“Yes, my real name is Douglas Irving,” Ernie said via email. “It’s pretty ridiculous but here goes. When I was young, I had strawberry blonde hair and freckles. Down the block there was another kid, a couple years older than me who also had red hair and freckles. His name was Ernie. For whatever reason they started calling me Ernie Two and it just stuck at the time.” Douglas/Ernie decided he liked it. “My family calls me Douglas, but the rest of the world calls me Ernie.” 

Douglas, a fine name, to be sure. But I have to say it doesn’t fit Ernie Sapiro nearly as well as Ernie.  

As a photographer, Sapiro has a knack for putting people at ease. He’s not opposed to artsy techniques, but his focus is on capturing his subject’s soul. Sapiro has photographed several 3rd Act Magazine covers and in them you can see that when he says “soul,” he’s talking about the exuberant, joyful core of a person. Nothing dark and stormy here. The cover of singer/songwriter/musician LeRoy Bell is one of his favorites. I happen to love the one of track star Madonna Hanna.  

Photography has not been his lifelong calling. It is Ernie Sapiro’s own third act. He began his adult life as a guitar player in a number of iconic Northwest rock bands, including Uncle Cookie, the Moberlys, The Lonesome City Kings, and the Cowboys. His day job, for 30 years, was with Red Robin, the beloved Seattle burger restaurant that grew into a national chain. “I started as a janitor and left as a vice president,” Sapiro said. When he left, “about a dozen years ago,” there were 450 Red Robins across the country. Many of them had been opened by Sapiro himself. After Red Robin, he worked for Restaurants Unlimited for a few years. And then he was done and ready for his third act. 

Sapiro’s father, Scotty Sapiro, was a photographer—first in New York and then in Seattle. The family moved across the country when Ernie was nine. Scotty Sapiro’s clients eventually included Rainier Beer, Nordstrom and Eddie Bauer. Ernie loved hanging out in his dad’s studio, even though he did not ever imagine, until he retired from the restaurant world, that he would someday follow in Scotty Sapiro’s footsteps. 

 But he remembers his father’s best bit of advice: When you’re looking through the viewfinder, “Look for something that you haven’t seen.” Ernie’s expanded version: “It’s like jazz. You start in one place and wind up somewhere else.” 

But, as with jazz, you have to know what you’re doing. You have to practice. And study. All of which Sapiro embraced enthusiastically. “I’m—what’s that great word—an auto-didact.” A lifelong learner. Though he “never questioned his ability to frame a shot”—thanks to all he had learned from watching his father—Sapiro took lots of classes. He studied digital photography and photo editing, and he also enrolled in seminars on how to run a successful freelance business. He shot “anything and everything,” often for free in his very first years, including school portraits, family portraits and weddings. He took pictures for the Seattle Storm WNBA team, the Seattle Thunderbirds hockey team, bands and musicians. His corporate clients include T-Mobile, Southwest Airlines, Starbucks, and the SAFE Boats International boat-building company.  

My own favorite from the Ernie Sapiro archives is a series of photos of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s then-principal dancer Maria Chapman dancing on the lunch counter at the Athenian Restaurant in the Pike Place Market. “There was no money involved,” Sapiro said. “I did it for my own amusement. Nothing more.” Sapiro’s sister Dana had a long career as a ballet dancer and dancers have always been among his favorite subjects. Along with musicians, naturally. 

In 2015, Sapiro had an idea. What if he shot portraits of musicians—lots of musicians; some famous, some not—then enlarged and hung them in a huge space and threw a massive party for everyone involved? The goal would be to celebrate the musicians. Profits from picture sales would be donated to MusiCares. Sapiro’s friend, TV personality Nancy Guppy (Almost Live and Art Zone), signed on to produce and find funding for what became Musician: a Portrait Project. The supersized photos (30 x 34) were hung, unframed, in the spacious Union Stables Building, which once was an actual stable, housing the horses that pulled Seattle’s streetcars and firetrucks. Subjects ranged across the decades, from Merrilee Rush (“Angel in the Morning”) to jazz legend Bill Frisell to Susan Silver, the former manager of Alice in Chains, Soundgarden and The Screaming Trees.  

Sapiro lights up when he talks about Musician. It was everything he loves—music, photography, capturing the souls of creative people. Throwing a big party. Not being afraid to “keep the child-playfulness in what we do as adults,” to do the personal creative work that allows you to experiment without worrying about making money or pleasing a client.  

Not that he has anything against having clients. “I’m not rich,” Sapiro said. Retiring “doesn’t even come up” when he looks ahead a few years, or several. Sapiro is 69, his wife Cathy is 65 and works as a human resources business partner for KING 5 TV. He and Cathy have two children, Tucker, 36, and Tess, 34, and one grandchild, Callum.  

It’s Callum, born in 2024, who just might get him to slow down. A little. Because, if you ask Ernie Sapiro what really matters, he will tell you: “You better have some fun. You better love. Run freely. Play freely. And don’t be afraid to be ridiculous and crazy.”   

Ann Hedreen is an author (Her Beautiful Brain), teacher of memoir writing, and filmmaker. Hedreen` and her husband, Rustin Thompson, own White Noise Productions and have made more than 150 short films and several feature documentaries together, including Quick Brown Fox: An Alzheimer’s Story. She is currently at work on a book of essays and is a regular contributor to 3rd Act Magazine, writing about topics including conscious aging, retirement, mindfulness, and health. 

Make Your Own Kind of Music

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Since moving to Seattle from New York City in 2017, 86-year-old abstract painter Elinore Bucholtz has had solo shows at Joe Bar on Capitol Hill, Caffe Ladro in Edmonds, Fresh Flours Bakery on Beacon Hill, and Equinox Studios in Georgetown. Capitol Hill Art Walk showed her work at Chophouse Row, Starbucks, Ada’s Technical Books and Cafe, and Roy Street Coffee & Tea. Last year alone, her paintings have been displayed at Capitol Hill’s Kismet Salon & Spa, she was featured on the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog and in Northwest Prime Time, and she was named Seattle Refined Artist of the Week. 

Not bad for a former New York City public school teacher who started painting after retiring at age 56 and enrolling in workshops at the Art Students League of New York. 

Born in British Palestine in 1938, Bucholtz and her father Samuel, mother Rena, and older sister Edna experienced a harrowing, three-month journey emigrating to America During World War II. “The United States government thought that German general Erwin Rommel was coming through the desert to take over,” she explains. “They told us to get out as fast as we could.” 

