Mom's Cousin

An amazing tale~!

My Mom, Betty Faunt, and my Dad retired to a seaside community in NJ in 1985.They were happy years for them and surely would have fulfilled the dream of both of their immigrant Irish grandparents.

Thanksgiving was when we found our Faunt cousin and shared tales. Cousin, in turn shared with an Auntie her mother's sister. Imagine our incredible shock to find that her Auntie and our Mother were friends and Church group members in this small seaside town.

They traded books back and forth, both of them avid readers. Sister and I knew of this lady who now we know was Mom's own 2nd cousin, all of us sharing the great-grandparents who came from Ireland to Beverly NJ in 1869.

Mom's cousin went to her funeral in 2003.She left with a Mass Card as good Catholics do and the Mass Card gave Mom's full name..Elizabeth Faunt Carrow. Mom's cousin and my new cousin's Auntie describes herself as stunned but did not know what to do with the information as her "Friend Betty" was now deceased.She herself did not know who to ask.

When our new cousin shared all of our new information with her Aunt she found out about their friendship.What a small world but how much they missed!

I called my new "Cousin-Aunt" this week and what a great talk we had. She and I both had always wondered why we did not know more cousins. She said she asked her Mother before about "Irish Customs" and dances and maybe relatives in the old country. She said her Mother told her "We are American not Irish".

She was so excited about the new family information that her son gave her a computer for Christmas and she is anxiously waiting a computer class scheduled for March for a "how-to".
I sent her a huge letter complete with pictures yesterday. I can't wait to see her "online".

I am more than ever committed to meeting and knowing any and all cousins I can find. Fran told me that he has had a feeling recently that all of them gather together. We both feel that it is our heritage from Retta..some of our siblings have that capacity from time to time. He is right, I am sure.