Follow-up on my Great-Grandmother, Joana Fortes Lima Gomes

I previously wrote about how I was a bit uncertain on when my great grandmother, Joana, was born. On some documentation, she is listed as having been born in the 1886. Her obituary reads that she was 75 years old when she died in 1961. But her headstone says that she was born in 1876! In doing more research, I actually saw paperwork that shows 1886 crossed out and someone writing in 1876. This paperwork was corrected by her son, Daniel.

So this means that she was the child and not the grandchild of Luis Antonio de Lima and Camilla Fortes Ramos Lima. This also means that her name was originally Querina and that she was born in Rabil, Boa Vista on March 25, 1876. She was one of five children,including, Palmira, Manoel, Maria, and Antonio. Their father, Luis, died in 1882, at the age of 56. There are no further records for Camilla after this time.

Boa Vista was devestated between 1883-1886 and between 1896-1898, when crops failed there. It was around this time that Joanna was sent to Brava to live with relatives who at the time were being sustained by money and goods being sent from America. She had an uncle, Francisco Lima, living in Brava at the time. It is probably the case that she was brought there as an orphan because of the droughts.

According to Richard Lobban in the Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Cape Verde, there was a total of 58 years of famine and over 250,000 deaths between 1747 and 1970. Learning more about my great-grandmother, Joana, has made me realize that we, her descendants, are so lucky to be alive today.

Cape Verdeans and America's Independance Day; Just as American as Apple Pie.

Independence Day is here and most Americans reflect on the birth of this great nation with backyard barbecues and fireworks. As an American of Cape Verdean ancestry I think it's important to point out what most of knew about but maybe didn't know the details. Cape Verdeans have been a part of the United States of America since its inception and we truly represent the American Experience just as much as the descendants of the Mayflower pilgrims or any other group that played a part in the making of this country.

The late Ray Almeida wrote in CHRONOLOGICAL REFERENCES: CABO VERDE/CAPE VERDEAN AMERICAN;
In "1634 Mathias DeSouza described as a mulatto and an indentured servant to Jesuit priests was among a group of six African passengers to land at the colony of St. Mary's, Maryland aboard the Ship Arc. After working off his indenture, DeSouza was a translator for the colonists in their dealings with local Native peoples. Later DeSouza piloted his own ship. In 1642, DeSouza was elected to serve in the Maryland General Assembly. There is sufficient reason to assume that he may have been a Cape Verdean. (Maryland Hall of Records)."

Documented Cape Verdean military soldiers in the Revolutionary war for Independence from England were collected by Jose dos Anjos in his research of Cape Verdean military soldiers ( https://sites.google.com/site/capeverdeanveterans/Home/Cape-Verdean-Veterans)

James Pease (Jaime Pires)
Anthony Briffin (Antonio Britto)
Andrew deBarrow (Andre de Barros)
John Gomes
John Lopes
I added what may have been their original names in Cape Verde.

He also includes an extensive list of Cape Verdeans who served in the Navy and Army in the Civil War

