We are the chosen. In each family there is one who seems called to find the ancestors. To put flesh on their bones and make them live again. To tell the family story and to feel that somehow they know and approve. Doing genealogy is not a cold gathering of facts but, instead, breathing life into all who have gone before. We are the story tellers of the tribe. All tribes have one. We have been called, as it were, by our genes. Those who have gone before cry out to us: Tell our story. So, we do. In finding them, we somehow find ourselves. How many graves have I stood before now and cried? I have lost count. How many times have I told the ancestors, You have a wonderful family; you would be proud of us. How many times have I walked up to a grave and felt somehow there was love there for me? I cannot say. It goes beyond just documenting facts. It goes to who I am, and why I do the things I do.

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What's in a name?

Coming up with a website name for the Taylor family heritage project turned out to be more challenging than I expected. With so many Taylor families across the United States, every idea I brainstormed felt too generic or already claimed by someone else. The breakthrough came when I started digging through old family photos and noticed the boat named GEWAME—a clever blend of the first two letters of my great‑grandfather and his brothers’ names: George, Walter, and Mert. Seeing that name, rooted in something uniquely ours, made the direction clear and gave the project a sense of identity that no generic “Taylor family” title ever could.

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