My dad started clearing out his stuff before his hip replacement; he had a lot of family items, like news clippings of his cousin the ballet dancer (Nana's cousin Walter's daughter Susan ... convoluted, I know, but she was still listed as an emerita dance instructor at NYC Ballet until a few years ago!) or crumbling church documents all in German from his grandmother (or, judging by the date, possibly HER mother; incidentally, the document was written in the US, there having been a thriving German community where Nana Koch was born) ... and it hurt to have all these things in poor condition but saved anyway.
I scanned a lot of the paper, took my own things, and tossed a lot more.
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Liz
DD (3/2010)
"Make mistakes! Get messy!" - Miss Frizzle