Iris Alicea Flores | The Healing Gift of Knowing Her Family Stories

#10  Iris began researching her family history when she was an adult to discover the story of her Abuela (Grandmother) Faustina, whom she never met.  Iris’ story is about the gift she received by learning the story of Abuela Faustina and other relatives.  But the gift wasn’t just for her.  She saw firsthand how much what she learned was a gift to other family members.

In this episode Iris shares:

• She knew so little about her father’s family that she didn’t know the woman she called Abuela (Grandmother) wasn’t related through blood [5:21]
• She started researching family to know Abuela Faustina and as Iris did Faustina became real [6:13]
• The experience with her grandfather when she realized the true gift of sharing family stories [10:26]
• How learning about her father’s childhood helped her better understand him [13:48]
• Her advice for those beginning their research, especially those who are afraid of what they may find [21:59]

About Iris:

Iris, originally from Puerto Rico, has lived in Massachusetts since she was 8 years old. She is the oldest of six children and is now married with two amazing kids, who literally were her inspiration to finally follow her dream. Iris always loved history and research, but life took her in a different direction. Six years ago she made the decision to start finding her story and really explore her love for history. In this journey Iris discovered the gift of giving someone a piece of their story. She discovered the healing that can come from knowing more of your family story and how important it is for Latinos, Latinas, LatinX to know more about their history. Iris knows how empowered you can feel from knowing your history and that is how she knew her purpose and her mission came to fruition, Descubre Tu Historia was born.

 Connect with Iris:

Website: descubretuhistoriablog.wordpress.org
Instagram: @descubretuhistoria
 
 

Also Mentioned:

Sociedad Puertorriqueña de Genealogía - Website and Facebook page

Tips:

• Searching for “Puerto Rico Genealogy Society” will not bring up their website as a top result.  If not using the link provided, search for “Sociedad Puertorriqueña de Genealogía.”
• There is a bar at the top of their website with flags, click on the flags to change the language of the website.

Episode Sponsor:

 Episode sponsored by Heather Murphy's signature 1:1 service, Stories in Your Roots.

Get a free guide, "7 Ways You (Unintentionally) Sabotage Your Family Tree" and have more success as you research your family history. 

Are we connected on Instagram or Facebook yet? Find me @msheathermurphy