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Founding and Future

Charles Burns Family Association Mark

The following cousins provided the funding to create the Charles Burns Family Association in 2022.

∼ We Are Grateful ∼


Sherry Lynn Baker ∼ Shelia Carpenter Barela ∼ Sharon Burns Boake ∼ Nancy Burns Bohn ∼ Diane Burns Brads ∼ Dennis Burns ∼ Gary Burns ∼ Thomas Burns ∼ Paul Douglas and Janice Carmack ∼ Delbert and Charlotte Collins ∼ Joe and Joyce Collins ∼ Wanda Hunter Day ∼ Celia Fry ∼ Mary Burns Furr ∼ Ruth Rogers Hawkins ∼ Michele Lyons Lefkovitz ∼ Denruth Barre Lougeay ∼ Paula Burns McEvoy ∼ Elizabeth Grigsby Michael ∼ Larry Montgomery ∼ Nancy Nabors ∼ Nancy Burns Niemeyer ∼ Sandra Parks ∼ Andrew Sebastian ∼ Ellece Burns Varnes ∼ Nancy Westfall ∼ Lee Wilson

Origins

The idea of creating a group to connect with people interested in the life and family of Charles Burns began in 2012 when a Descendants of Charles Burns, Sr of Clay County Kentucky group was formed on Facebook™.

Over time, when people who descended from various children of Charles Burns requested to join the group, the scope was enlarged to include all descendants of Charles Burns, not just those whose ancestors lived Clay County, Kentucky.

Furthermore, when people who were not sure if they descended from Charles Burns requested to join,  we welcomed them.

Growing Pains

We discovered that Facebook™ is a good place to discover connections, but it is not a good repository for storing and retrieving information published by group members.

Further, we have some major unknowns in our family tree. For example, did Charles Burns have more than one wife, and who were they? Who were Charles Burns parents, and where did they live? How many children did Charles Burns have, and who were they?

It is human nature to make speculations when there are unknowns. But on the Internet, speculation quickly becomes published as fact, and it became impossible to correct the myths surrounding Charles Burns.

There was also a feeling any effort to build a repository for the genealogy and history of the Charles Burns family should be independent of websites managed to pursue goals that may not be aligned with the specific needs of a family association.

Further, with explosion of DNA testing, we need to form DNA projects that will help us answer some of the questions that records alone cannot.

Incorporation

In 2021 a small group of Burns descendants began exploring the possibility of creating a nonprofit family association that would be independent of Facebook™, Ancestry™, and similar sites.

This group—the Executive Committee for Establishing the Charles Burns Family Association—prepared a vision, mission statement, organizational values, and a strategic plan.

The Executive Committee then held a Founding Cousins fundraising drive in 2022 to pay for legal guidance to create bylaws, incorporate as a 501(c)7 social club, and apply for nonprofit status with the IRS.

Once the legal framework was set up, the Executive Committee began set up:

  • the means to work collaboratively over the Internet,
  • financial, managerial, and reporting controls that comply with laws governing 501(c)7 nonprofits,
  • membership levels and fees;
  • building a website that would serve as a member communications hub, repository, and administrative platform for managing activities.
Next Steps

The immediate needs are to:

  • Form the membership and raise operating funds
  • Hold a membership meeting
  • Approve the by-laws
  • Elect a board of directors
  • Solicit input from members on their highest priorities for web content.

We will then start building a unified family tree and posting content of highest value to members.