Did you know I was Jewish? Neither did I until 3 weeks ago when I uncovered my Jewish lineage. Since then I have been doing everything possible to find out how this became a Mormon coverup only two generations ago. I am sure you are dying to know how I discovered this amazingness so here’s the breakdown. Recently the power was out in the neighborhood due to those crazy L.A. winds. I joined my parents for dinner at one of the only places with electricity and got started on the topic of ethnicity with my Dad, as I have always been convinced he was more than just a white guy from Utah. He talked about his family, their names, etc. but it was still all the same things I had heard before, that is until he physically wrote down his family tree.

I stared down at his chart of names and Maud Gressman immediately jumped out at me! My eyes bulged out of my skull and I shook my Dad, asking him to say that name. He read it and said “Grisham” to which I exclaimed loudly “No!” All these years my Dad has been pronouncing his Grandmother’s name incorrectly but I would soon discover that was just the tip of the iceberg. Upon my research I discovered Maud’s parents, Joseph Gressman and Laura Kessler, did not die in a car accident as their children were told. I have not figured out the story yet, but all 10 of their children were adopted by Mormon families in Utah; therein lies the conspiracy to coverup our Jewish heritage. Through research I have discovered Jewish ancestors with amazing names like Asher, Ephileader, Phebe and Essie. This is a pretty huge story so I am just sharing a bit for now but I must uncover the rest! If you have any Jewish ancestry tips, please let me know.

The photo above is a bracelet my Mother gave to me just now in celebration of my first Hanukkah. She has been extremely supportive of my quest and now I can officially call myself a Mexi-Jew.

Did you know I was Jewish? Neither did I until 3 weeks ago when I uncovered my Jewish lineage. Since then I have been doing everything possible to find out how this became a Mormon coverup only two generations ago. I am sure you are dying to know how I discovered this amazingness so here’s the breakdown. Recently the power was out in the neighborhood due to those crazy L.A. winds. I joined my parents for dinner at one of the only places with electricity and got started on the topic of ethnicity with my Dad, as I have always been convinced he was more than just a white guy from Utah. He talked about his family, their names, etc. but it was still all the same things I had heard before, that is until he physically wrote down his family tree.

I stared down at his chart of names and Maud Gressman immediately jumped out at me! My eyes bulged out of my skull and I shook my Dad, asking him to say that name. He read it and said “Grisham” to which I exclaimed loudly “No!” All these years my Dad has been pronouncing his Grandmother’s name incorrectly but I would soon discover that was just the tip of the iceberg. Upon my research I discovered Maud’s parents, Joseph Gressman and Laura Kessler, did not die in a car accident as their children were told. I have not figured out the story yet, but all 10 of their children were adopted by Mormon families in Utah; therein lies the conspiracy to coverup our Jewish heritage. Through research I have discovered Jewish ancestors with amazing names like Asher, Ephileader, Phebe and Essie. This is a pretty huge story so I am just sharing a bit for now but I must uncover the rest! If you have any Jewish ancestry tips, please let me know.

The photo above is a bracelet my Mother gave to me just now in celebration of my first Hanukkah. She has been extremely supportive of my quest and now I can officially call myself a Mexi-Jew.