Other Information

Research was conducted on my mother’s side of the family. I was traced back to the 1400’s. We have a very detailed book provided names and dates of individuals who are a part of my family heritage. Through the research my family learned that our family originated from Great Britain to America. Reading through the book provided great information. I only wish I had this type of information on my dad’s side of the family. Hopefully one day I will be able to find more information on where my dad’s family came from. The only thing I know is that my grandparents (dad’s parent) come to America through Ellis Island. Once my grandmother made it there, she had to change the spelling of her last name. I would love to go to Ellis Island and see if I can find more information on my grandparents arrival to America.

  

Assumptions & Stereotypes

An assumption most people think of when they think of a southern family living in Alabama is it that we are uneducated. This however is not the case. Even though most of my family didn’t attend college, they all graduated from high school or worked to earn their GED. They are hardworking and dedicated to making their life better by receiving an education to improve their living situation. Another assumption is that most people who are from Alabama are rednecks because we live a very southern lifestyle and do very southern activities.  Rednecks are considered to be poor, uneducated white farmers living in the south. My family did work as farmers in Alabama, but were not considered uneducated or poor. They did work hard for the things they had, but never had to do without food or housing.    

 

Ethnicity & Race

 From the research on my family, I found that we originated from an Irish and English background. We are of a non-Hispanic (Caucasian) background; however Hispanic members have married into our family making us a little more diverse. The Collins family name is Irish, and the Wilks family name is English.  I would love to know where my family originated from before coming to the United States. Hopefully I will be able to find the time one day to continue this research and find further information into my heritage.

Family Tree

Below is my family tree. There is more information onmy mother's side. My dad didn't know his grandparents so it made it very difficult to try and find information about them. This is the best I could do.

 

Beliefs, Values, Traditions, and Morals

The Collins Family is built around a strong sense of family, values, morals, and love. Most importantly our family believes that each member is to feel loved and included in our family. My family believes that family should get together often to catch up and enjoy each other. Our family is always there to support one another through good and bad times. Our family spends every holiday with each other. Our family gatherings are always full of good conversation, laughter, and a lot of eating.

We are a very religious and attend Catholic Mass every Sunday and for special religious holidays. Prayer is an important part of our family get-togethers. We believe it is important to pray before family dinners and encourage a love for Jesus. Each member of the family is raised in the Catholic Church attending mass weekly. We believe that everything we do or achieve is at the hands of Jesus.

  The Collins family also believes in honesty and the importance of work-ethic. As a family we instill the importance of being honest and truthful in everything we do. We also believe every member of the family should contribute to their family. My parent instilled the importance of having a good work ethic. They taught me the importance of working hard for the things I want or need.

Education is a high priority for my family. My parents have always taught me the importance of succeeding in school. My parents had a “law” regarding education. We were allowed to participate in various afterschool activities, but are school work always come first. Homework was down right when I came home and if grades every slipped I had to discontinue any of my afterschool activities. Even though education was a top priority, I was the first member of my family to attend college and graduate. It was a proud moment for my family.

The Collins family has many traditions that we celebrate. We are a very southern family who enjoys family get-togethers. During our get-togethers we enjoy family dinners full of “southern fixings,” like corn bread, pintos beans, fired chicken, turnip greens, and other southern dishes. We enjoy cooking and baking together for family holidays. We have family traditions associated with the holidays. During Thanksgiving my entire family gathers for one big family meal. During dinner, we all express one thing we are thankful for. This is one of my favorite parts of the holiday, besides eating of course. The elf on the shelf is another tradition that my family has just recently started for the kids in our family. The purpose of the elf on the shelf is watch the children during the day and then the elf reports back to the North Pole to provide “Santa” with a detailed report of the kids behavior. All the kids in my family look forward to Thanksgiving because they will finally get to see their elf.

Christmas is another holiday where we have family traditions built into the holiday.  Since we are a dedicated Catholic family, we attend midnight mass on Christmas Eve. This is another one of my favorite traditions. The church is full of Christmas joy, lights, and love for Jesus. Prior to Christmas Eve Mass, we celebrate the night by decorating Christmas Cookies for Santa Clause. The cookies we decorate are left for him to enjoy when he stops by our house. The kids write a note to leave with the cookies. As a family, we read Christmas stories and sign Christmas Carols. It’s a wonderful tradition that I plan on implementing with my own children.