No Good Deed Will Go Unpunished/

or My Trip To Goodwill

    I've already posted about some of my fabulous finds on E Bay, I now have another unlikely genealogical destination, my local Goodwill Store.  A few days ago the searing New York summer finally convinced me it was time to clean my closet and dig some summer duds out of it's dark recesses. I filled a large bag with clothes I no longer wanted, (could squeeze into), and thought it would be a good idea to take them to the new Goodwill store in my area.
   
     After leaving my items at the drop off point I thought, "why not see what this place is like?"  It was really pretty nice, there were racks and racks of clothing, shelves of garden supplies and housewares; some used, some new.  I liked the fact Goodwill supports the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired, so since I was redecorating my bedroom I wandered over to take a look at the selection of wall art.  After sifting through cutesie kittens and assorted clowns I was about to leave when I took a look at the highest shelf.  There under a nondescript seascape I found a beautiful framed lithograph in exactly the right colors.  For $3.99 yet!  Then I looked closer...it was actually an old framed First Communion and Confirmation certificate with a name and dates, 1923 and 1927.  Now I just love this kind of thing, so I looked more carefully and found the name of the child was Andrew Ryan.  I happen to have several Andrew Ryans in my tree!  The address of the church was even near-by.  I was so excited, how could I not buy it??  Did I mention it was only 4 bucks?  For a good cause?

   
     Anyway I bought the lithograph, brought it home and hung it in my bedroom and got to work searching for a connection.  I actually found another one online that is exactly the same except for the name, and since I couldn't fit my purchase into my scanner, that is the one you see in this blog.  The colors are much more beautiful than they appear in this picture but you get the idea.  I believe I've discovered the communicant in question, and now have another regular stop when I'm out shopping.  Will I ever find something this great at Goodwill again?  Who knows, but the hunt really is half the fun.