Genealogy is Good for Your Health

Posted on by Sylvia Wong Lewis
Smith family gathering in Brooklyn.

At a recent family gathering a cousin criticized my genealogy passion: “Why are you looking back? You should be looking forward,” she said.  As a genealogist, I gasped. But it took only a moment to re-group. Here was a teachable moment! Timing must be right in order for learning to happen. A simple conversation began. The dialogue that we had became the best way to explain how genealogy ie. family history could be good for your health–mind, body and soul!

Did you know that the more you know about health conditions and traits that run in your family, the healthier you can be? Genealogy is also good for your emotional, spiritual and psychological health! But, more on that in future postings.

Start talking: The best way to start your genealogy health journey is to start talking with the living. Today, even if you are adopted, you can find your family history by taking a DNA genealogy test to find relatives. At the reunion, we started by talking about family traits and cultural traditions passed down. One of the traits we discussed was left-handedness. Our mother was born left-handed. But because of her family’s cultural taboos, she was forced to become right-handed. And, three of her four children were born left-handed!  We also talked about other traits like hair texture, body types and ethnic mixtures found on both sides of our family.  All of these topics, especially ethnicity and cultural backgrounds are relevant to your health and should be discussed by your health care provider.

Ten Questions to Ask at Family Reunion:

  1. What traits run in our family? eg. dimples, twins, eyes or hair color, freckles, attached earlobes, toe lengths, artistic, musical, mechanical, athletic abilities.
  2. What health problems run in our family?
  3. How old were family members when diagnosed with an illness?
  4. What conditions caused death in our family? Who was the oldest in our family?
  5. Any pregnancy losses?
  6. Any birth defects, mental illness, or developmental disabilities?
  7. What is the ethnic make-up of our family?
  8. Where does our family come from? (country, regions)
  9. Lifestyle queries: smoking; where did family members work, list occupations; did they work on a farm, factory, outdoors; obesity or extremely thin; drug, alcoholism problems?
  10. Any allergies to foods or medication?

Tool Kit for Family Health History:

Here’s a link to a tool kit with important facts, ideas and activities to help you document your family history, published by Utah Department of Health: https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/fhh-web/familyHistory/start.action

Genealogy Resources: The following records can help you learn what your living relatives may not know about your family history:

  1. Death certificates-includes cause and date of death of an ancestor; may include diseases, conditions of concern during a specific historic era.
  2. Funeral Home Records – funeral programs, files might name relatives assisting and providing family information.
  3. Obituaries – checking old newspapers can net amazing details especially if there was an accident or a crime.
  4. US Census– check for age of parents, children born to older parents, large gaps between births; many relatives living together; certain occupations can impact health, like coal miners.
  5. Religious Records – and church bulletins also include clues about a specific community and the person’s health condition.

Oldest in the Family

Posted on by Sylvia Wong Lewis
My paternal great-great-great-grandmother, Tempe Burton, on porch w/ two mulatto daughters sitting w/Col. W.R. Stuart & wife, Lizzy. Tempe lived to 104 years old!

Who’s the oldest in your family? My husband and I met a group of baby boomers aboard a Natchez steamboat on the Mississippi River during our recent anniversary trip to Louisiana. It was obvious that they were on a family reunion trip. They all wore “Robinson Family” T-shirts. Our conversation naturally turned to –“Who was the oldest in their family/” and ‘How many generations could they trace?”

The feistiest lady in this African-American group said that she was the oldest on this trip at 78. She said that she could trace back to three generations. She also said that their oldest family member, great-Aunt Mamie Robinson, is 100 and lives in Georgia!

The friendly lady shared anecdotes about family as the others chimed in with affirmatives: “Old Auntie works in her garden everyday, cans all of her home-grown summer vegetables, and chops wood. She is what we call a ‘busy body.’ Folks drop in on her all day long. She especially likes the latest gossip. She tells funny stories too.  But Auntie always talks about hard work, whether folks had good manners and was ‘raised right’. ”

The lady explained that their family is spread out all over the globe now and that they had reunions in a variety of cities. “We’re the ‘old-school’ cousins. We have a tradition of coming to New Orleans for vacation since we were kids. So, here we are!” she said.

