How many of my children/grandchildren thought mine was the first generation to join the Mormons? WRONG, WRONG, WRONG! We have connections to Richard Ballantyne, who actually founded the Sunday School in the LDS church, and dates away back to 1817 when he was born to his father, 70 year-old David Ballantyne, and his second wife, Ann Bannerman, a 19 year old Highland lassie who spoke Gaelic. Richard Ballantyne was born in a tiny little village (1 dozen families) in Roxburgh, nearby to Melrose Abbey, where the heart of Robert Bruce was traditionally buried. Shortly after Richard was born, his father David was struck by tragedy, a friend to whom he had loaned a great deal of money defaulted on the loan, and David and Ann were turned out of their home with only a cow and a few sticks of furniture left to their once-prosperous living. Forced to work as a common laborer, David went to work at a nearby farm, lived 11 more years....fathered several more kids, the night before his death in Springhall, Roxburgh, a voice called to him three times, "David, David, come away." Because of grave robbers active at this time, stealing corpses from their graves and selling them as cadavers, the widow Ann purchased a vault to secure David's body.
But our story is really about their son Richard....at age 7, he was herding his father's cows....at age 10, he became a gardener to a wealthy man, working 10 hours daily for 10 cents a day. At age 14, Richard apprenticed to a baker in Earlston, Berwick, (where your Waldie connections lived, my children....not mine! these are your Granny Naylor's ancestors, so this story is a gift to you from her!). After 3 years Richard was promoted to foreman and finally was put in full charge. His boss died, and Richard purchased the bakery from the widow for $25, last of the big-time family bargains!
About this time, Richard had a vision of Jesus Christ, and became very religious. At 21, he became an elder in the Relief Presbyterian church , and even organized a Sunday School in a small farm village a few miles from Earlston, at which 75 boys and girls attended. Rumors of a new prophet in America came to him, culminating with Elder Orson Pratt coming to Edinburgh, proselyting, in 1841. And, despite much opposition, Richard was baptized in the Firth of Forth about 30 miles from Earlston, followed shortly after by the rest of his family, and they stood alone in a sea of hate and distrust. But the notoriety certainly didn't affect his bakery business, in less than a year he had made enough money to afford emigrating the whole family to America, so he sold up his holdings in Earlston and off they went on the Yankee packet ship "Metoka", September 5th, 1843, bound for New Orleans. (By riverboat and stage from then on, joining the Saints and settling in Nauvoo.) Richard accepted the priesthood ordinations coming to him, plural marriage was just starting, and he himself ended up with 3 wives and 22 kids, while his sisters Jane and Annie became plural wives of John Taylor. Moving west with the Saints to Salt Lake, Richard retained his dream of effective teaching of the children of the church, and expanded on his early work in Scotland with the Presbyterian church, officially starting the LDS version of Sunday School in 1849.
Richard Ballantyne died in 1898 and is buried in Ogden City Cemetery.
Now you're saying, where is the connection to us? (you, that is!).....
Well, a cousin of Richard, another David, settled in Earlston, Berwick, as well, and became a merchant in that town, married a girl named Elizabeth Hislop, who just happened to be a sister of Ann Hislop, who married Alexander Waldie. (Dad's grandma Hill was a Waldie, Margaret Jane). Long drawn-out story, right? David Ballantyne's Elizabeth died at a fairly young age, followed within weeks by their only son Robert.....so, when the Waldies and their huge family emigrated to Canada in the late 1850's, they left behind their daughter Jessie in the care of their uncle David, assisted by another sister of Ann Hislop, Isabella, who housekept for them and served as surrogate mother to the little 9 year old girl Jessie. Jessie eventually married a travelling salesman named Hugh Stoddart and had a family of her own, but Isabella continued to live with them, unmarried and still foster mother and grandmother, until she died in Edinburgh at age 80-something.
Want some more claims to fame? some more Ballantyne cousins James and John Ballantyne, built a large publishing house in Scotland, mostly with Sir Walter Scott's money. James had two nephews who were to become famous, Robert Michael sailed for Canada and worked for the Hudson's Bay Company, wrote 80 volumes of stories about wildlife and travel. His brother James Robert, went to the Far East and became a noted Orientalist. (Note to Debbie: ever wonder why Shawn is so hung up on Chinese culture...he's a descendent of this family!).
