Hey, Janice;

I was in a similar situation several years ago trying to find my Canadian Douglass cousins. All I knew was that in 1912 some of them were living in New Liskeard, Ontario (way, way North), one in St. Catharines, and one in Oklahoma. I had no idea if any of them were still in Canada, much less where they might now be living.

So I did a Canada411.org search and received about 20 names and phone numbers. One of those numbers, however, was in New Liskeard. So, I called the number and as it turned out, nearly 90 years later, the phone number belonged to my third cousin, Douglas Douglass. He gave me numbers of his other siblings and I phoned them. I also continued on down the list of Douglass names from Canada411 and found two other cousins, one more third cousin, and a third cousin once removed.

Was I nervous about making that first phone call? Heck yeah! But I'm SO glad that I did it. Had I not, I would never have found the dozens of Douglass cousins with whom I now share an wonderful relationship, and I even attended the Douglass family reunion last year in Edmonton, AB and met even more Douglass cousins.

It's worth a shot. Good luck. And remember, the most they can do is say "no," and hang up the phone. But in all likelihood, even if they're not related to you, they'll be kind and understanding.

- Lisa B. Lee, PLCGS
Oakland, CA