“Why do old people matter today?” I asked.  “Wisdom!” said the only man in the group. “Old people teach the young people their family history. Maybe they would have better sense if they knew what the earlier generations went through to survive!” said another spry boomer.

I believe that the oldest person in my family was Tempe Burton, a former slave. My genealogy buddy/cousin, Snow Fox Lawrence, shared an old newspaper clipping about our paternal great-great-great grandmother who lived to 104 in Ocean Springs, Miss!

Here is an obituary of my great-great grandmother Tempe Burton in a March 1925 Ocean Springs, Mississippi newspaper:

“Aunt Tempe Burton, the oldest person in Jackson County, died Sunday at the home of her son Alf Stewart. The funeral was held Monday afternoon and was largely attended by both white and colored friends. Tempe was said to be 104 years of age. She was an ex-slave and had made her home with the late Mrs. W.R Stuart for seventy years. When Mrs. Stuart was married, Aunt Tempe was given to her as a wedding gift and was Mrs. Stuart’s maid. When slavery was abolished she refused to leave her mistress and remained with her until the end. Mrs. Stuart died about two months ago.”

Who is the oldest person in your family? Where do/did they live?

I posed this question to new friends at a Blogging While Brown conference. Check out their amazing entries:

Miz Kp -“The oldest person in my family is my grand aunt. She was born in 1919. She is 94 and lives in Chesapeake, VA.”

April J. Cheatam Sands – “My great-grandmother lived to be 98 and died in 2006 in Wilmington, NC (born in 1907).”

Gina McCauley-  “I had a paternal great-grandmother that lived to 99. I have a cousin in Houston, TX that is 100+ year’s old. They do a story about her in the local news every year. My maternal grandmother lived until she was 93!”

Kahlil O. Haywood – “My grandmother is the oldest in my family. She’s 95.  She’s still alive. She’s from Panama, lives in Brooklyn.”

Lashuntrice Thestoryteller Bradley – “My great-grandmother is 86 and lives in Florida, born in Georgia.”

Alysia Christiani – “My paternal grandmother lived to 100. She was from Guyana, South America but died in Brooklyn, New York.”

Erica Kierulf – “My grandmother was born in Blue Fields, Nicaragua. Lived to 105. She resided in Chicago, IL.”

Deborah Smikle-Davis – “My wonderfully creative and inspiring paternal grandmother, Lillie Mae, lived to be 95. She resided in Lumberton, NC.”

Eva Greene Wilson – “Great-grandmother in Tobago lived to 104. I think she’d have lived longer if she hadn’t lost her sight and mobility. Being able to get up and down the hill to be “in people’s business” was what really kept her going.”

Who’s the oldest in your family? Do tell!

Headstart recovery

Posted on by Sylvia Wong Lewis

Headstart in Rockaway recovery report. After eight months of displacement caused by Hurricane Sandy, Rockaway Head Start kids are back in school. “We are happy to be back home. We still have many needs but we are moving forward,” said Cynthia Cummings, Executive Director at Rockaway’s Community and Family Head Start. First Day Back: On their first day back, the children attended a trip to the zoo and returned to their newly refurbished classrooms the following day. Their eyes were full of excitement as they reunited with their teachers and explored their new surroundings made possible by Robin Hood and New Yorkers for Children grants. The rooftop playground has been refurbished with new equipment.

Check my full article “Rockaway Head Start Children” posted on examiner.com: www.examiner.com/ny-in-new-york/sylvia-lewis.

Photo highlights:

Rockaway Head Start children play on repaired roof playground after Hurricane Sandy.
Rockaway Head Start pre-schooler plays on repaired playground.

 

Rockaway Head Start uses therapy teddy bears to help children recover from Hurricane Sandy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soul Jaazz Send-off

Posted on by Sylvia Wong Lewis
Ty Stephens at Metropolitan Room, July, 2013

Soul Jaazz and Ty Stephens gathered their musical tribe together recently in a rocking musical send-off as they geared for gigs in Monte Carlo for the summer of 2013.