According to Bucholtz’s late father, her mother’s stomachache prevented passage on the first available ship—a lucky break in hindsight, considering the ship was bombed and sank. Instead, the family booked a boat out of Port Said, Egypt, traveling first by train some 450 miles to Cairo when she was two years old and then another 125 miles to Port Said. 

“My father told me the station was bombed as our train left Cairo,” she adds. Her family sailed on three different ships—skirting open ocean combat and rough weather, according to Samuel—before arriving at Ellis Island. “My father said he held me up to see the Statue of Liberty, but I don’t remember that.” 

Her family lived in New York for a few years before moving to Arizona and eventually settling in California. Bucholtz majored in English and American Literature at the University of California Los Angeles and moved to New York City, where she taught junior high school English for 25 years. 

Bucholtz moved to Seattle to be closer to her son, Sam, and daughter-in-law, Ireland. Her two-bedroom Capitol Hill apartment serves as her residence and painting studio, while a storage unit in Seattle holds roughly 250 original paintings. She recently shared some insights into her experiences in life and art. 

“New York had everything I wanted.” 

“I was 23 when I moved to New York in 1961. It had everything I wanted—opera, concerts, museums, and Broadway. I found a Manhattan studio apartment I could afford. My first job was [teaching English at a junior high school]in Queens. I took several buses and subways to get to work. I was late every day. After a few years, I found a job teaching at a junior high school in Manhattan, closer to home.” 

“I never dreamed of making art before I retired. I didn’t even doodle.” 

“When I retired, I asked myself what I enjoyed doing. I enjoyed visiting New York City’s art museums and seeing other artists’ work. So, I decided to try it myself and I got hooked. I’ve been painting for 30 years. I never dreamed of making art before I retired. I couldn’t draw anything when I was young. I didn’t even doodle.” 

“Color and shape were enough.” 

“My early paintings were representational and figurative. I painted people and objects. I haven’t done those in years. A couple of years into taking workshops at the Art Students League of New York, I was tired of drawing or painting leaves, trees, or fruit. I tried abstract painting, just shapes and colors, which worked for me. I was very comfortable with it. Color and shape were enough for me.” 

“My paintings dance or sing.” 

“I think of my art in terms of ‘abstract lyricism.’ My paintings have motion—almost like they dance or sing—rather than just sitting there. Today, all my work is abstract. I use acrylic on canvas because it dries quickly and I can paint over it if I make a mistake.” 

“[Art] just happens.” 

“I met a young man who asked me how I came up with ideas for what to paint. I couldn’t say because I take a brush, put paint on the canvas, and then see where I should go. It’s not anything I work out ahead of time. It just happens. On the other hand, my paintings are much freer than I’ve seen other people do. Maybe that’s because I didn’t go to a formal art school.” 

“A psychic told me I would live to be 105 years old. Who knows?” 

“At one point, I had an operation, and my son, Sam, who had moved to Seattle many years before, came to New York. He told me he wanted to take me back to Seattle with him. He works hard and I couldn’t expect him to go back to New York every time I had a health issue. My son and daughter-in-law live about a block away. I usually paint the first half of the day before I go out for a walk in the afternoon. I had friends over for ice cream cake on my 86th birthday last November. I went to a psychic once and they told me I would live to be 105 years old. Who knows?” 

Seattle journalist Todd Matthews has written for more than two dozen print and online publications in the past 25 years. His work is collected online at wahmee.com. 

Be a Part of It

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In the workshops I facilitate on journaling, memoir writing, stress management, caregiver support, and ethical-will creation, one particular exercise resonates quite deeply with participants. Based on the organic structure of a tree, which is a great metaphor for life itself, the activity is a fun and revealing way to explore the influences and inspirations in one’s life and how they are transformed into meaningful passions and productive actions. I call it Roots, Shoots, and Fruits. 

Here’s how to do the exercise: 

1. On a piece of paper, draw the trunk of a tree. The trunk represents you.
2. Now, think about the people, experiences, and things that influence and/or nurture you in your life. For example, your faith, family members, and friends each might be a source of support. Perhaps you are greatly influenced by your experiences of travel, work, periods of crisis, or time in the military. You get the idea. Downward from the base of the trunk, draw and label a root that represents each such aspect in your life.
3. Next, consider your passions and actions. Toward what activities do you direct your energies and spend your time? For example, you might focus some of your energy on volunteer work. And it’s highly likely that you spend time doing things for and/or with your partner and/or children. You might also enjoy a particular hobby or play a certain sport. Each of these channels of your energy is a “shoot” or branch, of your tree. Upward from the top part of the trunk, draw these shoots and label each one accordingly.
4. Finally, look at each shoot on your tree. Ask yourself: “In what particular way am I living out this passion?” or “What specifically am I contributing to the world as a result of this effort?” In other words, what is the “fruit” of each labor? For example, if volunteering is one of your shoots, a fruit might be “tutoring a child,” “working at the food bank,” or “making quilts for shut-ins.” At the end of each shoot, draw and label one or more fruits that describe the results or end-products of your actions.

By now you may realize that a root (such as “my partner”) can also be a shoot. Or a shoot (such as “photography”) may also be a root because the activity nurtures you. Or a fruit (such as your child) can be a root because of the love s/he provides in your life. That’s great. It indicates full-circle aspects to your life. 

As I said, this exercise is always a hit with my workshop participants. It provides a way for them to take stock of their lives and to recognize and appreciate the connections that help define who they are in the world. But the exercise has an additional benefit, one that has to do with proportion and balance. 

Some people have greater difficulty identifying their roots rather than their shoots/fruits. They are clearly able to name their passions, as well as the many things that they do. But they can’t seem to cite specific people, events, or values that provide stability and inspiration in their lives. For others, it’s just the opposite. They have no trouble acknowledging the influences in their lives, but they aren’t clear about the ways in which they contribute to the world through their actions or gifts. 

Another interesting effect occurs when someone recognizes a root, shoot, or fruit that has been withering for some time due to lack of attention or appreciation, and s/he resolves to invest more time and energy into nurturing that aspect back to life. Or perhaps a root, shoot, or fruit no longer provides positive energy in that person’s life and must be pruned away. 

Over the years, I’ve done this exercise in many workshops with participants of all ages. What is particularly remarkable is how much easier this activity tends to be for older adults than for young adults and middle-agers. Perhaps it’s because of the greater perspective elders have about their own lives and the longer amount of time they’ve had to develop it. And the trees of elders who are not isolated or depressed tend to be balanced between downward and upward entries. 

I’ve noticed, too, that the trees of young adults often have more roots than shoots/fruits. This is to be expected, since they are still evolving as individuals and discovering the ways they can contribute to the world. Middle-aged adults, on the other hand, sometimes have more top-heavy trees. They can label many shoots and fruits, but they tend to lose awareness of their roots, influences, and sources of support. And maybe that’s a symptom of the drive to achieve that often preoccupies people in mid-career. 

