Kelsey Putnam (left) and Hailey St. Andrew search for family history in the computer room at Fort de Buade Museum in St. Ignace. The LaSalle High School sophomores say although the work is difficult, they are enjoying the challenge. Armed with books, papers, and computers, five students open the wood-framed door at the Fort de Buade Museum in St. Ignace to begin their after-school project. Every Tuesday evening since January, the students have been tracing their family roots in a quest to learn about their ancestors and discover their family's unique story. In the process, they also are improving their computer skills and learning about the history of the Straits area.

Participating in the project are LaSalle High School junior Catelyn McLean and sophomores Kelsey Putnam and Hailey St. Andrew, eighth grade student Zachary Major, and seventh grade students Gavin St. Onge and Josh Lennington.

The volunteer program is organized by Sue St. Onge and Judi Engle. Ms. St. Onge is a youth services coordinator with the Education Department of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. During the day, she works from a classroom at St. Ignace Middle School, providing academic mentoring and cultural preservation programming for students. The project, she said, is not restricted to tracing Native American roots, and some participants are learning they have Italian, French, or Irish ancestors.

LaSalle High School Junior Catelyn McLean (left) and eighth grade student Zachary Major compare notes as they research their genealogy Tuesday, March 24. Seventh grade students Gavin St. Onge (right) and Josh Lennington use laptop computers to search genealogy Web sites for information. For this program, Ms. Engle is volunteering her time as a family history specialist. She has spent eight years researching the history of many area families. She is the director of the Fort de Buade Museum and president of the Michilimackinac Historical Society.

Also assisting the students is Joyce Belonga, Mackinac County's 4-H educator from Michigan State University Extension office. She is providing the students with project ideas and information.

Seeking insight into the past and looking for similar personality traits spurred student Zachary Major to participate. So far, he has traced one side of his family back about 60 years, finding members born in St. Ignace and on Mackinac Island.

"I'm getting more pride in my heritage," he said. "I know what they used to do, and I try to take what they used to do and make it myself. Doesn't always work, but I try."

This is the first time the program has been offered and organizers say they plan to offer it again next year. The students say they would recommend it.

"I think it's really cool," said Mr. Major. "I'm enjoying it."

He is using reference books available at the museum, and through his computer research, he has found that many genealogical sites charge a fee for information. He has used the obstacle as a challenge and is learning ways to find information online without paying for it.

"We're doing research papers in school," he said, "and now that I know how to do this, it is easier to research different people in history."

Miss St. Andrew and Miss Putnam agree their computer research skills have improved since joining the group.

"I wanted to see if I'm related to any famous people," said Miss St. Andrew. So far, she has traced her family to 1824 in Ireland. The research, she said, is "very, very difficult," although she finds the work fun and she is glad she signed up for the project.

Her mother, she said, also is finding the information interesting.

Miss McLean has traced her family roots on her mother's side to Scotland. She is just beginning to research her father's side of the family.

"I wanted to learn my family history, where I came from, and who I am, basically," said student Gavin St. Onge, who has traced one side of his family to French and Native people to the mid-1800s.

For his research, he is using the computer, the book "Before The Bridge," and several Native American books kept at the museum.

Like others in the group, his computer research skills are improving. He is learning key words that result in better searches, and he has discovered helpful free Web sites.

Josh Lennington already has documented relatives in the 1800s. He is getting a lot of helpful information from family members.

The work is difficult, he said, although he is glad he is involved with the program.

"It's sort of boring," he said, "but in the long run, I think it's pretty cool."

Once they finish a diagram of their family tree, said Ms. St. Onge, they will look for stories behind the people, who they were, what they did, and how they fit into the community.

"You leave behind more than just a name," she said. "You leave a legacy, and that is the part we're working into now."

The students are talking with relatives, hearing family stories, and gaining a perspective of the history of their family, said Ms. St. Onge. They are learning about their ancestors, what they did while they were here, and they hope to discover why their family settled in the area. She hopes the knowledge the students are gaining will help them make positive choices in their lives.

"A lot of times," she said, "they see great people that they've come from and they feel a lot of pride and power."

Mrs. Belonga has suggested the students invite family members to a potluck dinner. Each family should bring old photographs and a dish to pass made from a favorite family recipe. The photographs should spark memories and the students would record the conversations. The information later would be added to their family files.

"When you get a family together like that," said Ms. Engle, "when you start the process of going back when an elder looks at a photo, they probably wouldn't have remembered any of the stories just walking down the street, and now they remember because the picture is there."

"It's like making a quilt," said Ms. St. Onge. "You put pieces of it together and it comes out and you get a bigger picture."

A grant from the St. Ignace Area Community Foundation has provided a copier and a printer, which allows students to copy family photos for their books and return the original photos to owners.

The students also are learning about area history. They learn about Pontiac's Rebellion in school, said Ms. St. Onge, but they have no idea that their family members may have been involved in the attack on Fort Michilimackinac until they do the research.

"It's a local thing, it happened here, and it wasn't just some far off thing," she said, "so they take a little bit more interest in that history. That's one thing I've noticed."

The family research is also important for local history, said Ms. Engle.

The students, she said, are saving a piece of history that if they wait another generation could be lost. "Grandma is going to remember her grandma, and that goes a long way back. So that's what we're really trying to do."

Copies of the student's research will be kept at the museum and can be used as reference by others seeking to trace family roots. Anyone is welcome to research family history at the museum, said Ms. Engle.

Within the next few weeks, each student will be given a notebook to fill with information they learned. Eventually, said Ms. St. Onge, it will be a family book.

"They have something concrete to take out of here with them," she said. "Not only the memories, but something to look at and to share and then it's there for their families. And they can add to it."

The program is scheduled to last until the end of the school year, although students may continue to work on their project through the summer.