Sometimes, finding family information begins in a non-suspecting way! Flight attendant Raymond DiBiasi was having a discussion with his mother about the family lore of being Armenian since having Italian cousins living in Sicily appeared to be a dead issue according to his late grandfather.

Raymond’s grandfather implied that there were no relatives left in Sicily when he emigrated to the U.S. over a century ago.

This discussion led to Raymond purchasing a DNA kit from Ancestry.com. However, the results were more than surprising! Raymond’s DNA showed only 10% Armenian but 90% Italian.

Raymond was ecstatic to discover a second cousin living only a couple of hours from him. He immediately searched for Angela and found her on social media and was thrilled when she responded to him.

Angela was the missing link in this family. Angela’s grandfather and Raymond’s grandfather were brothers and would often visit each other in Brooklyn. The irony is that Raymond’s family didn’t have knowledge of these visits.

It would be a number of years before Raymond and Angela would meet in Pozzollo, Sicily, the birthplace of both of their grandparents. This reunion would include meeting many new cousins.

When that time finally arrived for the anticipated reunion, Mt. Etna erupted, and Raymond was forced to make alternative plans enroute. He rented a car and drove many hours to the seaside town of Pozzollo, Sicily.

What an amazing reunion! He was finally able to meet cousin Angela and so many other cousins in that town. He enjoyed hearing of their family stories and seeing family similarities in photos. 

Raymond felt so connected to Pozzollo as many cousins of his now late mother were well-known in the area. His mother would have been thrilled to learn about these existing cousins.

Walking in the same footsteps as his grandfather made Raymond realize that he had gone full circle. He felt a new respect and closeness to his grandfather’s Italian roots.

Reflecting on the discussion with his mother, Raymond realized that without the questioning of their Armenian heritage, the new door of their Italian history would not have been opened.

It is with a grateful heart that Raymond pursued the search of his heritage. Without it, the missing link to his past would have never been discovered.