But here’s what I’ve found most valuable about introducing my participants to Roots, Shoots, and Fruits. Since I began noticing these generational differences, I have encouraged my students to take this exercise beyond the classroom and do it again with family members of different ages. How, for example, might grandparents help their grandchildren to identify their gifts? How might they help their middle-aged children restore themselves by tapping into their root influences? And how might grandkids and their parents better appreciate and aspire to grow the sturdier, more balanced tree of an engaged elder? And how different might a person’s own tree look as s/he repeats the exercise from time to time throughout life? 

Try this exercise and pay attention to what it teaches you about yourself. I hope you’ll agree that if more of us spend time thinking about our Roots, Shoots, and Fruits (and encourage others to do the same), we will begin to cultivate a lush new forest of personal and social growth. 

Jeanette Leardi is a Portland-based social gerontologist, community educator, and author of Aging Sideways: Changing Our Perspectives on Getting Older. She promotes older adult empowerment through her popular presentations and workshops in journaling, memoir writing, ethical will creation, brain fitness, creativity, ageism, intergenerational communication, and caregiver support to people of all ages. Learn more about her work on her website. 

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Rebecca Crichton’s life stage and encore career align with her volunteer interests in aging and the field of hospice and end-of-life care. As Executive Director of Northwest Center for Creative Aging (NWCCA) in Seattle, she designs programs and presentations that incorporate information and practices related to successful aging and its inevitable endpoint.  

At 82, Crichton understands how important it is for her peer group to consider and discuss care needs as they age and get closer to end-of-life. A surprise is how much ambivalence or discomfort people feel about this issue. This can mean they avoid talking about their changing needs with families and friends. 

Crichton’s 50-year-old daughter Erika has worked in the fields of aging, caregiver support and training, and hospice and palliative care for the last 18 years. Because Erika’s career mirrors Crichton’s own interests and expertise, mother and daughter now work together to facilitate important discussions between older adults and those who care about, and for, them.  

Rebecca and Erika sat down for a conversation about this topic and how it relates to them and their own family. 

Rebecca: Erika, I’m delighted we have this opportunity to talk about this topic!  

Erika: Me too. And this is not the first time we have talked about aging and someone’s changing needs for support. We seem to talk about these topics often. 

Rebecca: I was thinking recently about what’s referred to as the ‘safety vs. autonomy spectrum.’ Some people value personal safety more than a sense of independence so will readily accept caregiving support. And some people value their independence over their safety and are OK with the risks that come from living with an illness or disability. What are your thoughts about this idea? 

Erika: Family members can find it hard to support how an older person chooses to live if they are worried about the person’s safety. That’s why conversations between older family members and those who care about them are so important. Open communication related to someone’s changing health or care needs means that when something significant happens there will already be a basis of understanding about what is most important to the older person. Ideally, the appropriate caregiving support can be provided to them in alignment with what they want. 

Rebecca: We know that most caregiving for older people is provided by family members. We also know that many families juggle child-rearing, jobs, and other demands that make it hard to provide the amount of care that an older family member might need.  

Erika: I had a client recently who shared he wanted his family to hire in-home caregiving so that they were not overburdened. I thought it was a beautiful lens to have as an older person—that his care for his family meant he wanted people outside the family to take part in supporting him. 

Rebecca: In the decade since I started working in this field, I have seen some new options for support for people as they age. Often a caregiving agency is hired to help someone, but other times families create a community of support that includes volunteers from their faith community, or a local civic organization. I am on the board of an Aging in Place village in Seattle. We have volunteers who offer everything from gardening and transportation to appointments and companionship. There are also organizations that hire retired people to provide non-medical support to older people. 

Erika: Each person’s living situation has unique factors that will influence planning for support. Just as we talk about how raising a child ‘takes a village’ so does supporting an older person as their care needs change. You and I did that for our friend, Ruth, who lived to be 100 and lived independently up until she died. 

Rebecca: Ruth is a good example of someone who valued independence over personal safety. Since she did not have any family locally, many of her friends came together to ensure she could remain at home. I was honored to be part of her support. 

I want to share two important ideas that relate to both caregiving and end-of-life planning. The first is that thinking carefully about what we want as we get older or become ill can help ensure we live well to the end. The more we share about what we want at the end of our lives means we can be in the present without feeling burdened by thinking about our future needs. And, as we both know, many people don’t know all the aspects of end-of-life planning.  

The second idea is that people generally ‘die the way they live.’ When we make a conscious effort to review our lives before we die—clearing troubled relationships, clarifying our wishes, sharing our values with others who might not know them—we can change default approaches to living that may not have served us well.  

That is why talking about this feels so important. 

Erika: I really like that you are thinking about what’s important to you and that we can talk openly about your life and goals. And I want to say that if your goals change that’s OK, too. Just keep me updated. 

For me, honoring your choices as you get older, even if they aren’t choices I fully agree with, is something I think about quite a bit. I also want to ensure your goals and desires are known to your doctors and other care providers so they can best support you over time. Knowing you have an up-to-date Healthcare Directive, a Power of Attorney for Healthcare, and a will gives me peace of mind around supporting you in the ways you want. 

Another element of our personal situation is that we live in different cities, so I am not immediately available if something happens to you.  

Rebecca: That’s not uncommon. Your father lives in Canada and I know you’ve also talked with him about what he needs as he ages. I also know he has many people around him who are providing a range of support. It’s important to me that you don’t totally give up your life to take care of me in the coming years.  

In your professional experience helping older people, how do you suggest starting a conversation about what someone needs and wants as they age? 

Erika: I had a friend whose mother had a diagnosis of early-stage dementia. They did not live in the same city and her mother did not want to talk about her diagnosis or plan for what should happen as her illness changed. Her daughter felt frustrated. She told me she wanted her mother to have some hired caregiving support, but knew this would make her mom feel she was losing her independence. I suggested she use words that expressed her feelings about her mom’s situation. Something like, ‘Mom, I worry that at some point you might need more help related to your situation, and I am sad we haven’t talked about it. How do you feel about what’s happening?’  This way of acknowledging the emotional elements of the situation allowed them to talk about what her mother’s diagnosis meant to each of them and how the daughter could best support her mother from afar. 

Rebecca: That’s a good example of a ‘proactive discussion’ instead of a ‘reactive discussion’. I’ve seen friends and their families trying to talk through caregiving issues during a crisis of some sort, often health related. It is more stressful to talk about these things during a crisis. We should also mention again that a discussion about aging and care support is not a one-time event. And as we both know, it’s common for families to completely avoid these discussions. 