NAVY

Name Age Complection Occupation Home
Antoine, Joseph 21 Negro Mariner Cape Verde
Antone, George 31 Mulatto None Cape Verde
Antone, Manuel 19 Black Mariner Cape Verde
Antone, Manuel 27 Mulatto None Cape Verde
Pedro Antone 30 Negro None Cape Verde
Antonio, George 32 Mulatto Sailor Cape St. Vincent, Cape Verde
Antonio, George 34 Mulatto Mariner St. Vincent, Cape Verde
Antonio, Joseph 22 Mulatto Steward Cape Verde
Antonio, Sylva 34 Negro Mariner/Carpenter Cape Verde
Antonio, Vincent 43 Negro Mariner Cape Verde
Bettis, Anton 31 Negro None Cape Verde
Bin, Philip 32 Black Sailor/Carpenter Cape Verde
Bisley, Henry M. 28 Mulatto Cook & Steward Bon Vista, Cape Verde
Cori, John 26 Mulatto Mariner Cape Verde
Correia, Joseph 25 Mulatto Mariner Cape Verde
DeBaron, Manuel A. 21 Mulatto Mariner Cape Verde
DeCruz, Antonio 33 Negro None Buena Vista, Cape Verde
Dees, Clement 27 Mulatto Mariner San Antonio, Cape Verde
Ford, Peter 27 Negro None Cape Verde
Francis, Antonio 24 Negro Sailor Cape Verde
Gomes, Ambroze 23 Mulatto None Cape Verde
Gomez, John 25 Black Mariner Porta Praya, Cape Verde
Gomez, Manuel 22 Black Seaman Bravo, Cape Verde
Goney, George 23 Negro Sailor/Farmer Port Praya, Cape Verde
Gonzales, Manuel 24 Mulatto None Cape Verde
John, Manuel 28 Mulatto Carpenter/Cooper Cape Verde
Johnson, John 21 Mulatto Steward Cape Verde
Johnson, John 21 Mulatto Steward Cape Verde
Jokim, John 36 Negro Sailor Porto Praya, Cape Verde
Jose, Antonio M. 23 Black
Cape Verde
Lear, Thomas 38 Mulatto Boat steerer Cape Verde
Lewis, Joseph 35 Mulatto None Cape Verde
Lewis, Manuel 30 Black
Bravo, Cape Verde
Lopes, Frank 45 Black Mariner Brava, Cape Verde
Lopes, Robert 27 Black Sailor Cape Verde
Lopes, Roberto 22 Negro None Cape Verde
Lopez, Antonio 21 Mulatto None Cape Verde
Lopez, Antonio 39 Black Seaman Cape Verde
Lopez, Emanuel 25 Black Mariner Cape Verde
Lupps, John 20 Mulatto Cook Cape Verde
Manuel, Antonio 28 Negro Mariner Cape Verde
Marshall, George 25 Mulatto Mariner Cape Verde
Meany, Joseph 25 Negro
Cape Verde
Murphy, James 28 Negro Mariner Cape Verde
Norshus, George 24 Mulatto None Cape Verde
Prez, Manuel A. 43 Mulatto
Cape Verde
Richardson, Charles 21 Mulatto Cook Cape Verde
Robero, Antone 32 Negro None Bravo, Cape Verde
Rosa, Julian 25 Negro None Cape Verde
Sanford, Antonio 19 Negro Sailor Cape Verde
Seeley, John D. 24 Black Cook/Mariner Cape Verde
Silva, Antonio 20
Mariner Cape Verde
Silva, Antonio 22 Colored Seaman Cape Verde
Silver, Joseph S. 20 Negro Mariner Cape Verde
Smith, John 22 Black Sailor Cape Verde
Varas, Christian F. 22 Black Mariner Cape Verde
Williams, John 27 Mulatto Sailor Cape Verde
Williams, Steven 24 Black Mariner Cape Verde

ARMY

John Antom Togo, Cape Delaware Verde 12 Oct 1864 Portland 11th
U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery abt 1838 11

John Battis Cape De Verde Is 1863 Boston, Massachusetts 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (Colored)    

George Gansery Cape De Verde Islands 1864 New York, New York 31st United States Colored Infantry    

Joaquin, Jacob Perura Cape De Verde Isles 1864 Jamaica, New York 26th United States Colored Infantry    

James Smith Fogo, Cape Delaware Verde 12 Oct 1864 Portland 11th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery abt 1842 8

James Smith Toga, Cape De Verde 1864 Portland 24th United States Colored Infantry    

I would like to include Peter Fernandes born in 1837 who enlisted in the Civil War in 1864 and discharged on 9/29/1865 at the end of the war and Antonion Oliveira born in 1827 who was a sergeant in the Army and discharged 10/31/1865 , also after the war ended.

When Cape Verdeans arrived on American shores we didn't just work and go home. We were an integral participant in the founding of the country, it's fight for independance and the building of it's core infrastructures.

Cape Verdeans have been involved in every American war since the beginning; fighting for its independance, it's struggle to remain a unified nation and for the abolition of slavery. We have fought with her against fascists and saved millions from death camps all over Europe. We were there in Korea and Vietnam and every other time Americans have been called to serve this country, including Iraq and Afghanistan.

So on Independance Day, which happens to be the day before Cape Verde's day of Independance, let's remember Nos Caboverdianos that have helped make this and Cape Verde the great nations that they are today.

Happy American and Cape Verdean Independance day!!!

The Gomes Family of Pleasant Lake, Harwich and Onset, MA

I became very interested in the Gomes Family of Harwich and Onset, MA while researching my Great Grandmother's life in Onset after she immigrated to the US in 1916. Joana Fortes Lima arrived in New Bedford, MA in 1916 and was able to save and send for one of her sons, Daniel Fortes Lima, in 1918. Daniel was 5 years old when he traveled with his father, Marcelino Teofilo Rodrigues, on the trans-Atlantic trip that would reunite him with a mother he barely remembered.

