CMJ Office Blog

Another Friday, another photo.

Michael Joseph Finnegan, my maternal uncle, is pictured on the left in a picture taken around 1954.

Brian Joseph Lee Johnson, my son, is pictured on the right in a picture taken in 2007.

The resemblance is freaky to me. Some of Brian’s pictures look like doubles of my uncle. It’s not the best example that at least one of my children got a few genes from me, but it’s not the worst.  Are there any family resemblances in your family photos?

Colleen

One of my greatest joys is assisting small business owners with administrative support.

I had a small business owner ask for help contacting their client base via a mail distribution campaign. The owner had a relatively new administrative assistant in the office.

I was retained to provide a more professional image/presentation for this firm.

It’s amazing what can be created when you merge Word documents with graphics, headers and footers. Creating flyers, newsletters, business correspondence and office documents led to an improved client base for the owner.

Within a week, the business owner had contacted me. Why? It’s simply because the owner had regained lost clients and wanted to personally thank me. A professional business letter can do wonders for your small business. I like to use OfficeReady among other tools.

Can your small business use a better professional image?

Colleen

Blog post for the 57^th Edition of the COG: Newspapers can be a wonderful source of family history information. Share some aspect about your family history that you learned about in a newspaper.

I received a newspaper clipping from across the pond awhile back. It literally opened a whole new generation to me.

A volunteer researcher at the Cheltenham Reference Library came across some interesting information in the Cheltenham Examiner and the London Gazette.

My great-great-great grandfather, George Bench, was a pub owner. The Rose and Crown was run by George Bench from 1856-1859 according to the listing in the Cheltenham Examiner. Also discovered, was the bankruptcy that later occurred in 1859 which was listed in the London Gazette 2/2/1859. Of course, I had no knowledge of this at all. My father was thrilled because the name of this family owned pub is the name of the pub in Disney World’s Epcot now. I just chuckle at that. It seems that Disney has done a better job with the name than my family did with it in England.

Within these newspaper clippings, George’s brother, Thomas, was mentioned. What interested me regarding this fact was that his brother was older and George’s first son was named Thomas. I later uncovered that their father was named Thomas as well.

This brought my Bench family back into the 1700s. Quite an accomplishment for someone that didn’t even know her great grandfather was from England before picking up genealogy research.

Colleen

This blog post is part of a genea-blogger challenge. The post is supposed to explain who you are, your work, your goals, why you love what you do, 3 blog articles (best, sassiest, and most beautiful), and then a conclusion paragraph explaining how you can get to know me better.

I am Colleen Marie Johnson of CMJ Office. My passions in life are family, genealogy and my virtual admin support business. English, writing and history have always been exciting to me.  My business goals include my niche and focusing more on working with historical and genealogical authors, speakers and researchers.  One of the ways I get to communicate tips, stories and interests is through my blog posts.  It’s incredibly thrilling for me to have this outlet.

I love what I do for many reasons. First, I love being home for my children. Second, genealogy research is a complete passion for me. I absolutely love discovering hidden treasures, facts and records for my own family and others. It is euphoric for me. Third, my job incorporates proofreading which happens to be another delight of mine. Errors seem to just jump out at me. This is a fabulous perk in my chosen field.  Finally, I love that I can blog.  It’s so much fun and I have met some truly wonderful individuals through this channel. 

1. Trust In Small Business (http://cmjoffice.com/blog/2008/09/05/trust-in-small-business). I consider this post my best because it caught the attention of an editor from BizzyWomen.com.  It is who I am which is a small business owner providing services.
2. Seeds Fell In Canada (http://cmjoffice.com/blog/2008/09/17/seeds-fell-in-canada). This post is my sassiest because I threw a little sarcasm in the post. A true trait of mine.
3. The Clune Family from Tierlaheen, County Clare (http://cmjoffice.com/blog/2008/03/03/the-clune-family-from-tierlaheen-county-clare). My most beautiful post is one that I hold dear. It includes a tour of my beloved Cliffs of Moher in County Clare, Ireland.

In conclusion, one of the ways that people can get to know me is by reading my blog postings. A more recent way would be through social networking groups via Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. From these, you will uncover my soft nougat inner layer; or perhaps, I’m chocolate filled. I do love chocolate. Doesn’t everyone?

Colleen M. Johnson

I’m starting a new adventure with my blog – A theme day.

I’ve decided to make it a Friday Photo Day posting. So, every Friday, I will be posting a new photo for everyone to enjoy.

My first photo is the Clune Family picture outside their home in Clouna, County Clare, Ireland. There isn’t a date on the photo. I’m guessing that this was taken around 1929 as my grandmother, Anna Clune, is not pictured. She was in America by that time. I’m also guessing that this was either Bridget Clune’s First Communion (a little old for that) or her Confirmation.

Pictured left to right: Bridget Clune O’Looney, Mary Clune Hogan, Thomas Clune, Margaret Clune Rynne, Patrick Clune and Mary O’Loughlin Clune (seated).