First appeared in Trembita Vol 3. Our Rusyn immigrant ancestors broke with the past when they left their small villages, traveled across a wide ocean, and settled in America. In a desire to become accepted, and with time and distance in their favor, their American-born children further cut links when they rejected many of the old ways and customs and espoused new American ideals. It is best gone and forgotten.
Genealogy is a study of our biological lineage and our family history.
A main problem we face as Rusyn genealogists stems from a lack of Rusyn identification among descendants born in this country. Today, important records and documents are not being valued and preserved in this country nor in Europe. Much information on our Rusyn family heritage has already been lost forever. In recent years, we have begun to receive less resistance to our questions as our first and generation American descendants grow older. Death was much more common than we could accept today.