Joana lived on Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford with her god-mother, Domigas Fernandes, and her husband, Julio. How she made a living is a bit unclear but it would have probably have been in one of the many textile mills in New Bedford. She may have even supplemented her income with seasonal work on the Cape picking cranberries as many Cape Verdeans living in New Bedford at the time did. This assumption is made even more plausible when she met and married Manuel B. Gomes on December 18, 1920. A widower, Manuel lived in the Pleasant Lake area of Harwich and then in Onset, MA at the time.

The 1930 census of Onset, Ma shows Manuel and Joana living with his sons John, James, and daughter, Virginia from his first marriage and twins, Edward and Benvinda, who were 8 years old at the time.

Manuel arrived in the US in 1894 from Fogo, Cape Verde, with four brothers, John (Joao), George (Jorge), Peter (Pedro) and Joseph (Jose). He also had a sister, Amelia (Gomes) Viera, also living in Pleasant Lake, and a sister, Louisa, in Fogo, Cape Verde. His parents were Guillermo (William) Gomes and Maria Monteiro. Guillermo may have also lived in Harwich and died in 1935. Manuel's brother John, owned a local store in Harwich but was, tragically, killed possibly by the former husband of his wife in 1913.

George, born in 1889, was married to Mary Pena (1891) on April 10, 1909. Peter (1891) was married to Eugenia Gomes Santos on January 16, 1913 and then to Caroline Viera on November 6, 1915. Joseph was married to Mary, date unknown. Joseph and Mary lived in Onset, next door to Manuel and Joana, with their children, including Joseph B. Gomes, who died in the battle of Iwo Jima, I believe, while saving the life of a fellow soldier. There is a bridge located on Charge Pond Rd, Wareham, dedicated in his name.

Manuel married Philomena Pena Dias on August 10, 1895, who was born in Fogo, Cape Verde. She arrived in the US with her sister, Mathilde, to meet their parents in Harwich. Her parents, Joaquim Dias and Julia Pena Dias arrived in the US sometime prior and worked in the cranberry bgs there. Manoel and Philomena, known as Fannie, had a daughter, Mary Gomes Sequira (1897-1930), Albert (1899-1900), James (1901-1901), Benjamin (1902-1971), Julio (1905-?), Amos (1907-1957), John (1910-1977), James (1913-1991), Virginia (1915-1991) and Raymond, known as Boboy (1919-1991). Fannie died on September 13, 1919. Raymond lived with grandmother, Julia, at age 80, as an infant after his mother died. His oldest sister, Mary, was shown to have cared for Benjamin and Raymond after their mother's death. Her sense of family and caring for them ran deep; all the sibling burial plots had been purchased by Mary shortly after the death of her husband, Joaquim Siquera, in 1819. Grandmother, Julia, died in 1930. Twins, Edward and Benvinda, were born December 14, 1921.

The Gomes family lived on Bertino street in Onset. By 1940, Julio was living in Boston and Virginia was married and living in New Bedford. Benvinda, called Gala, was living with her parents and married to George Miranda (1915-1992), son of Francisco (Frank) Miranda and Justina J. Miranda. George had three sister, Mary, Margaret and Annie, and a brother, Amos.

Manuel died in 1942. His obituary listed a daughter, Irene, in addition to the ones listed above. He was buried at St Patrick's cemetary where Joana was also buried along side him in 1961.

My Uncle Boboy, Great-uncle, Daniel Fortes Lima, and my grandfather, Raimundo Fortes Lima in December, 1961

My grandfather, Raimundo, with his niece, Dorothy, and his brother, Daniel

When my grandfather, Raimundo, finally arrived in the US in 1959, meeting his mother, Joana and brother, Daniel, (also known as Mochu) for the first time, he lived in the house on Bertino St. My uncles, Boboy and Reinaldo, and my aunt, Stella, lived for a time on the Cape before Raimundo moved the family to Brockton for work. Since then our families have grown apart through years and distance but has never forgotten one another.

