Giving Back: Beyond Emancipation

For the past few weeks I've been volunteering to help Youth from Alameda County research their family members. A Youth Ancestry Project through Supervisor Keith Carson's office in conjunction with the African American Genealogical Society of Northern California (AAGSNC).

So far I've been working with the young adults at Beyond Emancipation, helping them piece together their family history as well as hopefully help them locate living relatives. I have to admit in the beginning I didn't know what to expect, but once I sat down with them and we begin discussing some of the things that have transpired in their lives it felt like home. Not in so much as I could relate to all of their stories, but I felt their pain and their need to know who and where they come from and if there are any relatives currently available for them to connect with. I bring their stories home with me and I admit to tossing and turning thinking about them and my need to want to help them as much as possible. Giving back does the heart good - I cannot stress that enough, truly a Blessed feeling.