About Me

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Lake Mathews (Perris), CA, United States
Born in Illinois, I grew up in Wilmette, a northern suburb of Chicago. I have one sibling, an older brother. I am married, for the 2nd time now, to Butch & got 4 children in the deal. They have gone on to make me grandmother 25 times over & great-grandmother to over 20!. After many years working in industry, I got my bachelors and masters degrees in speech communication, & was a professor in that field for 13 years. I retired in 2001 & returned to school & got my doctorate in folklore. Now I meld my two interests - folklore & genealogy - & add my teaching background, resulting in my current profession: speaker/author/entertainer of genealogically-related topics. I play many folk instruments, but my preference is guitar, which I have been playing since 1963. I write the "Aunty Jeff" column for the Informer, newsletter of the Jefferson County NY Gen. Soc. I work in partnership with Gena Philibert-Ortega & Sara Cochran as Genealogy Journeys® where we focus on educating folks about Social History. More about that: genaandjean.blogspot.com. More on our podcasts: genjourneys.podbean.com. More about my own projects: Circlemending.org.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Making Music with Genealogists

Saturday, 12 June 2010, Marriott Convention Center, SCGS 41st Annual Jamboree:

(Photo by Dick Eastman, lifted shamelessly from his blog . . . Thanks, Dick, for sharing)


(Photo by Miriam Robbins Midkiff, used with permission)


Our ancestors would sing together after a long day of work. Tonight the genealogists who attended the Jamboree in Burbank had a taste of that experience. I took out my guitar and my husband came to join us and we raised voices in song, singing a bunch of old favorites. A small crowd gathered, drifting in and out throughout the hour of serenading, most singing along with "Golden Slippers," "Grandfather's Clock," "Old Dan Tucker," "She'll be Comin' 'Round the Mountain," "Long, Long Ago," "Oh, Susanna," "This Land is Your Land," "500 Miles," and more and more. What a fun time to harmonize with friends and strangers.


(Harmonizing with Thomas MacEntee - photo lifted from Dick Eastman's blog without permission - but hopefully with forgiveness . . . thanks, Dick!)


Music truly does bring folks together!

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6 comments:

  1. Dr. Bill (William L.) SmithJune 12, 2010 at 9:40 PM

    How wonderful! Would love to have been there. Thanks, Miriam, for the photo, as well! How neat!

    May you keep sharing your ancestor stories, written, orally and in song!

    Bill ;-)

    http://drbilltellsancestorstories.blogspot.com/
    Author of "Back to the Homeplace"
    and "13 Ways to Tell Your Ancestor Stories"

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  2. Cyndi Beane HenryJune 13, 2010 at 8:02 AM

    Loved to have been there! How wonderful!!!

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  3. Amy Coffin, MLISJune 13, 2010 at 12:43 PM

    Thank you for the great show!

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  4. Janet IlesJune 15, 2010 at 5:57 AM

    It looks like you were all having a great time. It would have been fun to have been there.

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  5. AnaJune 15, 2010 at 9:58 AM

    Congratulations!!! is very beautifull the music and sing with a good friends, the last 12 june in my house my father and mother and a very nice friend, we play piano, guitar and song a beautifull songs about our folk music, was wonderfull!!!! In this moment i listen the music of your friend Pernell, that is wonderfull and i try to learn de letters for sing and play guitar, I like a song "in the pines" of him.. A hug for you Jean and thanks a lot..Sorry for my english

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  6. Jean HibbenJune 15, 2010 at 10:40 AM

    We had a great time; just a PS - Dick Eastman has since granted full permission for my use of the photos. Thanks, Dick!

    ReplyDelete

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