I have such great memories of Ti Gala and George. Much of my summers were spent taking rides with my family to the Cape, going to Ti Gala's house which was across the way from a field that my grandmother and other family members tended and harvested all types of vegetables. We would walk over to Ti Doris' house, a cute blue cottage built by her husband, my great-uncle, Daniel, to have lunch, sitting in her front yard on her white garden furniture in the shade of a large tree. I will always remember her cat-shaped glasses and her white dog that I'm sure spoke English. If you said "hi" to him it really did sound like you got a "hi" right back! Nho Frank would come running from his house whenever he caught a glimpse of my great-grandmother - I think he had a crush on her and she never gave him the time of day.... I think, lol!

My daughter with Ti Gala at the Cape Verdean festival on Onset Beach in 1994

It's my hope that we will be able to gather the family at an annual family reunion at Onset Beach. So if you're a Gomes, Lima, Miranda and Baptiste (or related to one) from Harwich, Wareham and Onset, expect an invite for next summers reunion!

"Learning through life, learning through books, and learning through other people's experiences. Learning always!"

I'm guessing that ignorance is something that Amilcar Cabral would have probably not been in favor of. Cabral, father of Cape Verdean independence, not only fought a war of guns but, more importantly, of the mind. He felt it important enough to assure that Cape Verdean records were preserved for later generations to understand not just the struggle for independance but, in essence, the core of what it was to be Cape Verdean. Rather than having our history written for us, preserving the actual records allows those of us of Cape Verdean ancestry to understand our history and self identify as Caboverdeanos.

I don't think it was right for the Portuguese government to dictate our identity based on political manipulations and untruths in an effort to squash independent thinking and I certainly don't think that it's for anyone to try to do the same thing now.

I began this journey to trace my personal family tree and genealogy and along the way learned a great deal about Cape Verde's history as a colony and as an independent nation. These are just some of the truths I have learned more about through fact based research;

1. Cape Verde was "discovered" by Italian sailors under the Portuguese Flag. There is literature that state that there were Wolof as Fula peoples present in Santiago but not other islands. The Portuguese also found the Gaunches (Aboriginal Berbers) on the Canary islands and wiped them out as an ethnic group, killing them or selling them off into the Atlantic Slave Trade to the Americas.

2. It's initial European population was made up of a significant number of "conversos" or converted Jews during the Inquisitions.

3. Slaves were brought to the islands to work its plantations as well as by way of Cape Verde being a seasoning point through which Africans were captured, baptized and given Christian names and then sold off to be traded in the Caribean, Central and South America, including Brazil.

4. Africans that were kept in Cape verde were used for particular skills the had, ie weaving,etc.

5. The Portuguese and other European settlers rarely traveled with women and such had relations, forced and otherwise, with African women, even marrying them. There are plenty of letters written to the King complaining of these relationships taking place and in response the Portuguese began exhaling more Portuguese women to offset this phenomenon.

6. Within the first century of its existence, Cape Verde recorded a large number of "mulatto" or mixed peoples.

7. On the island of Santiago, that had the largest number of African slaves that far outnumbered the Europeans, there were uprisings and many of them fled to areas outside the major settlements. This group of people remained mostly ethno-genetically pure African. They were called 'badius (vagabonds in Portuguese).

8. The other islands contupinued to have growing numbers of mixed peoples, with some areas having larger European descendants or new immigrants from places like Madeira and the Azores; some as voluntary immigrants but most were criminal, political and religious exiles. I have found and studied records of their sentences of time spent in Cape Verde for various crimes committed. Many never went back to Portugal.

9. The Africans who made up much of the slave population were Wolof, Fula, Mandike, and Yoruba to name just a few. Many were previously captured by other African kingdoms and used to trade with the Europeans for guns to use in other wars and battles.

10. Kriolu, as a language, is the culmination of various linguistic influences. A creole language by definition, is a culmination of two or more languages that emerges (by the off spring) with a it's own distinct linguistic features, using the vocabulary and phonology (sound system) of those languages. Birkerton (University of Hawaii) states that the linguistic features of creole languages mirror the innate language sense that we're all born with. So, Capeverdean kriolo could not have existed if it wasn't for the mixing in the islands.

11. Lancados, people of mixed portuguese and african ancestry and usually son's of european slave owners, were used capture Africans in the mainland or to, at times,negotiate in the trade of Africans with other African leaders.

12. In 1849, a commission was created in Boa Vista whose mission was the abolishment of slavery in Cape Verde. I have copies of the original documents.