Erika: These conversations become easier the more we have them. And if there are particularly challenging dynamics in a family related to aging or illness, finding a neutral person to facilitate the discussion can be helpful, which is what I do. In my experience, when the discussion gets started from a place of positive intent, it leads to the right dialogue and people feel better about the overall situation they are experiencing. 

Rebecca: As my daughter do you think we are having the right conversations? 

Erika: I do! And we’re not done. I feel lucky that you are still in good health and that you have a strong community of friends and extended family around you. And I also know that might change over time. I want to keep talking about this topic so I can help you in the right ways as things change. 

Rebecca: I’m glad we can talk about these issues and that we are working together to get other people talking, too! 

The following suggestions can be a good starting point for anyone who has not yet talked about aging with their family. 

• Parent/Elder: “I want to share with you what is most important to me as I get older and what support I might need as I age. Can we talk about this soon? 

• Parent/Elder: “As I see my friends getting older, I’m thinking about my own situation and I want to talk about how you can best support me.” 

• Adult Child: “I hope we can talk about what your needs for the future might be and how I will be involved.” 

• Adult Child: “I want to talk about what I can do to best support you if your need for support starts to change.” 

Rebecca Crichton is Executive Director of Northwest Center for Creative Aging (NWCCA) and brings wisdom and purpose to her work with the aging community in the Puget Sound area.  

Trained as a hospice volunteer, Rebecca continues to teach and facilitate grief and resilience support groups for several organizations. Rebecca has master’s degrees in child development and organizational development and is a certified coach. 

 Erika Crichton completed her Master of Social Work degree at Columbia University in 2006. She has worked in the fields of aging, disability and dementia services, caregiver support and training, and hospice and palliative care. Erika has extensive experience as a medical social worker and has also held leadership roles in large health care systems. She recently started offering personalized health and care planning support through her business, Open Ended Support (www.openendedsupport.com.)  

Erika is a Washington state licensed advanced social worker and trained Dignity Therapy© practitioner. She holds advance certifications from the National Association of Social Work and the Center to Advance Palliative Care. 

This story was made possible by funding support from AARP Washington and BECU. For more information, tips and resources for family caregivers in Washington state, visit www.aarp.org/caregiverswa. 

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Rebecca Crichton: Creative Aging

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The post Cheers to the Future! Talking Across Generations appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.

Volunteering at Seattle’s Woodland Park Zoo comes with some cool safari vibes, where the rewards seem to outweigh the dirty work, says volunteer Rick Hyatt, 69. “After a three-hour work party cleaning up poop behind the penguin exhibit, we got the opportunity to feed them.”

Another effort, removing unwanted bamboo from Lemur Island, ended with the fun of feeding the big-eyed, ring-tailed animals, a unique behind-the-scenes privilege.

For Helen Muterspaugh, 78, volunteering at Bainbridge Island’s Bloedel Reserve offers a welcome refuge. “It harkens back to a quieter and gentler time before all the chaos of social media, TV, and cell phones invaded our space,” she says. “Even if people are stressed when they drive in, by the time they get here, they’re at peace. They speak in quieter tones.”

Greeting visitors in the original residence of founders Prentice and Virginia Bloedel, Muterspaugh is part of a volunteer engine that keeps the 140-acre nature preserve running.

“Volunteering here reinforces the good in the world,” she says. “It makes me happier, calmer, and more positive about the future.”

People give their time to the reserve for different reasons, says Volunteer and Tour Coordinator Kate Sunderland. “Some are here for connection and community, others to learn something new,” she says. “Beauty is a big draw for many volunteers. And people find a sense of well-being just being here.”

While volunteers clearly benefit from time spent at the reserve, so does the organization gain from their efforts. “As a nonprofit, we can’t run this place without them,” says Sunderland. “We need volunteers. This is a huge space requiring lots of attention. That’s a lot of weeding!”

Like the Bloedel Reserve, AARP Washington finds volunteers essential to its mission, says Christina Clem, associate state director of communications for the organization. “If we didn’t have our amazing volunteers, it would severely curtail what we can do across all kinds of efforts, including tax services, driver-safety programs, community events,” Clem says. “Our volunteers are often trusted members of their communities who help us spread the word and give us important feedback. None of these things would be possible without our volunteers.”

That beneficial relationship is reciprocal. “The studies don’t lie,” says Clem. “Study after study touts the benefits of volunteering. They point to an increase in brain function, a decrease in blood pressure, less depression, and more social engagement.”

Some benefits are more abstract but just as important. “People who volunteer often report a new sense of purpose that may be lost after retirement,” Clem says. “Often people revive old passions or develop new ones. They also enjoy connecting with generations other than their own.”

Teenagers provide that function for retired attorney Sandra Driscoll, 73. Registering high school kids to vote gives her a jolt of teen spirit every time. “I get pure joy from their energy, enthusiasm, and optimism,” she says. “Plus, volunteering through the years, I’ve made enduring friendships with people I would never have met otherwise.”

Penny Fuller, 81, didn’t know she’d find new friends and a new vocation when she took up pickleball a couple of years ago. Now she volunteers as an assistant coach to beginner players learning the game and helps at tournaments. “I really enjoy giving little tips I learned along the way. It’s a lot of fun.”

Finding your volunteer tribe is a journey of its own and sometimes members of that tribe may not even be human. Rick Hyatt, the zoo volunteer, has forged a bond with a siamang ape named Sam. “He’s older, 38,” Hyatt says. “I go visit him when there’s not a lot of people around and sit at the window. Often, he will come and sit by me. We just sit like that until the female gets jealous and pulls him away. He’s special.”

Hyatt’s primary duty as a roving zoo ambassador is to walk the grounds and answer visitor questions. “Anything from ‘where’s the bathroom’ to questions about the animals,” he says. “Volunteering at the zoo is perfect for me. It makes me happy. I meet people from all over the world. Most people are really nice and it just makes me feel good.”

It does society good, too. According to the most recent federal statistics, Americans volunteering through organizations contributed $122.9 billion in economic value.

Beyond dollars and cents, AARP’s Clem observes, “People who volunteer, they’re just lovely human beings.”

Connie McDougall is a former news reporter and current freelance writer of nonfiction and personal essays. A lifelong student and proud English major, she has pursued lessons in flying, scuba diving, tai chi, Spanish, meditation, hiking, and Zumba.

