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I love the work of HLG. It actually inspired me to become the family tree archivist. It’s challenging, frustrating, but rewarding.

By the time I was born, both my maternal and paternal grandparents were dead. So all I had were stories. But when researching my grandfather a couple weeks ago, I found his draft registration card online. It noted that he was “light toned” w/a severe stutter, and worked/lived in a work camp for Woodward Iron in Alabama. While it may not seem like a big deal to anyone else, I kinda felt...I dunno...closer. Imagining what it would be like to talk to him, what he looked like, his mannerisms. Personality and physical traits that were once a mystery to me, were answered by a simple WWII card.

I showed it to my 16 year old son. While he obviously knew Blacks were called “negro”, it wasn’t personal to him, it was it was a historical abstract. His reaction to seeing it surprised me tbh, he couldn’t stop staring at it. For my son, that one card personalized the racist struggle our ancestors endured.