13. Cape Verde had as many as 3000 slaves traded per year in the early 1600's. The English signed their treaty abolishing the English slave trade while the Portuguese half-heatedly signed theirs in 1810. By 1851, it was illegal to transport slaves to Santo Antaõ and Sao Nicolão but I have passport records of people who traveled with their "escravos", slaves well into the 1860's and 1870's. Slavery was officially abolished in 1878 in Cape Verde and the term "criada" or caretaker was used to classify servants who lived and worked for families (presumably with no pay).

14. AND because of a half Guinean and half Cape Verdean man who dared to stand against political oppression and colonialism that led to the liberation of two countries from the shackles of colonialism, I am free to sing a morna, dance funana and write all about it all day, if I wanted to - in English and Kriolu!

A brief history of Fogo, Cape Verde and my family origins on the island

I can trace my Fogo family tree to the Canuto family of Sao Laurenco, Fogo of the late 1700's. Fogo was one of the first islands populated by the Portuguese and was primarily used for plantations harvesting coffee beans and slave trading. Other than Santiago, Fogo had the largest number of slaves recorded in its census. There was also a fairly large number of Europeans there which included the Vasconcellos, Henriques, Roiz, Nozolini and Barbosa families that were heavily involved in politics and the slave trade.

One of the most interesting facts about Fogo is that it was the only island that did not
fly the Spanish Flag during the period of Spanish occupation of Portugal in the late 1500's. That fighting spirit certainly lives strong in our Fogo genes today!

Some of the wealthiest Europeans lived in Fogo and during episodes of famine, drought or volcanic eruptions they would migrate to nearby Brava which up until the 1680's had a population numbering in the hundreds. The initial inhabitants of Brava were Europeans, most probably of Jewish ancestry. The Fogo migrants brought some of their slaves with them. Some families returned to Fogo once conditions allowed while others stayed. We see evidence of this through records of even some families that split between Brava and Fogo; the Lopes, de Barros Abreu, Pires, Oliveira, and Barbosa families to name just a few.

Fogo also records some of the largest numbers of free blacks in Cape Verde. This is evidenced in records as late as the mid 1800's where one's free status was included in Baptismal and Marriage records. Only certain records contained this status clause leading one to conclude that this was to delineate certain people from others that were clearly identified as "escravos" or slaves of a particular person. The Europeans were either identified as "proprietors" or land owners or "trabalhadors", workers.

My grandfather, Joao Antonio Lopes, was born in Relva, Mosteiro to Jose Antonio Lopes and Maria de Barros Abreu. Jose first emigrated to the States in the late 1890's to New Bedford and to the Cape where he stayed with a cousin, Anibal Jose Lopes, and brother-in-law, Cristiano de Barros. Jose worked the railroads in the Cape as did many cape Verdean migrants who weren't working the cranberry bogs.

Jose Antonio was the son of Roberto Jose Lopes and Caetana (Caterina) Lopes de Barros Abreu. Roberto was the son of Jose Antonio Canuto and Francesco Lobo of Sao Lourenco, Fogo. He also had a brother, Candido Jose Lopes.

Maria de Barros Abreu was the daughter of Pedro de Barros Abreu and Maria Michalina Lopes Friere. Pedro was the son of Andre de Barros Abreu and Joanna de Andrade. Andre was the son of Joao de Barros Abreu. Maria Michalina was the daughter of Joao Lopes Friere and Rosa Gonsalves.

My family had stopped using the Abreu and Friere surnames. I assume that the additional surname was to distinguish themselves from other lines of Barros and Lopes families. Abreu was sometimes used to identify people who came from Galician or northern/central region of Portugal, specifically Abreu in the Minho province. There was also a large presence of Abreu's in Madeira. Fogo had many emigrants from Madeira.

The origin of Friere surname is a little more interesting. The Friere surname is most common in the Galician region, around Coimbra. It is said that when Charles V came to the throne, having been born in Germany, he moved to Spain bringing many of his friends including a Dutch Frie Herr family who settled in the Galicia/ Coimbra region. Another account tells of two brothers from the Bourbon Kingdom (border of France and Germany) who took up arms against the Ottoman empire in defense of Europe in the 1300's. These brothers became known as Friere (brother) and many of the the men who fought with them took up this name as part of a fraternity. The Pope eventually gave them land in the Galicia region where you still have a very strong presence of Friere's. It is also stated that a particular line of the Friere's had a deep involvement in sea industry and exploration and eventually ended up in many parts of the world. The Friere's were physicians, philosophers, farmers, priests and merchants. There is every reason to believe that they would have been a part of the new and growing industry of the Atlantic slave trade in Cape Verde. During the 14th and 15th centuries, the Friere de Andrade family was one of Portugal's most influential and important families. The Friere and Andrade families are very well documented in Mosteiro. Relva, in particular, seemed to exist primarily of Lopes, de Barros Abreu, de Andrade and da Cruz families with a few Fernandes marriages in the 1800's.

