Monday, October 9, 2006

Saving and Reuniting Bibles - one at a time

There is a wonderful article in the Akron (OH) Beacon Journal newspaper today, written by James Hannah of the AP, about Earlene Scott, who finds old Bibles at estate or garage sales and then tries to return them to a descendant of the peole in the family sections of the Bible. The article is here.

Earlene describes her mission as:
Scott has reunited Bibles, or information from Bibles, with about a dozen families. Data recorded in the Bibles by families that owned them provide many descendants with family history crucial in tracing their ancestry.

"They now can hold it, touch it, and hopefully share it," she said. "When each piece of the puzzle begins to fit into place in your own family, you're just that much closer to knowing who you are and why you're the way you are."

The absolute best quote in the article is this one:
Sandwiched between the Old and New Testaments of the Bibles are several blank pages for the owners to record family history. Once Scott establishes the identity of the original owner, the hunt begins.

In the early days, Scott had to do some of the detective work in the field, often accompanied by her husband, Jerry.

"We've stomped around in cemeteries and old courthouses, sneezed our way through libraries and said, 'Oh my gosh,' as you rubbed your eyes, 'is this fun or what?'"

Priceless. What a wonderful woman. May God bless her richly for doing this work.

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