On this day . . . November 23, 1863 . . . the color photo process was patented. So to celebrate this day in history as well as celebrate an invention that definitely changed our lives, I share a color photo I took with some First Cousins I met for the very first time this year!
From (l. to r.) Juska Ann, Liv, Roland, Mom, Bettye, Reginald, and Ralph
Earlier this year, I blogged about the murder of my mom’s sister, Aunt Estella Chapple Thomas (read, “Blue Monday: Woman Killed,” for more information). At the time of her death, she was the mother of 5 children (Carolyn, Charles, Roland, Juska Ann, and Donna Marie) – ranging in ages 1 to 7. After Aunt Estella’s death, her children (with the exception of the baby, Donna Marie, who died 2 months after her mom from Nephritis) were sent to live with their father who was a soldier in the United States Army overseas. Some years passed before they would return to the US and Texas. Because they were so young when all this happened to them, they literally did not remember any of their mother’s side of the family by the time they were stateside.
Well, some recent Chapple Estate matters have made it possible for me to finally meet my first cousins Juska Ann and Roland Thomas for the very first time on August 25, 2012! This meeting also made it possible for my cousins Bettye, Ralph, and Reginald (my Aunt Ella Louise‘s children), to meet them for the very first time as well . . . woo-hoo!
From (l. to r.) – Juska Ann, Roland, Bettye, Reginald, and Ralph
But the most important point in all this is that my mother got to spend time and see the smiling faces of all her sisters’ children. This was such a wonderful reunion and a day we won’t forget!
From (l. to r.) – Juska Ann, Roland, Mom, Bettye, Reginald, and Ralph
Claiming Kin Genealogy 
How wonderful that you got to meet these cousins who had been so far away from you for all those years!
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Hi Dee! It was indeed WONDERFUL meeting my cousins for the first time! And because of this meeting, my brothers and I will be hosting our first Chapple Family Dinner with them and others we’ve connected with on Dec. 1, 2012!
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it is nothing like seeing the faces of kin when time and distance have kept you apart.
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Thank you Linda for stopping by! So true . . . so true! I believe they were just as excited to finally meet this side of their family as we were!
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