Baby photo of Candy

After working on my first child's baby book, and when visiting my mother in Oregon, I asked her if she had a baby book for me, and she did.  Like many baby books, the first few pages were carefully completed, the final pages, not so much.  But, tucked in the back, along with a curl of my hair, was a packet of photo negatives, the kind that used to sit in piles in the backs of drawers, because someday we might want to print those photos again, which no one ever did.

Without asking, I took those negatives back to Evanston, Illinois, with me, and to the camera shop that got a lot of my money over several years (and then disappeared with all the other camera and print shops), and had them print a set of photos from what were then 35 year old negatives.

This is what I got, a picture of me as a tiny baby and all four of my grandparents.  They look in the photo as they look in my mind, as I first saw them as an infant and during my childhood.  All four of them were just thrilled with me, see the crafty room decor made with peppermint candies to match my name.  While we could guess that this photo was taken in Richmond, it just as well could have been taken in Sacramento at the home of my Lagergren grandparents, especially since they would have had a nice guest room for the Moore grandparents.

They are from left to right, Paul Lagergren, Lorraine Moore, Hal Moore and Dorothy Lagergren.  Many years later we got a hint that Hal and Dorothy were very fond of each other, friends of course, but always pleased to be able to spend time together.  But, that's another story.

Candace

Using the Website Find a Grave to create Memorial Pages

Lorraine Yeargan Moore at Find A Grave

I have an account at Find A Grave, where I have been building memorials for early believers of the Baha'i Faith and now, members of the family.  This is where we can pinpoint where the members of  our family are buried and record birth and death dates and connections with their parents and children.  It's a very handy site and easy to use.  I am hopeful that by using Find a Grave and connection this blog that someday we will connect with other branches of the family.

We can ask Narcissa Whitman, the first white woman to travel to Oregon to be our muse, since it looks like all four branches our family came to the West Coast to follow a dream.  She is buried at this National Historic Site in Walla Walla, Washington.

Candace

Lorraine Yeagan as a Young Woman, our Grandmother

This is Lorraine Yeargan, as a young woman, perhaps before she met our grandfather Hal Moore.  Lorraine's story in our family was so singular that the family told it over and over again, often enough that we remember most of the best parts of it.  But, we are the older generation now, our parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles are passed away and our memories of them are all that's left.  If these stories are to be remembered still, then we should place them somewhere, that when they come to look for them, our children and grandchildren will be able to find  them.  Hence, Molly Moore Emmons and Candace Moore Hill will commence to upload the family photos that have been filtering down to us from estates and house clean-outs and do our best to remember the stories of those we knew and loved.