a reason, a lesson that I have yet to realize.

As we make our way towards that new page in the calendar it is inevitable that we feel the need to make resolutions that will make our lives - and ourselves -  better: kicking the tobacco habit, losing weight, eating better, engaging in regular exercise. Amy Coffin encouraged family historians in The We Tree Genealogy blog to look beyond our immediate horizons and stretch our researching muscles with 52 Weeks to Better Genealogy all designed to help make us better family historians. In week 51 she challenges us to think about our goals for 2011 and to write them down.

2011 is designated as the year I stop collecting and begin organizing, writing and sharing.

While there are several members of my family tree who are on my Most Wanted list, my most pressing goal for 2011 is to organize, scan and share with my family the wealth of family photographs in my possession. Some of them need to be identified with family members, several of them will require some serious work in Photoshop but all of them have a story to be told and I look forward to sharing these stories.

There are many of my ancestors stories that I have discovered that need to be put down: Lizzie Goldrick's trip to England to make a withdrawal on a reported bushel of gold, my uncle Earle Bergeron's military service and time spent as a Flying Sergeant and there are several of Grandma Space's journals waiting to be transcribed.

To quote Edith Lovejoy Pierce: We will open the book.  Its pages are blank.  We are going to put words on them ourselves.  The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.

Copyright (c) Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories 2010 - Dec 16 School Pageants

What did you do to celebrate Christmas at school?

Were you ever in a Christmas Pageant?

I consider myself fortunate to have childhood memories that include Christmas celebrations as part of our education curriculum. Following the return to school from our four day Thanksgiving vacation, the classroom displays of black construction paper Pilgrim hats and paper plate turkeys were replaced with the start of the wondrous celebration of Christmas.


The only thing that could distract me from the waiting and counting down the days until Christmas morning was the joy of rehearsing for our Christmas pageant. Music was always a favorite class but especially true during Christmas.

Music teachers distributed mimeographed sheets with our Christmas songs that we would be presenting at our school pageant; looking at the new songs we would be singing for the next three weeks was almost as good as Christmas morning.


"Oh ho ho - who wouldn't know? Oh ho ho who wouldn't go? Up on the rooftop, click click click ..." I must have been in the third grade when we sang this song as I recall watching my sister Lisa in her kindergarten class singing Jingle Bells during the same program.


I vividly recall memorizing "A Visit From St. Nicholas" when I was in the fourth or fifth grade which our class was going to recite at that year's pageant. We were memorizing the lines where St. Nick is calling out the names of his reindeer: "Now Dasher! Now Dancer! Now Prancer and Vixen! On Comet! On Cupid! On Donner and Blitzen!" I recall it was a very sunny day and the sunlight was hurting my eyes; I felt very cold and wanted nothing more than to put my head down on my desk and take a nap. When I didn't want to get up the next morning my mother discovered a few small red pimples - chicken pox. I missed the school pageant that year, much to my dismay. Mom brought home a copy of the poem (probably from the public library) and helped me memorize the rest of the poem.


When I was in the 7th grade I tried out for the school production of Amal and the Night Visitors. I was disappointed when I wasn't chosen as the young crippled boy but was named the understudy - it is a good thing "Amal" was able to perform as the understudy never did learn Amal's lines (all though she knew all the songs!)

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Dec. 15 Hoiday Happenings

Often times December to mid-January birthdays and anniversaries get over shadowed by the Christmas/Hanukkah/New Year holidays. So we're going to shine a spotlight on those family members and ancestors this time around. Select one or more December to mid-January birthdays and/or anniversaries on your family tree. Write a short tribute to or memory of those birthday guys and gals and write a toast to the anniversary couples.


Thanks to Randy Seaver for his Saturday Night Genealogy Fun posted on his blog Genea-Musings. Earlier this year he asked everyone to create a calendar then post the results. When I read the prompt for today's contribution, I had to think that Santa Randy was probably having the last laugh.