Organizations that depend on volunteers were hit hard by the Covid-19 lockdown. Many still struggle to get back to pre-pandemic levels. For people considering a volunteer position but may not know where to begin, AARP’s Christina Clem advises starting with what’s personally important. “What interests you? Most organizations welcome volunteers,” she says. “Almost all have a volunteer component – police departments, the arts, academic institutions, sports.” In addition, here are links to established organizations seeking volunteers:

United Way of King County https://www.uwkc.org/volunteer/

AARP Create the Good – https://createthegood.aarp.org/

Volunteer Match – https://www.volunteermatch.org/

AmeriCorps Seniors – https://www.americorps.gov/serve/americorps-seniors

Finding a Meaningful Volunteer Opportunity during Retirement Years

The Health Benefits of Volunteering During Retirement Years

The Bloedel Reserve: An Ancient Land Offers Fresh Inspiration

The post Doing Good: Finding Power and Purpose Through Volunteerism appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.

BY FLORENCE KLEIN

As I reflect on the strides toward gender equality, it’s essential to acknowledge the trailblazers who paved the way for today’s progress. My journey as one of Philadelphia’s first female stockbrokers and America’s first woman real estate developer—converting old factories into historic condos—stands as a testament to the transformative power of women’s voices and the ongoing fight for equality.

Growing up during the tumultuous years of World War II, I decided early on to take charge of my destiny. I challenged the status quo in male-dominated fields, while raising a family and pursued my dreams no matter how unconventional they seemed.

Some of my foundational principles come from books. As a child, I would sneak into the adult section of the Logan Library to find more exciting reads. There, I discovered The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand. At 10 or 11 years old, I had no idea how radical and controversial the ideas were. The author’s goal was to present the ideal man and she emphasized the importance of being an individual, which was revolutionary at that time. And even though the hero was a man, I never once questioned that the principles she espoused would apply equally to women. A quote from her book, “The question isn’t who is going to let me, it’s who is going to stop me,” became my lifelong mantra.

Another woman who deeply influenced me is Maggie Kuhn. She fueled my passion for intergenerational housing. Kuhn was a passionate activist and feminist who founded the Gray Panthers movement in 1970 to combat social injustice, racial and gender inequity, and elder discrimination. Later she started the National Shared Housing Resource Center to encourage intergenerational housing.

Like Kuhn, I am an activist at heart. I usually do not wait to be called when I see a need. I move forward to see if I can make a difference. I started one of the first websites to assist seniors in need and continued to break barriers well into my 80s, such as writing and publishing my first book.

As we age, the most important thing is to keep going. Age is just a number—it does not define anyone. That’s why I keep moving—to renew my energy, passion, and desire to be who I now know I am. And there is still more to me.

Women’s voices, once marginalized, are now at the forefront of advocacy and change. The fight for equality has seen some victories—from greater representation in corporate boardrooms to leadership roles—and some recent setbacks. The journey is ongoing.

Our stories underscore the importance of perseverance and the collective power of women’s voices in shaping a more equitable future. We each have the power to create change. As we look ahead to 2025 and beyond, let’s carry forward the lessons and continue the fight for a world where equality is not just an aspiration but a reality.

Florence Klein was born in 1934 in Philadelphia, Penn. and graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. She published her first book, Under the Hat—Memoir of an Unstoppable Woman Trailblazer in 2023, at age 89. 

What We Hold Dear

Weathering Seasons of Change

The Importance of Legacy Planning

The post The View from Here – How Far Have We Come? appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.

When Mountlake Terrace Mayor Kyoko Matsumoto-Wright and I were children, the voters of our region rejected light rail. Twice. Federal funds earmarked for mass transit, as we called it then, were redirected to Atlanta. For the rest of our lives, the impact of those votes cast in the car-loving 1960s and 1970s has weighed ever more heavily on Seattle and its burgeoning suburbs.

Matsumoto-Wright, who is 74, was born in Japan. Her father, who served 20 years in the Army, was born in Hawaii. The family went back and forth between Japan and Hawaii until Matsumoto-Wright was 12, when they moved to Bothell, Wash. She is a graduate of Inglemoor High School and the University of Washington School of Drama. Her theatrical training has served her well during her long dual career in real estate and local government. She dyes her hair purple. She is not shy about speaking up, especially on the issues that matter most to her and her constituents—transportation and growth. When Link light rail was in its infancy, she made the case for a Mountlake Terrace station and for the building of apartments, townhomes, stores, and restaurants near where the future station would be.

For 41 years, Matsumoto-Wright has been a real estate broker for Coldwell Banker Bain. “I have history here,” she deadpanned. “I got to sell people their house, then I sold them another house, then I sold their kids a house, and then I sold their grandkids a house. All because I didn’t move around. I stayed right here and they all know where to find me.”

In 2000, she was elected president of the Snohomish County-Camano Association of Realtors. She went on to serve on the state’s Real Estate Commission where, she says, it was once customary for people to “show up, vote, and leave.” She chose to stick around and ask questions.

Mountlake Terrace asked her to serve on its planning commission. After a brutal series of arsons decimated the suburb’s tiny business district, a new town center plan was finally underway. It took five years of cutting through red tape and keeping the peace at meeting after meeting. “I wasn’t doing it for my resume. I was already at the age where I’m going, ‘what resume?’ but I really, really cared.”

People noticed how much Matsumoto-Wright cared. She was appointed to the City Council in 2008, and elected in 2009. When former mayor Jerry Smith died in 2018, she moved up.

Being mayor of Mountlake Terrace means being part of a whole network of city governments in north King and south Snohomish counties. It means attending many, many meetings. And it doesn’t pay much: $1,100 a month. (Matsumoto-Wright has also served on the Snohomish County Housing Authority.)

So why do it? Why should any of us get involved in local government?

Much as Matsumoto-Wright loves solving transportation and planning problems, that is not the #1 reason why she finds meaning in being the mayor. What really drives her, she says, is forming friendships with young people. And thinking about their future.

“We need to start listening to people in their 20s because they’re our future. And we are in the (transportation) pickle we’re in right now because the people before us decided not to do anything. They decided to vote against rail in 1968 and 1976. And the reasons why they did that are because it would not happen in their lifetime and it was too expensive. So now it is too expensive, and it’s not going to happen in (many) of our lifetimes, but we need to do it for the future. And for people in their 20s today. Because we need this.”

Meanwhile, Matsumoto-Wright tells her colleagues in government, “You’re not going to take away cars from the Boomers, so don’t even try. But we’re not going to be around forever.”

Matsumoto-Wright finds that speaking frankly about mortality is a good way to get people’s attention. “Many of my friends don’t even want to talk about the fact that they’re going to die. And many of my friends have already died. And I miss them. Terribly. But again, you’ve got to make new friends. Younger friends.”

