I was raised on a family farm near Rochester, Minnesota. As a boy I was fascinated by the stories my Great Grandmother Lydia Heyn told about the “olden days”. Those afternoons on the front porch sparked a life-long interest in history and genealogy.
I am a graduate of the University of Minnesota, who retired in 2019 after a 30-year career with Tolomatic a Minneapolis manufacturing company. During most of my time with the company I managed the Finance and IT Departments. I retired as Vice-President of Corporate Governance after setting up repair facilities for the company in Suzhou China and Russelsheim Germany.
Since my retirement I have repurposed my time and energy to genealogy particularly to the Province of Posen. Since 2020 I have served as the Treasurer for the Germanic Genealogical Society (GGS) located in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. In 2023 I was elected the Treasurer for the International Germanic Genealogy Partnership (IGGP).
In May 2023 I published my first book: Standing at the Grave: A Family’s Journey from the Grand Duchy of Posen to the Prairies of North Dakota.
In May 2025 the German translation of the book has been published with the title: Das Grab in der Ferne: Von der Provinz Posen in die Neue Welt
In addition to writing my book I have written the following articles for Genealogical Society publications
Germanic Genealogical Society
- The Mystery of Marie Elizabethe Timm – Volume 22, No. 1, 2 Spring Summer 2019
- Researching in Posen – Volume 23 No. 1, 2 Spring Summer 2020
- Finding Aunt Ottilie – Volume 25 No. 1, 2 Spring Summer 2022
- DNA Ethnicity: A Case Study – Volume 25, No. 3, 4 Fall – Winter 2022
- What is a Hauland? – Volume 26 No. 3, 4 Fall Winter 2023
- Paul Dams Familienchronik – Volume 27 No. 1, 2 Spring Summer 2024
- Two Cows and a Pig – Volume 28 No. 1, 2 Spring Summer 2025
International Journal of Germans from Lithuania
- A Family’s Flight from Two Wars – Die Weite, Issue Number 6, Spring/Summer 2024