Looking at my December and January calendar created in Family Tree Maker I was surprised to see the number of my first and second cousins; once, twice and a couple three times removed who were celebrating birthdays and anniversaries during the holiday season. To those wonderful relatives, many of whom have sent their Christmas greetings, I wish you happy birthday or congratulations on achieving another anniversary milestone. No need to mention you by name but I hope you know I am thinking of you.

There are a couple of events I would like to pay special tribute to, listed here in chronological order:

Digital Image. Undated. Original photograph privately held

by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

Happy Birthday Grandpa Charlie. Born December 2, 1887, in Ham Lake Township, Anoka Co., MN, my paternal grandfather would have celebrated his 123rd birthday earlier this month. The oldest son of Francis Xavier Bergeron (1863-1953) and Mary Elizabeth Reinwand (1865-1951) Charles Edward Bergeron is seen in the above photo with my grandmother Mildred Eileen Little and cousin Connie.

Digital Image. Dec. 8, 1951. Original photograph privately held

 by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

Happy Anniversary to my parents who celebrated their 59th anniversary on December 8th. I love this photograph and can recall trying on my mother's wedding dress which was heavy white satin. My parents were married in a candlelight ceremony at the First Methodist Church in Antigo. They recall that it was a bitterly cold night with several feet of snow on the ground.

Having posted today's Wordless Wednesday as a birthday tribute to my sister Lori I won't embarrass her with any more cutsie photographs.

Digital Image. Undated. Original photograph privately held

by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

Christmas Eve 1976 will always be remembered as the year we attended the funeral of  my 13-year old cousin Becky Lynn. Becky was killed on December 21, 1976, when she and several of her friends climbed over a chain link fence intent on crossing Interstate 694 in Minneapolis during rush hour traffic. I've often thought about the driver of the car who was drawn into the decision the three friends made that night. It wasn't just my family whose lives were forever changed. Becky Lynn would have been 47 years old.

Digital Image. Oct. 11, 2009.. Original photograph privately held

by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

My youngest son celebrates his birthday in early January so it is a bit early to wish him Happy Birthday; he'll  just have to wait! To say that he is a joy is a serious understatement. Funny, smart, honest and giving almost to a fault, he makes me laugh and proud to be called Ben's Mom. My Dad has told me many times how proud his brother would have been to know that we gave Ben the middle name of Earle. I agree, I believe he is.

Wordless Wednesday: Happy Birthday Lori

"Happy Birthday Lori." Digital Image. Dated Dec. 1965. Original photograph privately held

by Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. Copyright (c) Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories 2010 - Dec 14 Fruitcake

Did you like fruitcake? Did your family receive fruitcakes?

Have you ever re-gifted fruitcake?

Have you ever devised creative uses for fruitcake?

Fruitcake. Was your first reaction to shutter, swallow hard and think, "no way." I confess to being a johnny-come-lately fruitcake-er.

I recall my family receiving Fruitcake as a gift, probably around 1963. I don't know what happened to the alleged Fruitcake but a call to my mother might be in order!

As mentioned in the December 2nd Holiday Foods post, for a number of years I thought my mother's Fruit Bread, which was a holiday tradition, was Fruitcake.

December 2nd posting left me wondering about my Mom's Fruit Bread Christmas tradition and following some good old-fashioned detective work, I found the recipe. Maybe you'll join me in a new - or renewed - Christmas tradition.

Fruit Bread
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 beaten eggs
1 cup milk
3 Tbsp. salad oil

  *   *   *   *
1/4 cup diced candied citron
1/4 cup dried currants
2 Tbsp. finely diced candied cherries
2 Tbsp. diced candied lemon peel
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Combine eggs, milk and salad oil; add to flour mixture, beating well (about 1/2 minute). Stir in fruits and nuts.

Turn into greased 9x50x-inch loaf pan. Bake in 350 degree oven about 50 minutes or till done. Remove from pan and cool on rack. Wrap and store overnight.

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories 2010 - Dec. 11 Other Traditions

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there...