“It was the last date before their annual send-off to Monte Carlo for the summer. Ty Stephens & SoulJaazz (www.tystephensmusic.com) electrified the Metropolitan Room, Monday, July 1, with a program aptly named: “A Taste of Broadway Re-Vamped the Elegantly Funky Way.” Beside his artistry, a key ingredient to Ty’s magic is his acclaimed SoulJaazz band. Their synergy and tight grooves could only happen after years of having played and traveled together throughout Europe, Japan, Russia and other places.”

“A special soul jaazz shout-out goes to Richard Cummings, (www.imaramusic.com), my homeboy and husband of my dear childhood friend Cynthia. Richard is musical director, arranger, pianist/keyboardist, wizard and poet. Big applause and encores to the entire band: Tony Lewis, drums; Robert “RT” Taylor, guitar; Ron “Rondew” Monroe, bass; Richard Cummings, piano; and Ty Stephens, vocalist.”

To see video and read more from my post published in examiner.com click here.

Like a family reunion, family and friends gathered on a hot New York City evening to party and groove all night long.

Background on Ty Stephens from his website: Born and raised in Philadelphia, TY STEPHENS, started his journey in the entertainment business majoring in Fine Art and performing in school productions at Overbrook High School (the same school as famed alum Will Smith, but years earlier), and, studying theatre and dance with the Philadelphia Youth Theatre at Society Hill Playhouse. He went on to Temple University’s Tyler School of Art, only to quit in his sophmore year to pursue dance full time, dancing with John Hines’ Dance
Theatre of Philadelphia until his move to New York City to join the Rod Rodgers Dance Co., and study at the Alvin Ailey
School, sharpening his skills as a dancer.

After 2 years on the concert dance scene, he began to audition for and perform in musical theatre, with touring shows like “SATIN SWEET” and “THE WIZ”, before landing his 2 Broadway shows: the original casts of “SOPHISTICATED LADIES” (with Gregory Hines, Phyllis Hyman and Judith Jamison) and “MARILYN, AN AMERICAN FABLE” (with Scott Bakula and Allison Reed). While on Broadway, Ty began performing in local piano bars and night clubs, finally focusing on his voice and, subsequently, his songwriting.

“It was a difficult transition for me to make in the theatre world . I had to eliminate or minimize my dance background in order to be taken seriously as a vocalist and songwriter. So, I spent a lot of time away from the Broadway scene as part of that“re-invention”. I continued to write and sing in clubs, and you could find my voice on so many demos, it wasn’t funny! I had no formal voice training, but my natural talents carried me far. I had really studied the recordings I listened to, and it showed when I went up to sing. I learned from Donny Hathaway; Stevie Wonder; Roberta Flack; Al Jarreau; Jeffrey Osborne; Chaka Khan; James Taylor; Joni Mitchell, and Nat “King” Cole, to name a few.”

Here are a few photo highlights from NYC’s Metropolitan Room, an internationally acclaimed jazz cabaret.

Soul Jaazz Tony Lewis, drummer w Ty Stephens’ SoulJaazz at MetropolitanRoom.

 

Ty Stephens, Richard Cummings on piano & SoulJaazz @ Metropolitan Room.
Abanda & Jamie deRoy w/Ty Stephens @Metropolitan Room.

 

 

 

Blogging While Brown Wrap, #BWBNYC

Posted on by Sylvia Wong Lewis

 “Why are you not rich?” was a question posed at the opening session of the #BWBNYC, Blogging While Brown’s two-day conference held inside the American Negro Theater and Langston Hughes Auditorium, June 21-22 at Harlem’s Schomburg Center. Clearly, this year’s theme was about business.

