Casey Family Association

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Mary Lea (Glover) Burlison, Editor
The Value of Family Reunions

Often in our hustle and bustle of life, too little attention is given to the family. After all, the family is the most divine institution upon which all human happiness and destinies depend. God believes in families! He divided people into families from the time of creation and also describes the Church as the whole family in heaven and earth.

The history of family is like that of a race. They stand apart by themselves. Family members, each generation in its turn, along through the ages, ask the same questions. "Who am I?" "Where did I come from?" "What have I inherited?" "Where am I going?" "What is my destiny?" The centuries come and go, and with them people, as individuals, live on in the children as God planned; the great multiplying power goes on!

It is no light task to trace backward the history of a large family as we are endeavoring to do with our Casey's. Care and patience must mark our every step! Of prime importance is the thorough knowledge of lines of descent, I believe.

We can proudly trace members of our great Casey Clan back far beyond the birth of this nation, to colonial times and follow them through the years as pioneers of our western civilization. In the future, we hope to trace them further back to our ancestors in Ireland and Wales. This is not a 'one person' or 'one clique' work. You, as a member of the Clan, should feel the desire and eagerness to help work toward the goal!
Our immigrant grandparents who landed on these shores in the early 1700's were probably lonely for members of our family they had left behind. They most assuredly were brave and courageous! If Abner and Harriet (Green) Casey, whom we are proud to call our ancestors, could come to life right now and see the vast multitude of men, women and children who have descended from them, I believe they would be proud of their progeny.

One of the objects of our reunions, of course, is to give us instant pleasure and gratification at meeting our kinsmen and kinswomen face to face. We love to greet each other, cultivate our acquaintances and to sympathize with each other in our sorrows, as well as rejoice in triumphs and plans. Just these things would amply repay us for the time and expense of reunions, but the rewards go beyond. We must think of our Reunions as 'permanent'; something we will never consider stopping! Nothing valuable can be achieved without thorough, efficient and permanent organization. We can be justly proud that our Casey Family Association has already progressed to a point that insures our permanence in the hearts of our members.
We have laid a strong foundation. Now, we must pass on the legacy to future generations by instilling the pride, history and love of this family in our children's hearts.

Viewpoint

Mary Lea (Glover) Burlison, Editor
Meaningful Family Gatherings

All occasions when families get together are special. The main object of these gatherings should not be to exchange gifts, if it is a holiday, birthday, etc., so much as to see the family enjoying one another, reminiscing, visiting and sharing good food. And, as the old saying goes: "To see how fat all the old folks are, and to learn all the babies' names."
Make plans well in advance of an event and invite 'all' your family. Sure, all families have characters who are less popular than others, and some who are forever the darlings of the clan, but to complete the patchwork of our lives, we need to get to know all members of our families, young and old. With the right attitude, we can learn to appreciate every member for what they have to offer. The opinion we have of someone may change as we visit and get to know each other better.
Take pictures, and then more pictures, at every family meeting. Many years after the event a child will be able to see that his or her aunts and uncles, grandparents and cousins were there, enjoying rocking, holding and talking to them when they were the newest member of the family.
Cousins will remember in later years, the times they played together at these special times. The girls may recall the afternoons they shared playing upstairs at their grandparents' house, arranging and rearranging the doll house, working on a puzzle together or playing a game of Checkers. When they are older, the boys may remember how they built a Lego city together the afternoon they slipped away from the crowd to an upstairs room for some quite time. Maybe an afternoon walk to the pond, after a delicious meal together, will be the special memory for the cousins, aunts and uncles, remembering how they stopped to skip rocks on the water and fed bread to the ducks and geese. Special memories may be of the time the children, as well as adults, stopped to play on the park swings, slides and merry-go-rounds. Maybe it will be remembering a romp in the yard with cousins and a new puppy. We never know what will remain in our minds for years to come.
People who are raised sharing family oriented get-togethers seem to grow up with a greater assurance as to their worth and place in society. Both young and old need to know that they are loved unconditionally by a special group called 'family'.
Let's invite the young and old of our families to be a part of our special times together. Everyone will be the richer for it and we will be making memories to treasure.

Mary Lea (Glover) Burlison
Editor, Casey Clan Tidings
Casey Family Association

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