Now I realize this is straight pure unadulterated genealogy, which I have researched over the last fifteen years, very painstakingly.....strictly for my husband's lines. Some of you are probably bored to tears with all these details, but to me they are completely fascinating, and I can only hope one of my grandchildren will inherit the Spirit of Elijah and someday continue with this research and be responsible for uniting this huge family in the eternity to come.
Monday, March 29
Friday, March 5
Letter from Jackie...
Hi Jeff,
If you would please post this on BLOG for me, that would be great! Thanks!
Jackie
Hello, my dear in-law family...
This is probably going to be quite long, so please bear with me! I wanted to write you all, and this is for everyone, Mom N, Randy's brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, and all of their spouses, children, etc!
I wanted to let you all know about a process I have begun, and that is the step-parent adoption by Russell of Kristen and Karina. The thought process in doing this has been a long time in coming, and for that there are several reasons, but I want to include you all in this each step of the way as Kristen and Karina's daddy's family.
Russell and I have been married now for 10 years, and Kristen is now 17, about to turn 18 in September, and Karina will turn 16 this coming May. We have been talking for years about the probability that someday Russell will adopt the girls, but given their ages now has to be the time if we are going to do it. There is a very real practical reason for an adoption, and it has to do with citizenship and the USCIS-United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
As you may or may not know, when Russell and I became engaged and planned for the girls and I to move to the States, it began a very long and expensive process. It was a trail of red tape and paperwork that involved forms, consulate visits, medical exams, and waiting. The INS, as it was known back then, had to be very sure that we were not wanting to come into the States for any other reason other than for me to marry Russell and for us to become a family. Then, when we were approved, and we moved south of the border, we had to complete more paperwork immediately upon getting married to "adjust our status" and a few months later, again, after expense and paperwork, became conditional temporary residents. Two years later, the three of us became permanent residents, or legal "aliens", (boy do I love that term- NOT!), but that is the legal term by which they call us here, meaning that we have green cards. We have most of the rights and responsibilites of US Citizens, except for of course the fact that we cannot vote, or serve in the military or other positions that require US citizenship. The green card is issued every 10 years,and ours are up for renewal in 2013, for a fee of I believe $290 per person.
As most of you know about me, I was born in England, and apart from 5 years of my life, lived in Canada after my parents emmigrated in 1969, for most of my life until age 31. That whole time I was a permanent, legal resident of Canada but not a citizen. After I turned 18, I couldn't vote. I finally applied for and became a proud Canadian citizen right before I moved to the US! And now of course, I cannot vote here! It is very frustrating to live in a place where you cannot vote and have a say in the government! At some point in the future I may decide to apply for US Citizenship, as I have experienced living in a country where you are not a citizen twice now, and would like to vote at some point in my life! I would like my daughters to have that opportunity. Most people assume that after this long, the girls and I are automatically US Citizens simply because I married a US citizen, but I'm here to tell you that is not the case! As Kristen rapidly approaches turning 18, and Karina not far behind her, I want them both to have all the opportunities and chances available to them, and since they are probably going to live here for most of their lives now, like me, it will be so much easier for them to obtain their US citizenship this way, and become dual citizens of both Canada and the US.
If a child is adopted by a US citizen before they turn 18, that child automatically becomes a US citizen themselves, without having to go through all the red tape, paperwork and $675 naturalization fee per person. At some point in the future, we will have to still apply for a citizenship certificate for them, at a fee of $420 pp, but that's still a good bit less than the other fee!
Karina has expressed an interest in possibly joining the US National Guard, she is thinking of either going into pediatrics or dentistry, and they have a training program where they put their recruits through all their schooling, in return for a weekend a month of service. Of course, there is the possibility of them being deployed to any of the world's trouble spots,of which we are well aware. Kristen's boyfriend has just joined with them and has begun his journey to be a doctor with them. Karina would be eligible to join them if that's what she decides sometime during her 11th grade school year, as long as she is a US citizen by then.
