Sometimes, Good Things Come Unexpected

    

     When I first started blogging about my adventures in genea-land, one of my hopes was that cousins and other relatives would come pouring out of the woodwork, anxious to share information and photos...that did not happen.  However, I have made the acquaintances of some really wonderful people, among them a probable cousin who enjoys sending me books, (which I enjoy receiving), and also, a new friend in Ireland who has been so generous.  They alone make this blog worthwhile even though the crowds of family members I had envisioned failed to materialize.  So a few days ago, when I sat down at my desk to check my mail before work, I was surprised to see an e-mail with the subject line, "Sister Cecilia Vincent", from an unfamiliar address.  

     Upon opening it, I found the sender had stumbled upon my blog while searching the net for information about Sister Cecilia. I also found this kind soul had included a scan of Sister's memorial card, shown above.  She had been given it by a relative, but neither of them knew who Sister Cecilia Vincent was, that being her name in religious life.  In secular life, Sister was known as Mary Esther Gunn, the daughter of Francis and Elizabeth Gunn, immigrants  from Listowel Parish in County Kerry.  Francis was the brother of my great-great-grandmother Mary Elizabeth Gunn.  You can see what the Sisters of St. Joseph in Rochester, NY sent me about Sister Cecilia  here.

     It turns out, Sister's brother Earl had married an aunt of the sender, and that is how the memorial card came to be in the family's possession.  As you can imagine, I was very glad to receive the scan, and happy too that my blog had helped my, "almost cousin", find the identity of the nun in the mystery memorial card.