The name Jonas Schwizer means a lot to me. My father is the 24th Jonas Schwizer in our family tree. My great great grandfather, Jonas Schwizer XXI, immigrated to the U.S. with his wife Louise in 1887 from St. Gallen, Switzerland, bordering Germany. My great grandfather, Jonas Schwizer XXII, was born in the US in 1902 and his wife, Harriet, was an immigrant from Switzerland. They later had a son named Jonas Schwizer XXIII, my grandfather, in 1930. My grandfather was an only child and was raised by his grandmother who taught him German as a child. He built his own home to raise his children in, a block away from the home he grew up in with his grandmother. My father and his siblings didn’t have sons to pass the name on to, so my youngest sister’s middle name is Jonas. My sisters and I plan on naming our firstborn son Jonas Schwizer XXV. My father has a pen, given to him by his father, engraved with his Jonas Schwizer XXIV status and we have a Schwizer family crest hanging in our living room that my father takes great pride in. When I think of the name Jonas Schwizer, I feel a strong sense of pride. I think of the importance of the family name to my history, and I hope to be able to continue the tradition one day. During hard times, I am comforted by having a great father figure who has been there for me throughout my life. I know that the influence of the Jonas Schwizer's before him has helped shape him into the family man that he is today.

– Tara Schwizer

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more