Carrying Her With Me

            I was born Anna Gail Culbertson on February 15th, 2002.  My mother and father had trouble deciding on a name to give me due to the fact that my parents could not agree.  Going back between Caroline and Anna, they ultimately decided on Anna.  My first name has no origin to either side of my family, and my parents purposely decided that because they knew my middle name was going to hold that position.

            My middle name holds a very significant place in my heart.  On my fathers side of the family, we have lost many loved ones from cancer.  I never received the chance to meet my grandmother, grandfather, and my Aunt Gail.  They all passed when my father was fairly young, so my parents have tried to preserve their legacy in our family names.  When my father was two, his sister passed away at the age of 14 from luekemia.  He decided the best way to honor her was to allow me to be a part of her legacy.  This is the reason my parents decided to give me the middle name Gail, and I carry her name with pride every single day.

            When discussing our family origin with my father, he informed me what he knew about our family dissent.  He knew that the name Culbertson had ties of Scottish, Irish, and English heritage.  My ancestors came to the United States in the 1800's, and the name Culbertson has remained consistent throughout the generations.  When my dad was little, he moved around a lot.  He lived all around the country, but ultimately found his way to Bannockburn, just a few miles away from where we live now.

            My mothers side of the family name, Dumas, is of French dissent.  My grandfather’s family came from Canada, and decided to start their lives in New York.  My great great grandfather and great grandfather both drove bread trucks, and found their way to Chicago.  Both of my mothers parents grew up in the Chicagoland area, and knew they wanted to raise their family somewhere in Illinois.  My mother was born and grew up about an hour and a half away from where I live now, in South Holland, Illinois.