Of the seven people on the Mountlake Terrace City Council, two, including the mayor herself, are baby boomers, three are Gen-xers, and two are millennials. “Many local elected officials at the city council level are older because the younger people don’t have the time. They have careers and kids to raise. So we’re lucky we have two millennials on our city council.”

It’s healthy and meaningful, she contends, for council members of all ages to focus on the future that lies beyond their own life spans. But it is also meaningful to learn from the past. “One thing about being on the planning commission and the council and all the other commissions is that I’m learning about history, and I’m learning about how life was lived before. Before cars and so forth, you didn’t have people living in suburbs, and they only had trains. Greenlake was all summer cabins. Alderwood Manor used to be egg farms. They got rid of the streetcar lines just before they decided we were going to need it back for rail.”

One of her pet peeves—how many people in local government never actually ride a bus or a train. “People don’t realize, if you drive a car, you have a choice. You don’t realize how many people have to take public transportation because they don’t have a choice. They don’t have a car.”

As a real estate agent, Matsumoto-Wright spends plenty of time behind the wheel. But she also values her senior Orca card ($1 a ride) and the freedom it gives her. And she is genuinely excited about the opening, at long last, of the Mountlake Terrace Link Light Rail Station, which opened on August 30, 2024, along with two other stations in Shoreline and the northernmost station in Lynnwr and that’s issuing proclamations. One of her most recent ones was honoring Grammy-winning composer and fiddler Mark O’Connor, who grew up in Mountlake Terrace. Her next one, she hopes, will go to Lily Gladstone, just as soon as the actor’s busy schedule permits it. Gladstone, a 2004 graduate of Mountlake Terrace High School, starred in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, for which she was the first Native American to win the Golden Globe for best actress and to be nominated for an Academy Award for best actress. Her parents still live in Mountlake Terrace, so Matsumoto-Wright is hopeful that Gladstone will be able to receive the proclamation in person.

It will be a poignant moment for Matsumoto-Wright, who was one ofood.

Just in time, you might say. The current population of Mountlake Terrace is 24,260. In 20 years, it is expected to climb to nearly 36,000.

There’s one more thing Matsumoto-Wright loves about being mayo the first Asian Americans to attend the UW School of Drama. And poignant, too, for her many younger friends in local government, to see one of their hometown peers stepping into a bright future.

Ann Hedreen is an author (Her Beautiful Brain), teacher of memoir writing, and filmmaker. Hedreen` and her husband, Rustin Thompson, own White Noise Productions and have made more than 150 short films and several feature documentaries together, including Quick Brown Fox: An Alzheimer’s Story. She is currently at work on a book of essays and is a regular contributor to 3rd Act Magazine, writing about topics including conscious aging, retirement, mindfulness, and health.

A City for Everyone

How to Build a Better Old Age

The post Kyoko Matsumoto on Why We Should All Get Involved in Local Politics appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.

A friend of mine, a young man who always seems optimistic and full of life, recently told me he was feeling “blah” and kind of “down.” When I asked what he thought was the cause of this, he said he didn’t know, that he hadn’t ever felt this way.

I asked him several questions hoping to get an understanding of what he was experiencing. It seemed he’d lost interest in the activities that normally brought him joy. After talking some more it became apparent that he was experiencing malaise, the cause of which was being overly busy and not taking time for solitude and rest.

I know how that feels! I also sometimes feel out of sorts, even hopeless and despondent. Being retired from one’s career, newly single due to the death of a partner, or feeling that, as an elder, our options are more limited, can weigh heavily on us and keep us from feeling that we do, indeed, have a place in the world. Perhaps not the place we once had, but one that can still be meaningful and purpose driven.

What I have found is that if I don’t quickly do something when I’m feeling socially isolated or begin thinking I’m no longer needed in the world, I can get pulled down into depression.

Sometimes life can just wear us down. We may easily become overwhelmed. The thought of having to leave our house or apartment and run errands, attend meetings, or get to medical appointments is just too much. Performing the simplest of tasks becomes difficult. We no longer want to go out into the world. It’s just easier to stay at home and hope something will change.

I once heard a young woman talking about how she had trouble getting dressed in the morning and often spent the day on her couch rather than getting out and doing what she needed to do. She said, “I know this might sound simplistic, but what I have to do to get up off the couch and dressed is to say out loud, ‘up and out!’” She went on to explain how it’s like a mantra she repeats over and over in order to hoist herself up, walk to the bedroom, find some clothes, go to the bathroom, put on makeup, get dressed, find her purse, and walk out the door.

“Up and out!” “Up and out!” “Up and out!”
I can relate to that. To this day I can find myself on a metaphorical couch, unable to do what I know I need to do in order to get on with my life.

I also had a friend, now gone, who, after a stroke, was aphasic and didn’t have full use of one side of his body. Despite this he got up every morning, showered, shaved, and dressed as if for work. He knew that if he didn’t, he would slowly give up on life.

In the Book of John there’s a story where Jesus encounters a lame man who’s been lying for many years beneath the portico surrounding a pool of water that was believed to have healing powers. The man told Jesus he had no one to help him get up and make it into the water.

In response Jesus says, “Stand up, take your mat and walk.” He did and was healed. Jesus seems to have touched something in the man that rekindled his ability to motivate himself to take action. The fire within him was reignited, which then gave him the impetus to overcome what ailed him and to then begin to live again.

When the young woman said aloud “up and out” she called on a source within herself to overcome her lethargy. My friend used his willpower and determination to keep himself going. The man by the pool asked for help to be restored to wholeness and he was.

No matter our situation, we, too, can summon the resources within ourselves needed to become motivated and energized. If it seems too overwhelming, we can ask for help from loved ones, caregivers, or a higher power.

And remember: “Up and out, up and out, up and out!”

Stephen Sinclair holds a Master of Divinity from Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago, and is an ordained Unitarian Universalist minister. He’s been a pastor and chaplain in a number of churches and hospitals in the U.S., and has worked with the homeless. He lives on Capitol Hill in Seattle.

Read More by Stephen Sinclair:

Que Sera, Sera

That Box of Chocolates We Call Life

Mind the Spirit—What Do You Believe?

The post Mind the Spirit—Getting Up and Out When You’re Feeling Down appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.

Two days before the winter solstice I drove from my home in Columbia City to Capitol Hill to meet Steve Durrant at the Tailwind Café, which is tucked inside the Good Weather Bicycle & Repair shop on Chophouse Row, a cozy alley of restaurants and shops just off Union Street in Seattle. I would have taken the light rail, but I was picking up prescriptions for my 90-year-old father right after our meeting, I had a Christmas-related errand to do in the University District, and a cold December rain was settling into a steady pour. I didn’t mention any of this to Durrant, who bicycled to the café from Fremont and arrived looking barely touched by the rain.