It may have been important during Cape Verde's heyday to self-identify according to specific family delineations especially in places like Fogo where racial separation was an unfortunate way of life. A de Barros Abreu would have had a completely different status than that of a de Barros who was someone's slave. As Cape Verde's influence declined in the 1800's such concepts weren't as necessary since everyone was in the same boat trying to survive many bouts of drought and famine without Portugal's aide and comfort.

Fogo had many large and influential families which included the Nozolini and Roiz families which I want to mention briefly to illustrate the diversity of European ancestry which can be found in Fogo. The Nozolini's of Italian origins and Roiz' of Spanish origins were the ancestors of Brava's most famous citizen, Eugenio Tavares, who's mother was born on the island of Fogo and later went to Brava to stay with family after having to leave the Guinean Coast during some civil unrest. Eugenio was born in Brava shortly after she arrived. She, unfortunately, died during childbirth.

The histories of Fogo and Brava are deeply intermingled. Many, if not most, of the families in Brava originated in Fogo. I know this is true of my Barbosa and Rodrigues family, as well as, many other surnames in Brava today.

Rambligs about race and identity

The problem of identity is a complex issue when it comes to Cape Verde. Especially if your ancestry is from Brava and Fogo you will inevitably come to an undeniable question; What does it mean to be black or white? The business of genealogy implies the chance that you will find a person or branch that will make you question the core of what you always thought you were.

America has long established "rules" for identification. The one drop rule automatically defines us as black in the United States. Having one white and one black parent makes you black. Having one grandparent who was black makes you black. We self-define in this way without hesitation. I agree that if I were to go around telling people I was white even through the majority of my genes say that I am, people may question my sanity.

After getting the results of my autosomal DNA test, I had to take a good look at my family tree. The majority of my maternal and paternal lines are clearly European. The majority of most Cape Verdean family tree's are going to reflect similarly to mine.

When I was younger, we would joke about those brown skinned Cape Verdeans who refused to identify themselves as black. They wouldn't identify as white, either, necessarily. Their answer was always "I'm a Cape Verdean", end of story. It makes sense to me more now after all these years of research. How do you embrace one part of you and disregard the rest?

I can't disown my European heritage just as much as I can't my African. I refuse to ignore my white grandmother in favor of the black one, and vice versa. They each loved me and I loved them.

Cape Verde's slave history is undeniable. I will not excuse any of the evils of slavery. Slavery in Cape Verde was not better than slavery here in the US. The atrocities of slavery in the US happened in Cape Verde, as well. Slave holders here didn't necessarily recognize their off-spring legally and very rarely were their liasons with slave women looked at as bona fide relationships. We all know about Sally Hemmings and Thomas Jefferson but they were definitely the exception.

The Portuguese had no problems with having relationships with African women. Many of the europeans were exhiled for certain crimes like practicing Judaism or were political adversaries. Once in Cape verde, most stayed beyond the original sentences and established families and other ties. They did recognize their children from these liasons and their children would inherit from their parents and carried their father's names. In my own tree, I have found actual marriages between "black" and "white" ancestors.

I understand now why some people only reply "Cape Verdean" to self identify. To be a whole person means embracing all parts of oneself. My ancestors have made me who I am - all 68.7% Tuscan Italian and 31.3% West African. I am an American of Cape Verdean ancestry and all the things that brings with it.

And I love it!

I'm Back!!!

It's been a while since I've been able to post anything. With graduate season upon us, I had to first get through my daughter's high school graduation and then my son's graduation from the fifth grade! I am so proud of the two of them!

It's funny how things work out. I recently received an email from a gentleman who lives in Florida and has been researching his Cape Verdean roots for the last eight years. He and his cousin have accumulated quite a database of information. After speaking with one of them for about an hour, we discovered that we are very closely related and even knew each other as kids! This passion for genealogy must be in the genes!

Small world!!!