By Kenneth Junkins, JFA President
Dear Cousins:
Father's Day 2008 has just passed, and though this is another of those "Hallmark Holidays," a commercially created event, I take great pride in the family I have, in my wife and five sons, and now especially, in my new grandson.
Robert Joseph Bellow Junkins was born to my son Adam and his wife Amber on May 9, 2008.
My family is all important to me, and this includes my extended JFA family. We (the Association) have been apart for a long time and are growing older together. Some of us will be able to gather together this August at the next JFA reunion, but many of us are home-bound or unable to travel due to the economy or family commitment. I know that my sister and her family are unable to travel this summer, and that many of the directors must stay close to home.
I believe the nature of the JFA, as a social organization that gets together on a semi-regular basis, is changing. Several of us in the eastern states have been getting together for mini-reunions and have been actively sharing family information with each other. But, the response to the 2008 reunion announcement has been less than enthusiastic. This will be the main issue facing the JFA directors when we meet this summer. It is my hope that even if we have seen the last of the "grand reunions," that cousins across the country will continue to gather in the family name and report to the Association of these meetings.
On the other hand, some major work has recently been done on the on-line version of the JFA family tree, as well as, the JFA website, to bring current family information and news to the many Junkins cousins across the country. Ann Cheney and others have been working on content for the website and we will be broadly announcing its availability soon. The family tree component will allow research, as well as the ability of individuals to add or update information on the tree, and the website component will allow for interactive discussion.
Hopefully, as we reassess the nature and working of the JFA this summer, and get input from our many cousin-members, we will find a way to shape the JFA into a valuable organization that can continue to support our mission:
"To honor and perpetuate the memory of Robert Junkins and his wife, Sara Smyth, and all their descendants; to preserve the history of their life and to collect and preserve genealogical records of the family; to foster a spirit of fellowship among all Junkins/Junkin/McJunkins/Jonking."
With love, Ken Junkins, President, JFA