There are lots of people like me in the Northwest, who love to walk or ride a bike, but regularly lame out. Durrant has devoted much of his career to encouraging us to change our habits,  not by scolding or lecturing but by designing good routes and trails for the likes of you and me.

In 2015, Durrant was named a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects—one of the organization’s highest honors—in recognition of his exceptional contributions to transit, park, greenway, and on-street bikeway design. He was just about ready to retire after “a first and second act doing stuff that I really loved,” when a third act project he couldn’t resist came along—the Puget Sound to Pacific (PS2P for short) Trail. When completed, the 200-mile trail will stretch from three different starting points—the Bainbridge Island, Kingston, and Port Townsend Ferry Docks to La Push on Washington’s Pacific Coast. The goal is to “build a full-service, multi-use trail, at least 10 feet wide, with grades accessible for ADA (American Disabilities Act),” says Durrant.  In other words, to make every one of those 200 miles accessible to all. Many sections will have unpaved shoulders for people who prefer to walk or run off pavement, and some segments will include parallel equestrian trails. There are 100 miles of 34 yet-to-be-connected gaps needed to complete the full 200-mile trail.

The Puget Sound to Pacific Trail (PS2P) Coalition

The first 100 miles came about through decades of hard work by the Peninsula Trails Coalition, whose signature project is the Olympic Discovery Trail from Port Townsend to the Pacific Coast. The coalition’s work caught the eye of the national Rails to Trails Conservancy, whose mission is to create the coast-to-coast Great American Rail Trail, stretching some 3700 miles from Washington, D.C., to the western edge of Washington state. They encouraged the Coalition to apply for a $16 million federal grant to design the remaining 100 miles. Counties, tribes, cities, and towns across the Olympic Peninsula got on board. U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer and Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell endorsed the project. The grant was secured. And Durrant put off his retirement.

“It wouldn’t have happened if it weren’t for Steve,” says Barbara Trafton of the Bainbridge Island Conservancy, a partner in the PS2P project. “He brings his passion and expertise. He thinks so creatively about how to make things happen.” Durrant, she adds, is fearless about “totally changing the map permanently. I mean, once these trails are in place, they’re there forever.”

“This has been an opportunity to continue doing what I love to do,” says Durrant, modest to a fault, whose career includes developing a bicycle master plan for the entire city of Seattle. “There’s a big part of it that’s selfish because I’m a cyclist,” he says, “and part of it is altruistic—for people I know and future generations.” But what really drives Durrant are projects that encourage a healthier, active lifestyle and contribute to the societal greater good. He shares that “even as a kind of lifelong advocate and nerd in cycling when we started doing research into the health benefits of cycling, and the dollar value of those health benefits, the numbers are shocking—even for a believer.”

According to Lawrence D. Frank, professor of Urban Studies and Planning at the University of California San Diego and president of Urban Design 4 Health, research shows that when people have access to active transportation such as safe trails and routes for walkers, runners, and cyclists, “the resulting increase in physical activity translates into a host of chronic disease reductions, ranging from cardiovascular disease and diabetes to depression and dementia.” What this can mean is better physical and cognitive health in later life.

To Frank and Durrant, the health benefits of trails are every bit as important, if not more important, than the access they give us to the beauty of the natural world. Though that’s certainly an undeniable benefit. When I asked Durrant about his favorite stretch of the PS2P, he described it this way: “One of my favorite spots is Lake Crescent, where the Olympic Discovery Trail passes through the forest parallel to the Sol Duc River. It zigzags back and forth, and there are places there, maybe 20 miles, where the trail is like a cathedral.”

Trafton also named the Sol Duc/Lake Crescent stretch as a particular favorite, although she loves the Bainbridge section, “because it’s home,” and because it will have a huge impact on Bainbridge life. Six of the island’s seven schools are close to the trail; pedestrians and bicycle commuters like her will be able to make use of it, too. “It’s really so gratifying,” she says, “to see this map changing and to know that this is a gift that will last long after I’m gone. Hopefully, other people will carry it on. I’m just so intensely grateful to Steve for coming out of his recent retirement and wanting to connect with people to make it happen.”

Professor Frank, who coined the term “walkability,” concurs. “Steve understands the politics and the dynamics of what it takes to get stuff like this built,” he says. “He has decades of experience overseeing the development of active transportation plans. He has both background and understanding of the research, but he’s also got that practical project-based experience.”

Durrant has all of those qualities. But he’s also been on this path, pardon the pun, all his life. He grew up in Minneapolis/St. Paul, where people bike year-round. In the snow. In sub-zero temperatures. He rode his bike to elementary and high school.

As I listened to his stories of winter biking in Minnesota (and in Oulu, Finland, known as the winter cycling capital of the world—not only a favorite place of his but also not far from where half my ancestors came from), I felt more and more sheepish about my compelling “reasons” for driving to the Tailwinds Café for our interview. But I also felt inspired. Durrant’s enthusiasm is infectious, in a low-key, Minneapolis-born, Finnish-friendly way. I’d like to be part of that statistical story of improved health via active transportation.

And I look forward to biking that section of the PS2P that goes through the cathedral forests surrounding the Sol Duc River. When I do, I’ll take a moment to think about what Trafton said—what a gift this remarkable trail is to the bikers and hikers of the future who will get to enjoy it too, whose health and well-being will benefit from the PS2P long after the people who worked so hard to make it happen are gone. Long after Durrant came out of retirement and changed the map.           

Ann Hedreen is an author (Her Beautiful Brain), teacher of memoir writing, and filmmaker. Ann and her husband, Rustin Thompson, own White Noise Productions and have made more than 150 short films and several feature documentaries together, including Quick Brown Fox: An Alzheimer’s Story. Ann is currently working on a book of essays and is a regular contributor to 3rd Act Magazine, writing about topics including conscious aging, retirement, mindfulness, and health.

Photo: Steve Durrant high-fives Congressman Derek Kilmer on the trail after the grant was announced.

Photo courtesy Bainbridge Island Parks & Trails

Here are more ways to discover beautiful Washington State:

Discover Northwest—A Day (or three) at The Beach

Discover Northwest—Cape Flattery Tribal Scenic Byway

Discover Northwest—Cape Flattery Tribal Scenic Byway

Discover Northwest— Whidbey Scenic Isle Way

Whidbey Scenic Isle Way

The post Discover the Puget Sound to Pacific Trail (PS2P) appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.

