Don,
I am so delighted at your response. So, would the meeting therefore be the weekend of Sept. 9-11?

My father (Alfred Rondina) whose mother was Anastasia O'Leary (Carpenter), visited Ireland later in life and found a relative - at a pub, naturally. :+)

I wish to come over to find my roots - I just need to plan for good use of time, and would love to include meaningful interaction with other o'leary's.

Would you consider this to be a good use of time, or should I wait until the full-blown event?

Regarding the puddler history - was that a common living in the day?

I had not much hope in your response, so thank you so very much. You may contact me at j.thib@yahoo.com. Use "O'Leary" int he subject line should it go into Spam.

Many thanks, and all the best,
Jan Thibodeau-Rondina