Find A Grave (Written and never posted - 7/16/10)

Find A Grave (Written and never posted - 7/16/10)

 

I have wanted to volunteer for a long time and finally did. I did this because I was requesting headstones from Tennessee and thought I should "give back", finally. I have often posted on various boards that I would be willing to trod out to snap photos for people. It is an easier way to help out the headstone seekers without daring my sacroiliac joint to inflame with anger. Small hunting projects. So eagerly I have been waiting for my own results, excitingly checking my email daily to find no notice of any head stones there but within a hour of clicking the volunteer button, I had three requests and from the two cemetery's that I am sandwiched between. Seriously, I have a cemetery one road to the north and one road to the south from me. Within walking distance, how cool is that! This morning I fulfilled two of the requests and when the page said the requester would be notified I saw a link for her other requests and popped that open for a peek and wow, she has about 30 requests that have been sitting there for months not claimed by a volunteer! Two I can do for her as they are local to me. And it not one place; Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York (too far for me to travel), Delaware, Vermont and Maryland. Now I am wondering if anyone will pick up my requests for my scattered places in Tennessee (wait until I start on NC and Virginia)! And ugh, I just looked, none of them are claimed!

 

I will have to poke around and see if there is a way I can figure out if there are long standing unclaimed requests for my area for other people. (Never mind, figured it out!)

 

(Update - 9/3/10 and Pennsic in between!) Since then a couple of wonderful people have uploaded pictures of graves from my requested photo's list. And I have visited quite a few cemeteries in my area hunting down that elusive stone for people far away. Also, while I am there for the requested photo, I take pictures of the family members around them and upload them too in case they are useful, since I am there, I am happy to do it. While a few have not turned out to be their people, the stones are there for the next seekers and I feel it is such a worthwhile investment of my time and a way to give back and pay it forward. Genealogists, in my experience, are the nicest kind of people. I have printed a few requests to go find this weekend!

 

Some of the bounty (I asked for 8 stones and have 6 so far, and that was only Tennessee, I have a couple more states!)

 

 David Washing Duncan and Carrie Ann Baldwin Duncan

 

 William Franklin Duncan

 

(some great stuff about Deborah Louise Cowden Baldwin and her husband 

Hugh Wilson Baldwin in the next post!!!!!!)