"My Life Journal"....Diana Lewis her story continues.

In reading some of these letters from Diana's great aunt, grandfather and father you can't help but hear the love and strength in their words. There was a war, WW II, going on at the time and for a new father to be apart from his daughter and wife is difficult. All three, great aunt Mahl, grandfather Robert A Lewis and her father, Robert A Lewis Jr. try their best to explain, daddy's absence and express their support and love. In the pages showcase on this post you will get a chance to see her grow, read some birthday wishes, read a Western Union message from her father and see a photograph of the first home she lived in. I so look forward to hearing your thoughts especially after reading some of these letters. 

HEIGHT AND WEIGHT CHART

                                        Age                     Feet       Inches    Pounds      Ounces

                                  At 1 month                               18             6               9

                                  At 2 months                              19            8               2

                                  At 3 months                              23          10               8

                                  At 4 months                              24          11             12

                                  At 5 months                              24           Weight should double

                                  At 6 months                              25           15              2

                                  At 7 months                              26           17

                                  At 8 months                              27           19              4

                                  At 9 months                              28           20

                                  At 10 months                            28           21              1

                                  At 11 months                            21             8

                                  At 12 months                                           Weight should double 22

                                  At 13 months                                            22             6

                                  At 14 months                                            23

                                  At 15 months                                            23             8

HEIGHT AND WEIGHT CHART

                                    Feet       Inches     Pounds   Ounces

                                 At 2 years                            33 ¾        28

                                 At 9 years              4             3             72

                                 At 10 years            4             6             83 ½

                                 At 11 years            4            11 ½        96           8

 Photographs of pages 18 and 19

‘Cause, darn it,

HE BROUGHT YOU!

Happy Birthday!

X Ronald Edward Anderson

Dear Diana:

One year old – and off

To a wonderful start in

life! Healthy and happy

and handsome – that’s

what they all say about

you. I hope before your

next birthday rolls

around your daddy

and a lot more of your

relations will have

finished up the war

and he’ll be around to

 help you blow out

your birthday candles.

Tell your mother I hope

she has a delightful

vacation and when

you and she come back

I’ll be out to see you.

Happy birthday,

Diana, and a big

kiss to you from your

Great Aunt Mahl

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

There’s a reason

To address you as I do;

SUGAR’s scarce

and so are people

Who can measure

up to YOU!

Diana dearest-

Although you are just one

year old, & though you cannot

read quite yet, I know that

later on in life you’ll say

“my folks try to treat me

Just right.” As I

Write this, I’m at sea aboard a

ship hoping that what little I

am doing in this war effort will

 be justified in that when you

grow up to be twenty or so

you can know that your friends

won’t have to go to war.

I miss you & your mom ever

so much and believe me I’ll

be home real soon and take

 good care of you both.

Sleep tight dear heart and

do as your mom says, and

you’ll always do right.

As always from your Daddy

affectionately

Dad

WESTERN UNION

     LD 163 IK INTL DUP OF TEL TEL

CD SANSORIGINE VIA RCA                                                           1945 JUL 12 PM 1  34

     MISS DIANA LEWIS

     MAIL  10 NOB HILL WAYLAND MASS

     LOVING BIRTHDAY GREETINGS YOU ARE MORE THAN EVER IN MY THOUGHTS

     AT THIS TIME MY THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS ARE EVER WITH YOU

ROBERT A LEWIS

Diana’s first telegram from her Daddy in Ireland.

Miss Diana Lewis-

10 Nob hill – Road

Wayland

Massachusetts

ROBERT ARTHUR LEWIS

July 17, 1945

My dear Diana,

Congratulations to you on

your first birthday from your

grandfather Lewis.

I wish I could see you

today for a little talk, -

about things,- and what may

be going on in the big world

where you live; and it is

a big world with your Daddy

away up in the far North.

But you are not alone with

dear Mother close by, and good

thoughts flowing your way

from many hearts all radiating love and good

wishes to you on your birthday.

The Enclosed is for your bank

account. It will become use-

ful in the years to come-

perhaps when you are ready

for College.

And now good night my

sweet for a few days when

I shall see you down at Cape

Cod – where you grandmother

Lewis is waiting to welcome you

affectionately Grandfather Lewis

Photographs of pages 20 – 23

I know that these pages are blank but I felt as if I should still include them, especially for those who are interested in the style/layout of the book.

Photograph of pages 24 and 25

DESCRIPTION OF FIRST HOME

10 Nob Hill, Wayland

I slept in small front bed

Room. My house consisted of

six rooms,

1 large bedroom, 2 small

bedrooms, both upstairs.

