10/13/2026
A family reunion I’ll never forget. ❤️
Across 4 generations an ocean of separation, and a reunion more meaningful than I could have imagined.
This is Part 2 of our Italian family story. If you missed Part 1, go back and watch how this incredible connection began.
After more than a century, we traveled back to the Italian town my great-grandfather left behind to meet the family we never fully knew we had.
What started decades ago with my grandfather tracking down long-lost relatives eventually brought us all together for an experience I’ll cherish for the rest of my life.
We walked the same streets, visited the churches and cemeteries where generations of our ancestors had been, and stood on the very land our family had lived and worked on for centuries.
But the most incredible part wasn’t the history. It was the people.
The hugs, the laughter, the homemade meals, and the conversations pieced together through broken Italian, English, and Google Translate.
Despite growing up thousands of miles apart, speaking different languages, and living completely different lives, there was this immediate sense of familiarity.
For my mother, who has always been so deeply connected to family, it was especially meaningful to finally meet relatives she’d heard about but never known.
It made me think about the courage it must have taken for my great-grandfather to leave everything behind, knowing he might never see his family again.
It's not lost on me how fortunate I am to have this be a happy story, where many in America today didn't have such a Choice when their ancestors were brought here or the ability to trace their family back in this way.
And it does make me appreciate the sacrifices and bravery of immigrants today, who are often blamed and demonized, despite every American story starting with just that, one brave immigrant.
All of that said, ending on a positive note about how incredible it is that, generations later, we found our way back to one another.
Family has a remarkable way of transcending borders, oceans, languages, and time. ❤️