I am half Finnish. My father's paternal grandfather, Oscar Wiita (Viita), immigrated to the USA in 1893 and settled in Massachusetts. He emigrated from Rovaneimi, Finland. From what I've heard, he was a reindeer herder up in Samiland (Lapland) when he was a young man. So I am thinking that I probably have some Sami blood in my veins as well.

His son, my grandfather, Aale Ilmari Wiita was the first one in our family to be born here in the USA. His name was Americanized to Arlie when he started school. He had older sibilings that were born in Finland. He was born in 1905 and died in 1988. Gramps came from a family of 13 kids. I think that it would have been 14 children if one of his older siblings didn't die young. That sibling (my dad's blood uncle) was buried somewhere in Finland.

I have always been interested in tracing my Finnish ancestry. I am very proud of being part Finnish. The only thing is that my great-grandfather Wiita was actually adopted by the Wiita family, back in Finland, as a young boy (I heard he had been orphaned or something like that). His original biological surname was different but we don't know what it was. So even though we carry the Wiita name, our extended, biological Finnish relatives may have a name that is different.

I would love to share any information I have with other Wiita's out there, to trade notes to see if we are related. I can be contacted at the following e-mail: luvsblkcat@aol.com.

Robyn (Wiita) Gotsis