Clement C. Moore, A Visit From St. Nicholas

For as many Christmas's that I can remember, we celebrated St. Nicholas Day. It wasn't until I was in junior high school (now referred to as middle school) that we had a fireplace; until that time, our stockings, made by my mother, were hung wherever possible on December 5th in anticipation of the arrival of St. Nick.

According to Wikipedia the legend of St. Nicholas has its roots in Greece. Like most legends, the story behind the how and why St. Nicholas delivered gifts seems more suited to Criminal Minds than Disney. My family's observance of St. Nicholas Day have strong ties with the German traditions of celebrating Nikolaus leaving me to believe they are traditions from my maternal Germanic side of the family.

In Germany, children place a boot outside their front door on the night of Decemer 5th when St. Nikolaus arrives to fill them with small gifts and treats. It is also during this time when St. Nick checks to see if the children have been behaving. Sometimes a disguised St. Nick will visit the children at their home or school to get a report. If you did not receive a satisfactory passing grade, depending on where you lived dictated what St. Nick left as a warning. In many countries he left a switch or a stick and in others a lump of coal.

As stated in a prevous post the true identity of Santa Claus has a family connection and it makes perfect sense that this fact wasn't known to one and all. My grandfather did have a wonderful sense of humor.

When my youngest sister was probably three or four-years old, Grandma and Grandpa Space came to visit coincidentally as we were getting ready to celebrate St. Nick's Day. As this was the house with the fireplace, we were even more excited to have our stockings hung by the chimney with care. Grandpa began quizzing the youngest sister about St. Nick, what was all this about stockings and why would we be getting presents when it wasn't Christmas. As my sister's frustration grew, Grandpa did not let up on his questioning, "Who is St. Nick?" and was finally bested by my sister's answer, "He's Santa Claus's brother you dummy!"

It was a moment that my Grandfather remembered and laughed about for the rest of his life.

With the exception of "A Visit From St. Nicholas" all copy and photograph

Copyright (c) Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski. 2010

Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories - Dec. 10 Gifts

What were your favorite gifts, both to receive and to give?

Are there specific gift-giving traditions among your family or ancestors?

I firmly believe the topic of Christmas traditions is something soon-to-be newlyweds need to discuss before they say I do. Christmas traditions is something my husband and I failed to discuss until we had celebrated our second wedding anniversary. We would have discovered how different our Christmas traditions were much sooner had it not been for the fact Uncle Sam decided our first Christmas as husband and wife would be spent with Al in sunny South Vietnam.

Al's family opened their gifts on Christmas Eve, my family on Christmas morning. Al, the youngest of six children was a 'late in life' child with his siblings living away from home during his childhood. I am the oldest of four girls therefore had siblings to feed into the Christmas frenzy. There couldn't have been a more different Christmas gifting experience.

Al's family opened gifts after church on Christmas Eve leaving him to get up Christmas morning and enjoy his train set in peace. Meanwhile at my house, by the time Christmas morning arrived we were seriously sleep deprived . The first Christmas Al and I spent with my family he experienced severe sensory overload. Frank Sinatra on the stereo, coffee and egg nog with a plate of cookies and breads while the decibel levels gradually increased the closer we got to gift unwrapping. I vividly recall my youngest sister jumping up and down on the couch singing to Sinatra. Throughout the years, memories of Al helping my Dad assemble a doll crib (which included having to drill  new holes for the railings) and a refrigerator with 'ice cube' maker that had to be assembled in the middle of night have become the wonderful laugh till you cry stories we never get tired of telling.

Bride dolls, ice skates, guitars and record albums (Glen Campbell and Jimi Hendrix are the two that immediately come to mind) are a few of the gifts I recall receiving but the one gift that stands out in my memory is my first 'real' Mom gift.

Long before anyone considered the implications and effects Styrofoam meat  trays would have on our environment, the boys youth group at our church used them to make a Christmas tree for Mom. Somewhere along the way a few of the glass decorations were broken and the tree topper is missing but I can still recall the look on Chris's face when he presented me with his gift and recall it was wrapped in green tissue paper decorated with gold and red star stickers.

But Mary treasured all [these words] and pondered them in her heart. Luke 2:19