The process which I have just begun of this step-parent adoption should be quite simple;we can file the paperwork ourselves at our local courthouse and then wait for a date with the judge. Because of the nature of our case and the unfortunate fact that their father has been deceased for some time, we don't forsee any problems, and we will only have a filing fee to pay versus hiring a lawyer to do it for us. It's supposed to take somewhere in the vicinity of 3-4 months to complete.
Kristen and Karina have asked us over the years if we were planning on Russell adopting them ever, and they are both agreeable and excited about it,both for the opportunities becoming able to be a US citizen will give them, and to officially be Russell's daughters as opposed to step-daughters. Although, that distinction has never been an issue or a problem, the girls have always regarded Russell as their dad and them as his daughters. It's just that officially being his daughters will give them citizenship in the easiest, quickest, most economical way. They have expressed however that they do want to keep the last name they have had all their lives, so their names will not be changing, they will still be Naylors, and both Russell and I are perfectly okay with that.In fact, I wouldn't have it any other way.
That being said, I want you all to know, and it is my deepest and most fervent prayer that you do, that Randy is not being dishonored by this process. First and foremost, God blessed Randy and I with Kristen and Karina, and it is through the two of them that he lives on. The three of us all lovingly and fondly remember our dear husband and daddy, and always will. Nobody will ever take his place. All of our 10 years together, Russell has been the most supportive and loving husband to me and daddy to the girls, and has loved them from the beginning of our marriage as his own. People that don't know our situation assume that the girls are his, and are very surprised if they find out , especially if they have known us for a while, because everyone acts and is family. He understands when we have bad days and understands on sad anniversaries when we are missing Randy, and wouldn't have it any other way. The girls love Randy, and he will always be with them, guiding them,and always hold a special place in their hearts. In fact, when Kristen gets married, she is going to carry pansies in her bouquet -she says that way her daddy will be with her, she remembers how those pansies grew wild for 2 or 3 years at the cemetery and how Mom N made those beautiful dried flower pictures with them!
Anyway, I felt like I owe you, as Randy's family, the respect and courtesy of the knowledge of the proceedings down here and the reasonings behind them. Most importantly, I hope you all understand that this step parent adoption in no way takes anything, the title of "daddy" , or the love, away from Randy. We loved him then, now, and forever. If any of you have any thoughts, comments or questions, please do not hesitate to contact me!
,
I'm so glad that Randy has a big family, I just wish we could see you all more often! Or at all! Maybe this summer... I am thinking of doing a driving holiday... but we'll see...
Love,
Jackie, Kristen and Karina
If you would please post this on BLOG for me, that would be great! Thanks!
Jackie
Hello, my dear in-law family...
This is probably going to be quite long, so please bear with me! I wanted to write you all, and this is for everyone, Mom N, Randy's brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, and all of their spouses, children, etc!
I wanted to let you all know about a process I have begun, and that is the step-parent adoption by Russell of Kristen and Karina. The thought process in doing this has been a long time in coming, and for that there are several reasons, but I want to include you all in this each step of the way as Kristen and Karina's daddy's family.
Russell and I have been married now for 10 years, and Kristen is now 17, about to turn 18 in September, and Karina will turn 16 this coming May. We have been talking for years about the probability that someday Russell will adopt the girls, but given their ages now has to be the time if we are going to do it. There is a very real practical reason for an adoption, and it has to do with citizenship and the USCIS-United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
As you may or may not know, when Russell and I became engaged and planned for the girls and I to move to the States, it began a very long and expensive process. It was a trail of red tape and paperwork that involved forms, consulate visits, medical exams, and waiting. The INS, as it was known back then, had to be very sure that we were not wanting to come into the States for any other reason other than for me to marry Russell and for us to become a family. Then, when we were approved, and we moved south of the border, we had to complete more paperwork immediately upon getting married to "adjust our status" and a few months later, again, after expense and paperwork, became conditional temporary residents. Two years later, the three of us became permanent residents, or legal "aliens", (boy do I love that term- NOT!), but that is the legal term by which they call us here, meaning that we have green cards. We have most of the rights and responsibilites of US Citizens, except for of course the fact that we cannot vote, or serve in the military or other positions that require US citizenship. The green card is issued every 10 years,and ours are up for renewal in 2013, for a fee of I believe $290 per person.
