Check the Ancestry app! Cheryl Butler-Brayboy stopped short in her tracks on her way to bed one evening when those words echoed loud and clear inside her heart. The voice was familiar. It took her a moment to place it, but she then realized it sounded exactly like that of her maternal grandmother, Willie Mae Martin Crim. Goosebumps prickled on Cheryl’s arms and her heart started racing. As stunned as Cheryl was, she had the feeling that whatever was happening had to be for a very important reason.
Cheryl had a happy, fulfilling life in Charlotte, North Carolina, but now, it seemed that things were about to take an unexpected turn.
A remarkable discovery
Cheryl Butler-Brayboy
Cheryl had originally submitted an Ancestry.com DNA kit in 2015, curious about her racial background. She has a Ph.D. in English with a focus on African American Nonfiction and Cultural Studies. She knew her family tree boasted African and European ancestors, but wanted to go deeper into her family history. After swabbing her cheek and sending off the sample, the results soon came back in astonishing detail, telling her everything she had longed to know about the generations that lived before her.
But now, nearly a decade later, something was drawing her back to look at the updated DNA breakdown. That familiar voice. A command that seemed urgent and important. One she couldn’t ignore.
Wouldn’t it be crazy if I am related to someone I already know? Cheryl asked herself. As she brought up her information and began curiously scanning her family tree, her gaze settled on a name that made her pulse skip once again—Douglas Jones. Her eyes filled with tears at the stunning realization. This must have been exactly what my grandmother wanted me to discover, she thought as a smile spread across her face. How incredible is this!
More than just neighbors
Meanwhile, Douglas Jones went over the matches that came in from his results on Ancestry.com. He’d been doing ancestral research for years to expand his knowledge from family stories, and he decided to learn more through his DNA. But then he spotted a familiar name. Cheryl Butler-Brayboy.
He glanced out the window at the house across the street from where he’d lived for the last 22 years.
The Brayboys had lived there for 15 years and they’d been very cordial. When Cheryl and Jack had their daughter, Douglas and his wife, Mary, brought diapers as a gift. You mean we’ve been neighbors for over a decade, and never knew we are cousins? he marveled to himself.
He decided to wait until he saw Cheryl to bring it up, but she beat him to it.
One week later, Cheryl sent Douglas a message in Ancestry. Hello! Is this Douglas Jones in McCrorey Heights, my neighbor? We’re cousins! Let’s chat! Here is my number.
The very next morning, Douglas gave Cheryl a call. As soon as she answered, he greeted her with, “Hey, cuz!”
They began texting, emailing and calling each other in hopes they could figure out the mystery behind their kinship. Ultimately, they discovered the two were related on Cheryl’s mother’s side and Douglas’ mother’s side of their family. Ancestry.com also led Cheryl to discover the two of them are connected through her great grandparents, Alonzo Crim and Florence Sumner Crim. Cheryl even sees a resemblance between Douglas and her mother’s brother, Wilson Crim.
Building their new bond, Cheryl discovered it was Douglas’ son’s birthday, so she brought over a card with a little gift. Her heart melted feeling a real sense of family. With a lot of time to make up for, the two families see the future as an open door to grow closer, building new and heartfelt memories together.
“It’s cool to get to know my neighbor and cousin better,” Douglas shares with a smile. “All of my connections to my grandfather have passed, but Cheryl is the first connection to that side of the family in over 40 years.”
“I am elated and stunned,” Cheryl beams. “We’re strengthening the bond that has always existed, whether we knew it or not. It goes to show that our histories, our lives in this country, are deeply intertwined. ‘Love they neighbor’ takes on new meaning when you realize you actually are true family!”