Downstairs – living room

dining room & kitchen

                       and here is the

                        plan of it

                                                 1-wicker wardrobe (white)

                                                 2-rocker

                                                 3-bassinet

                     Coral pink          4-folding crib

                     with                    5-large dresser

                     peasant              6-bookcase & toy rack

                     pastel designs

           Comments Walls were painted pale blue with nursery boarder

                             & blue & pink scatter rugs. White ruffled curtains and dainty flowered over-drapes

                              with pink & blue preponderating. Rocker is covered with same cloths as drapes.

Not all pages in the journal are completed some are blank, with that being said I still feel I should  include them. Tomorrow I will share a dental chart along with some of her school days, newspaper clippings and some more photographs.     

So Excited...."Genealogy Roadshow"

       I'm so excited and thrilled with my experience in the new PBS "Genealogy Roadshow". I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. Genealogist in Tennessee and many other states who conducted the research on so many interesting families and the families themselves can't wait to share the results. It's only days away from airing, September 23rd at 8 PM on PBS, so circle that date on your calendars. I wanted to share this article with you written by one of our local reporters, David Snow, with "The Eagle Post". Thank you Mr. Snow for the interview, kind article and the time you took to write it.

 Local genealogist lands on PBS

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Local genealogist lands on PBS

Professional genealogist Angela Rodesky is one of the featured researchers on the new PBS show “Genealogy Roadshow,” which debuts at 8 p.m. Monday.

Posted: Wednesday, September 18, 2013 12:00 am

By DAVID SNOW, The Eagle Post | 0 comments

Whether people know it or not, everybody has an interesting family history. There is something noteworthy in everyone’s historical background, and the search to discover one’s roots is as exciting as finding the secrets.

Now, imagine a group of people seeking expert help in finding out about their families’ past — something like the TV show “Antinque Roadshow,” where people bring artifacts to be appraised, but instead seeking information about themselves instead of their treasures.

That’s what you will get with “Genealogy Roadshow,” a new TV series that airs on PBS at 8 p.m. Monday. The show will feature Angela Rodesky, a professional genealogist from Clarksville who helps one person find the truth about his family tree.

Rodesky began pursuing genealogy as an hobby nine years ago while she and her husband, Lt. Col. Terry Rodesky of the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) were stationed in Germany. When they returned to the States, she turned that hobby into a profession.

“I was subcontracted through PBS to do the research on a family that happens to live here in Clarksville,” she said. “As far as being ‘on the show,’ I am on the show standing in the background as (the family) is receiving their information.”

The four-episode show is hosted by Josh Taylor, and originated as a reality show in Ireland. It will feature families from Nashville, Detroit, San Francisco and Austin, Texas, seeking their past based on a family story or heirloom.

“I was the ‘boots on the ground,’ so to speak,” Rodesky said. “I did the research for the whole family that will be airing on Sept. 23.”

Rodesky’s research began from tidbits of information provided by the family. The family that she researches thought it may be related to a well-known Tennessean, so the information led Rodesky to death records, birth certificates, newspaper clippings and a trip to a cemetery where the headstones were sinking at the site.

“I had to make sure that wherever I stepped, I didn’t fall into a grave, which was kind of an adventure in itself,” she said.

Rodesky said her research took a month to complete. Along the way, she found murder, questionable legal counsel, drugs, liquor and a letter that confirmed what the family suspected.

“Now, not only does the family have proof, but now, the whole state of Tennessee is finally going to know the truth,” she said.

In becoming a professional genealogist — her business is called ARodesky Genealogy — she finds many aspects of her work interesting.

“Learning about the different journeys that the individuals went on, how tough or easy it was for them, solving those mysteries that families always want to find out,” she said. “It seems that some of the clients I have come to me and say, ‘Oh, I know I’m related to royalty” or Jesse James. Everyone seems to want to be related to Jesse James.

“The path that you take in finding out what their life was like, and then you get to take what it is that you find and you give it to the client and you see the expression on their faces and they say, ‘That makes so much sense now why I like this or why my daughter looks like that.’ History does repeat itself. There are many aspects about it that I love doing.”

Rodesky said a lot of her clients are intimidated by what she may find in her search through their family history.

“What you find is part of the history and the past,” she said. “You might not agree with what you find that your ancestors have done, but that doesn’t make it wrong for you to want to learn about it. It’s just interesting to know where you came from and the trials and tribulations that they went through to get to where they were at and to make you who you are today.”

To contact Rodesky for genealogical research, call her at 913-702-6489 or e-mail arodesky@gmail.com.

David Snow is the editor of The Eagle Post. Reach David at 270-887-3295 or dsnow@theeaglepost.us.

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