As most of you know about me, I was born in England, and apart from 5 years of my life, lived in Canada after my parents emmigrated in 1969, for most of my life until age 31. That whole time I was a permanent, legal resident of Canada but not a citizen. After I turned 18, I couldn't vote. I finally applied for and became a proud Canadian citizen right before I moved to the US! And now of course, I cannot vote here! It is very frustrating to live in a place where you cannot vote and have a say in the government! At some point in the future I may decide to apply for US Citizenship, as I have experienced living in a country where you are not a citizen twice now, and would like to vote at some point in my life! I would like my daughters to have that opportunity. Most people assume that after this long, the girls and I are automatically US Citizens simply because I married a US citizen, but I'm here to tell you that is not the case! As Kristen rapidly approaches turning 18, and Karina not far behind her, I want them both to have all the opportunities and chances available to them, and since they are probably going to live here for most of their lives now, like me, it will be so much easier for them to obtain their US citizenship this way, and become dual citizens of both Canada and the US.
If a child is adopted by a US citizen before they turn 18, that child automatically becomes a US citizen themselves, without having to go through all the red tape, paperwork and $675 naturalization fee per person. At some point in the future, we will have to still apply for a citizenship certificate for them, at a fee of $420 pp, but that's still a good bit less than the other fee!
Karina has expressed an interest in possibly joining the US National Guard, she is thinking of either going into pediatrics or dentistry, and they have a training program where they put their recruits through all their schooling, in return for a weekend a month of service. Of course, there is the possibility of them being deployed to any of the world's trouble spots,of which we are well aware. Kristen's boyfriend has just joined with them and has begun his journey to be a doctor with them. Karina would be eligible to join them if that's what she decides sometime during her 11th grade school year, as long as she is a US citizen by then.
The process which I have just begun of this step-parent adoption should be quite simple;we can file the paperwork ourselves at our local courthouse and then wait for a date with the judge. Because of the nature of our case and the unfortunate fact that their father has been deceased for some time, we don't forsee any problems, and we will only have a filing fee to pay versus hiring a lawyer to do it for us. It's supposed to take somewhere in the vicinity of 3-4 months to complete.
Kristen and Karina have asked us over the years if we were planning on Russell adopting them ever, and they are both agreeable and excited about it,both for the opportunities becoming able to be a US citizen will give them, and to officially be Russell's daughters as opposed to step-daughters. Although, that distinction has never been an issue or a problem, the girls have always regarded Russell as their dad and them as his daughters. It's just that officially being his daughters will give them citizenship in the easiest, quickest, most economical way. They have expressed however that they do want to keep the last name they have had all their lives, so their names will not be changing, they will still be Naylors, and both Russell and I are perfectly okay with that.In fact, I wouldn't have it any other way.
That being said, I want you all to know, and it is my deepest and most fervent prayer that you do, that Randy is not being dishonored by this process. First and foremost, God blessed Randy and I with Kristen and Karina, and it is through the two of them that he lives on. The three of us all lovingly and fondly remember our dear husband and daddy, and always will. Nobody will ever take his place. All of our 10 years together, Russell has been the most supportive and loving husband to me and daddy to the girls, and has loved them from the beginning of our marriage as his own. People that don't know our situation assume that the girls are his, and are very surprised if they find out , especially if they have known us for a while, because everyone acts and is family. He understands when we have bad days and understands on sad anniversaries when we are missing Randy, and wouldn't have it any other way. The girls love Randy, and he will always be with them, guiding them,and always hold a special place in their hearts. In fact, when Kristen gets married, she is going to carry pansies in her bouquet -she says that way her daddy will be with her, she remembers how those pansies grew wild for 2 or 3 years at the cemetery and how Mom N made those beautiful dried flower pictures with them!
Anyway, I felt like I owe you, as Randy's family, the respect and courtesy of the knowledge of the proceedings down here and the reasonings behind them. Most importantly, I hope you all understand that this step parent adoption in no way takes anything, the title of "daddy" , or the love, away from Randy. We loved him then, now, and forever. If any of you have any thoughts, comments or questions, please do not hesitate to contact me!
,
I'm so glad that Randy has a big family, I just wish we could see you all more often! Or at all! Maybe this summer... I am thinking of doing a driving holiday... but we'll see...
Love,
Jackie, Kristen and Karina
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