#BWBNYC, lunch break at Schomburg, Blogging While Brown conference

With that opening remark, presenter Lamar Tyler (Tyler New Media & BlackAndMarriedWithKids.com) paraphrased an encounter between John Johnson, Ebony and Jet Magazines founder and Dennis Kimbro, Wealth Choice author. Recounting that story was a reminder to us about our wealth potential and lessons learned from our elders. As a genealogy blogger, Tyler’s anecdote resonated with me.  I know that our ancestors left footprints for us to follow. It is up to us to do the work and digging to find the gold.

This was my second time around at #BWB. My first #BWB conference was last year’s event in Phillie! That conference really got me motivated!

I arrived at this year’s #BWBNYC conference with new questions. Like many, I started a blog on my business website. Then, my business changed. I began production on a documentary and it won some awards. Should I re-brand?  Start a new blog? Separate my blog from my business website? What about ads? These were some of my burning questions.

I am happy to report that I left #BWBNYC with more clarity, newer questions and a better game plan. So, for me, this was the best blogging conference that I ever attended. I loved the intimacy and affinity that we all shared. I was glad to see more Boomers and a few more guys this year too.

Arsha Jones, BrandBuildSell presents at #BWBNYC @ Harlem’s Schomburg.

With “Stop Thinking Like a Blogger and Think like a Business!” Tyler outlined several principles that we could take to the bank: “Do What’s Required, Self-Development, Be the Brand, The Gatekeepers are Gone, Focus on Who’s Important—not brands—the Audience, The Power of 1000.” Tyler’s overall message was: You must do this! You can do this!

There was a screening of TV Land’s The Soul Man. Key company executives were panelists: Kristin Roll, General Manager, TV Land Digital; Jennifer Zaldivar-Clark, VP of TV Land Communications; and Sue Funke, Manager, Audience Development. They made a big pitch for attendees to consider strategic partnerships with them. My takeaway? They affirmed a commitment to diversity; re-emphasized the importance of the multi-billion dollar multicultural marketplace; and expressed a serious interest to work with us!

Nicole Moore’s, The Hotness.com and Jodie Patterson’s, GeorgiaNY.com were very aspirational for me. As a relatively new blogger, I admired their polish and passion for individual style and culture.  They both exuded pure joy for their missions.  Each emphasized personal authenticity and illustrated how one’s online energy can create offline synergy and financial opportunities.

Mobilizing your blog by Brothatech, Terrance Gaines & TheDigitalQuarterback, Cavanaghn Noel.

I also loved the mini-breakout sessions on Saturday. Some were 30-minute bite-sized pieces of wisdom and knowledge. I especially liked Arsha Jones,’ BrandBuildSell, “10 Easy Steps to Hack-proof Your WordPress Installation and Backup Your Site.” Arsha was able to de-mystify back-office details that my “techie” friends take for granted. Thank you Arsha!

I was also pleased to see issues addressed in the session called Blogging for Your Organizational Voice featuring NAACP’s Jessica Neal and Nicole Kenney and Shamar Bibbins, Green For All, as moderated by Teresa Holmes, UniWorld Group.

This panel showed how and why #BWB is powerful and meaningful—especially for bringing attention to issues and controlling the conversation about us. Last year, BWB covered Anti-Hazing, Bullying at HBUs (specifically FAMU) and Health/AIDS. I still remember those sessions. This year, we heard about the need for our blogging community to post about the economics, housing and environmental crisis in our communities. As a longtime journalist, after this session, I thought to myself: “Hey, BWB can be the new NABJ!”

Shamar Bibbins, Green for All, presents @Blogging for Your Organizational Voice.

Finally, I would tell my friends that you don’t have to be “Brown” to enjoy Blogging While Brown, #BWB conference. The presenters were the best of the best and all kinds of people were there. All the sessions were great, useful, inspiring, fun and aimed at making us happy and successful. Gina McCauley, conference founder, and her team have earned another gold star for their stellar #BWBNYC conference. Thank you, #BYBNYC!

#BWBNYC, on crowdfunding:Evita Robinson, Nomadness TV; Kimberly Bryant, BlackGirlsCode, Janel Martinez, BlackEnterprise.com
Podcasting: Scott Hanselman, Luvvie Ajayi, of ‘ratchet and the geek.’