Hi Alexandra - I was in the chatroom reading profiles seeing who was working on who. I saw your reason starting to research - wondering where your distant cousins were and working with a relative. Well a couple of weeks ago I found a first cousin - my mom's sister's daughter who spent the last 87 years believing her mother and all her mother's relatives were deceased. I had been looking for her off and on for the last 40 years. I found her marriage certificate and traced her for 17 years in city directories and then she disappeared. They had lived in Harrisburg PA and then moved to Mechanicsburg PA about 20 miles away but not in the city directory. What is really weird is she attended the same church as my mom and her grandparents and never knew it. You never know what you might find.

Hi Alexandra - When I called her, I said "Hi this is your cousin Jim."  She said she never expected anyone to introduce themselves as her cousin. She also said that this whole experience is overwhelming. What part of Ontario are you in? When I lived in Virginia I used to go to Owen Sound alot. From there I would go down to Kitchner and St. Jacobs or over to Collingwood. Then up to Manitoulin Island and either to Soo Ste Marie or over to Renfrew before heading home. I love that area.  Have you ever been to our chat room? We have a very active chat community with people willing to help with lookups or ideas. Please join us some time.