Once Upon A Census- The House and the Storm

Written By Lisa Coffey

My childhood home was in a town called Arabi, part of the greater New Orleans metropolitan area. Arabi was a great place to grow up. Your best friends were your neighbors, and everyone looked out for each other. I could walk or ride my bike as far as I wanted, and someone would always recognize me. When my mom didn’t meet me at the bus stop one day, a kind lady walked me all the way home in pouring rain! My older brother and sister brought their friends over and I was able to get to know them, too. My best friends lived only a walk away. All of these wonderful things created a strong sense of connection for me. I knew who I was and how I fit into my world. What a lucky little girl I was!

But all of that changed on September 9, 1965. I was seven years old and in the second grade. Heavy rains, flash flooding, and hurricanes came and went, and we all somehow went on with our lives. But not so with Hurricane Betsy. I couldn’t have known what was coming and how it would change my sense of safety for a very long time.

My family evacuated to a nearby school building. The storm was a violent one and it seemed to go on forever as we tried to sleep on blankets in the gym on the main floor of the school. Suddenly there were loud voices, and we heard the terrifying news, “the water is coming up!”

We gathered our things and hurried to the second floor. We settled into a classroom, where I looked down through a window to see brown water everywhere, making the street I had walked along so many times look strange. There were submerged car tops barely visible and houses with water up to their eaves. I walked to our Sunday church meetings down this street; why did it look so wrong?

Eventually we had to be rescued from the roof of the school by the kindness of strangers who offered their boats. It took several other boat or amphibious vehicle trips to get us to higher ground. We made our way slowly but surely to a friend’s home in New Orleans, and my uncle picked us up and took us to my grandparents’ home where we lived while our house was being repaired.

Of course, we had lost much of sentimental value. I remember my mother’s heartbreak at her wedding dress having to be thrown away. I still carry that sense of loss and upheaval, after all these years. But the grief I felt at the loss of what I held dear has changed into something wonderful over these many years. I’d love to share that with you. I hope you can learn from my experience!

Losing everything in Hurricane Betsy taught me:

…that time is a gift, that it passes quickly, and most of all, that anything can happen. My sense of what is important has been sharpened, my ability to see to the heart of a matter is clearer. I have learned to see something special in everyday moments.

What does this have to do with family history? I will answer with the following questions:

What would you save if you knew you would suddenly lose everything you owned?

If these questions bring to your mind a special object, memory, or person, then you have awakened the part of yourself that longs to know the story of who you are and how you are connected to your family and loved ones. This desire will take you on the wonderful journey of searching for your family history! As you search, you’ll learn that you fit into a larger story. You’ll begin to see how valuable you are as an individual and come to understand that your influence is greater than you could have imagined! You will understand how you are a valuable link in your family, community, and the world around you.

If you are new to the idea of searching for your family history and keeping a record of it, I sincerely hope you’ll try! Searching for my family history has made my life richer and fuller as I add to my family’s story. I have connected with family members I haven’t spoken to because of distance and time, and we have become very close friends. The joy is in the journey!

Have a great week!

Next Week: The Why of Storytelling

This Week’s Challenge:

1. Call a family member you haven’t talked to in a while.

2. Ask a close family member for a story of one of your common ancestors.

3. Choose an ancestor to learn about. Start with one, and once you’ve found what you can, begin with another. This is truly the best method to family history research: it’s all about the one!

Here is a link to FamilySearch if you want a place to start: FamilySearch

This Week’s Writing Prompt:

What would you save if you knew you would lose everything you owned? Describe it and tell where it came from.

That's A Wrap!

We've concluded our experiment!

Thank you for participating! We've loved connecting with you!

We want to keep our resources available as long as possible, and will continue to do so while the funds last. Our products and digital downloads will also remain available through the end of the year, these funds will be used to support the website, so be sure to grab them soon. 

EBOOK GIVEAWAY!

Complement your 21day experiment with Your DNA Guide—the Book. It takes you step-by-step through the various ways of using DNA to answer questions about your origins.

