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These Are My Kinfolk: A Special Juneteenth Reunion

podcast Jun 19, 2025

Have you ever felt that nagging sense that there was "something special" about your family's story, but couldn't quite put your finger on what it was? What if I told you that sometimes the most profound family discoveries come not from years of digging through dusty records, but from a single unexpected phone call that changes everything?

That's exactly what happened to Linda Epps Parker when Lisa Elzey called her out of the blue with news that would transform not just her understanding of her family's past, but her entire relationship with Juneteenth and what it means to belong to a family story.

From Longing to Belonging

Growing up in New Jersey, Linda always sensed there was something extraordinary about her father's family. Her dad would tell stories about his childhood in Virginia—how he and his brothers were sent back South every summer to work the family property, milking cows and doing farm chores until he declared at 18 that he was "done" and would never go back. True to his word, he never did, and neither did Linda.

"I just always felt like there was something there and I needed to know more. But my dad wasn't a real talker and so I couldn't get a lot out of him."

That feeling of incompleteness, that sense of missing pieces in her family's story, would follow Linda for decades. But then came the phone call that changed everything. When Lisa contacted Linda about her connection to Hawkins Wilson, the formerly enslaved man whose 1877 letter became the centerpiece of the award-winning Ancestry documentary, Linda didn't just discover distant relatives. She discovered that her intuition about her family's significance had been right all along.

The Whole Story

If you haven't already heard Linda's remarkable journey from longing to belonging, take a moment to listen in:

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🎧 Listen to the full episode to discover:

The unexpected phone call that connected Linda to relatives she'd never known existed
How her journey to Virginia became a profound reunion with Kelley and Marie, descendants of Hawkins Wilson
The incredible coincidence involving her father's birthday that felt like ancestral guidance
Why this discovery transformed Linda's understanding of Juneteenth from historical fact to personal celebration
How family separation across generations can find healing through genealogical connection

The Power of One Story

Linda's experience beautifully illustrates how family history research can transform us from feeling disconnected to deeply rooted. When she describes meeting Kelley and Marie, descendants of Hawkins Wilson who had spent years researching their family, she captures something profound about family connection:

"There was such a locked connection when we were brought together and it's like, wow, you know, these are my kinfolk and they had this longing to know where they came from, the same as Valerie and I did."

What strikes me most about Linda's story is how it demonstrates that family separation—whether caused by slavery, migration, or simply the passage of time—doesn't have to be permanent. Hawkins Wilson spent his entire life searching for the family he was separated from as a child. Though he never found them, his persistent love and longing for connection created a bridge that would eventually reunite his descendants with Linda's family more than a century later.

Your Story

Think about the feelings Linda describes, that sense that there was "something special" about her family, that intuition that important stories were waiting to be discovered. Do you have similar feelings about branches of your family tree? Are there relatives you've lost touch with or family stories that feel incomplete?

Linda's experience reminds us that sometimes the most profound discoveries come not from what we find in records, but from who finds us. Her story began not with her research, but with someone else's. Kelley and Marie's dedicated work to understand their own family's past created the path that led back to Linda.

Story Seeds 🌱

Plant these conversation starters and watch your family stories grow.

For older relatives: "What family traditions or gatherings do you remember from when you were young? Were there relatives who lived far away that you wished you could see more often?"
For parents/grandparents: "Have you ever had a feeling that there were important family stories we don't know yet? What would you most want to discover about our family's past?"
For siblings/cousins: "Do you remember any family stories about relatives who moved away or lost touch with the family? What do you know about why they left?"
For extended family: "What do you know about our family's connection to significant historical events or places? Were there family members who lived through major historical moments?"

Story Sparks 🔑

Unlock your family's hidden stories with these research techniques.

Create a list of "missing relatives" as an Ancestry Network in your family tree. Include names mentioned in family stories but not documented, and relatives who seem to disappear from records after certain dates.
Research historical context for your family's geographic movements. If relatives moved during specific time periods (like the Great Migration), understanding the historical context can help you locate records and understand their motivations.
Document family feelings and intuitions alongside facts. Linda's sense that there was "something special" about her family proved prophetic. These feelings often point us toward important discoveries.

Linda's transformation from someone with unanswered questions to someone who can say "I know who I am, I know where my people come from" reminds us that family history isn't just about the past. It's about understanding our place in an ongoing story of love, resilience, and connection that spans generations.

When Linda thinks about Juneteenth now, she doesn't just think about historical significance. She thinks about Hawkins Wilson's love for his family, Kelley and Marie's dedication to honoring their ancestors, and the beautiful way that research and love combined to create new connections. As she puts it:

"When I think of Juneteenth now, I have a smile on my face because I think of what went before to get us to the point that we are now."

Ready to discover more stories like Linda's? Subscribe to Stories That Live In Us wherever you get your podcasts. And if this episode touched your heart, please leave us a rating and review—it helps other family story seekers find us.