I didn’t know what would follow my beloved career of nearly 40 years—after my early retirement and successful transition to the next generation of professionals. Then I discovered genealogy.

I am intensely curious about people. Where are you from? What experiences have influenced you? What’s your story? If we met, I’d want to know. Our conversation would likely lead us to answers to these questions. I have always loved a good jigsaw puzzle that can engross me for days. I am willing to be surprised.

Inquiring minds wonder. Why did my great-grandpa H. W. Davis, Jr. build a wooden boat in 1930? What did grandpa Dick mean when he told me his ancestors immigrated to North America a long, long time ago? Why did my grandma Weber always say she was from Monaghan, Ireland, when her mother was born in Starbuck, Wash., and her father wasn’t Irish? How could a DNA test help me find unknown ancestors born more than 200 years ago and cousins I never knew I had? I had so many questions—and I now had time to learn!

Genealogy is perfect for me. It’s the marriage of being curious about people, working complex puzzles, and occasionally incorporating surprising new family data into my identity. It connects me to thousands of people around the world and broadens my understanding of who my family is.

I am extending the branches of my family tree, and as I do, my tree grows stronger and I feel more grounded knowing more about those who came before me. I’ve also shed new light on family stories or passing comments, and gained new insights about the times and places of my ancestors’ lives. As I study context of a time and place, history comes to life. It would have been more interesting when studying the Civil War in high school history to realize which of my family members were fighting for the cause. I have more appreciation for my ancestors, their strength, resilience, and courage. They’ve become human to me, more than a collection of names and dates, as I now understand more details of their lives.

In genealogy, one thing leads to another

While researching H.W. Davis, Jr.’s move to Seattle, I learned that he forgot to pick up his mother’s ashes at the funeral home in 1927. How did he forget his mother’s ashes? The death of his wife, father, and mother occurred within three short years. Was he too busy planning for the design and construction of his new boat, m/v Comrade? Kate Davis, born in 1843, was not interred— her remains sat in a box in the basement of a Seattle crematorium for more than 95 years. While researching, I discovered this fact. I got to be the instigator of her funeral, for the burial at sea conducted from Comrade! (https://vimeo.com/845000873)

We’ve been here a long, long time

Early colonial Americans are well-researched, but no living person in my family realized we descended directly from four of the passengers on the Mayflower: Samuel Fuller with his parents, and Richard Warren, preparing a new home for his wife and daughters to join him. This is what grandpa Dick must have meant when he said his “family had been here for a long, long time.” He couldn’t recall any specifics for my fifth grade family tree homework assignment. I now have new insights about our deep roots in North America, which are likely correlated with discovering my African American DNA cousins. This is an area of ongoing interest and exploration, and gives me a more direct connection to the African American experience. It was initially a surprise finding, but now I simply like being more connected to more people.

DNA opens doors

I knew little about grandma Weber’s County Monaghan heritage and was surprised to learn that her Monaghan roots were connected with only one of her four grandparents, as it was a significant part of her identity. I decided to use my DNA test results to explore her Monaghan heritage and what a treasure that’s been. Especially, when I was invited to attend a gathering of the family of her great grandmother in Monaghan. A month in Ireland in 2022 included meeting dozens of cousins and lots of laughter. I discovered the source of my dad’s sense of humor. He died in 2016 and spending time with these Irish cousins was nearly like having him in the room with me again! I now have regular conversations across the Atlantic.

It’s not all good news

When a DNA match led me to correspond with a newly discovered third cousin, I was sad to hear that her grandmother had been abandoned by her husband, our shared relative, with small children to raise by herself. This happened more than 100 years ago. When a distant Irish cousin has a very non-Irish sounding surname, I became curious and learned that his father died while his mother was pregnant with him. Already having five children under age eight, he was put up for adoption and grew up thousands of miles away. He and I have roots in the same 19th century “neighborhood” in rural Ireland.

And there are surprises

Brought up Catholic, and believing we were all always Catholic, I was stunned to see 5% Ashkenazi Jewish ethnicity in a DNA test. I learned that one third great-grandmother’s Jewish husband converted to Catholicism on their wedding day. “Why did that occur?” is another question to contemplate. On that day in 1823 when John married Catharina in present-day Germany, who would have known the thrill of discovery for me 200 years later.

Kathy Weber is a professional genealogist, based in Kirkland, Wash. She is Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Seattle Genealogical Society. Her book, Arrivals: How My Great Grandparents Got to Washington 1882-1909, will be published in 2024. She can be reached at liverpoolstreetpublishing@gmail.com.

A little more on how I use and practice genealogy.

Using DNA evidence in my research is my favorite tool. It’s like working a jigsaw puzzle that includes outline pieces rather than a puzzle without any straight-edge pieces. Anyone who works jigsaw puzzles probably starts by collecting the straight-edge pieces and forming the outline so all the other pieces will fit inside.

All our DNA came from our direct genetic ancestors, so DNA helps point the way to who they are, especially when used in collaboration with the DNA of our family members. I work with a cluster of shared DNA matches to try to identify our common family. Alternatively, I study a specific segment of DNA and the people who share it, as a tool to seek a common ancestor.

I attend the Seattle Genealogical Society DNA Special Interest Group on Zoom, where I learn new skills, ask questions, and decide what my next steps are in my DNA education. (https://seagensoc.org/cpage.php?pt=81)

Tips on How to Get Started with Family History Research

1. Decide where you will record your family tree research results such as on paper or online. Good ideas for online are Wikitree, FamilySearch, or Ancestry. Or get your own software to record your results in Family Tree Maker.

2. Document what you already know. Include full name (at birth), date and place of birth, marriage, and death. List names of known children.

3. Interview parents, aunts and uncles about family history. Write down what they say with details for future reference.

4. Take a DNA test at Ancestry.com. They have the largest database of testers so you will have the most matches to work with. Also test any living parent.

5. Choose one area to focus on. Read about the time and the place for historical context. The research wiki at FamilySearch is a great resource for learning about a location.

6. Look for ways to learn more. Join a genealogical society such as Seattle Genealogical Society and a special interest group in an area of interest. Consider joining Family Tree Webinars and viewing Family History Fanatics on YouTube.

7. Prepare to be surprised.

More stories on family and ancestors:

Summon Your Ally Superpower—My ancestors made decisions that led to my current life and circumstances. In turn, I imagine the voices of my great, great, grandchildren—the “future ones”—in my ear and in my heart, urging me to consider their needs as I make choices today.

The post How Genealogy Captured Me appeared first on 3rd Act Magazine.