 

Make My Where Am I From Meme

Celebrate your heritage by making a pie chart showing where your family is from.  You can use the results of DNA testing or FamilySearch’s Where Am I From activity.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Enter Your Information

You can enter information for up to 8 countries.  If you have less than that, that’s okay too.  Just enter what you have.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Welcome!

Joining us from RootsTech Connect? Press play!

(Be sure to visit our shop and use the 20% off code ROOTSTECH)

Make My Relative Meme

Check our relativefinder.org and see if you’re related to any famous people.  If you join our group (Connections-Experiment) you might some cousins among our other participants.  Grab a picture of you and your relative and you can make a meme to celebrate the relationship.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Choose a background for your meme

Step 2: Tell us about your relative

Step 3: Upload a photo of your relative

Step 3: Upload a photo of yourself

Don’t love your meme?  You can make any changes you want and then click Create Meme again to see your new meme.  Once it’s perfect, you can download and share.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

 

Make My Celebrate An Ancestor Meme

Visit this FamilySearch page to see important dates in the lives our your ancestors.  Make a note of the person’s name, a birthday or anniversary and their relationship to you.  Then make a meme to celebrate the special day.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Choose your template

Step 2: Tell Us About the Ancestor You're Celebrating







Step 3: Upload your photo

Don’t love your meme?  You can make any changes you want and then click Create Meme again to see your new meme.  Once it’s perfect, you can download and share.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Make My Chinese New Year Meme

In honor of the Chinese New Year, find out which animal is associated with the year you were born in.  We’ll create a meme for you with the animal and some characteristics associated with that animal.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Tell us the year you were born

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Make My Heirloom Story Meme

Do you have a cherished heirloom?  You can create a meme to celebrate the item and the story behind it.  You just need a picture and then you can follow our easy steps.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Choose the background for your meme

Step 2: Tell us about your heirloom item




Step 3: Upload your photo

Don’t love your meme?  You can make any changes you want and then click Create Meme again to see your new meme.  Once it’s perfect, you can download and share.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Make My Down Memory Lane Meme

Take a walk down memory lane by creating a meme from a photo of your childhood home.  You could also commemorate other locations that are special to you.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Pick Your Background

Step 2: Upload a photo of the house where you grew up

Step 3: Enter a phrase to describe your house

It can be as simple as, “My Childhood Home” or you can include dates or any other description you would like.

Don’t love your meme?  You can make any changes you want and then click Create Meme again to see your new meme.  Once it’s perfect, you can download and share.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Make My Couples Meme

Create your own shareable graphic to celebrate the milestones in your relationship with your significant other.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Choose your template

Step 2: Tell us a few details about your relationship with your significant other











Step 3: Upload a photo of the two of you

Don’t love your meme?  You can make any changes you want and then click Create Meme again to see your new meme.  Once it’s perfect, you can download and share.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Make My Remember When Meme

Recreate an old photo and then create your own meme to show it off. 

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Pick Your Background

Step 2: Upload your photos and tell us what year they are from






Step 3: Choose a phrase for your meme

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #21dayexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Make My Heirloom Meme

Do you have an item that has special family meaning?  Creating a meme to celebrate it is easy.  Just take a picture and follow these steps.

**Please remember this is a family friendly project and we request that all content produced using this tool be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 1: Tell us about your heirloom item

Step 2: Upload Photo

Don’t love your meme?  You can make any changes you want and then click Create Meme again to see your new meme.  Once it’s perfect, you can download and share.

We’d love to see your creations so please share on social media and tag us using #connectionsexperiment.

**21 Day Family Connections Experiment is not responsible or liable for any content that is produced using this tool.

Choose Your reminder SErvice

Email

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TEXT the message @FCE-Events to the number 81010.  *If you have trouble, try texting @FCE-Events to (224) 324-3285. 

App

Download the Connections Experiment App from the
Google Play store for easy access to daily plan prompts.

 

Join Us

We’re gearing up for our next experiment starting October 1, 2020 for Family History month!

We would love to have you join us! Simply sign up below and we’ll send you a reminder when the initial survey and plans are up! 

We can’t wait to participate in another experiment with you!