'Catherine Desmond McShane, my great-grandmother, was a member of the Massachusetts Catholic Order of Foresters, Assumption Court of Malden, Massachusetts. My Foresters story begins with her father, Daniel J. Desmond, who died in 1881 when Catherine was 19 years old. Daniel left a wife and five children younger than Catherine. The $1,000 death benefit from the Foresters was listed as the largest asset in Daniel's estate. An inventory of Daniel's estate also listed large amounts of outstanding debt. I believe that the Foresters death benefit eased some of this debt and helped the family stay in their home until 1885, when it had to be sold to settle still outstanding debts. A year after her family home was sold, Catherine Desmond married James McShane. In 1899, Catherine joined the Assumption Court of Foresters. She was 35, had four children, and lived in a house with her husband, mother, stepfather, brother, his two children, her sister, a cousin, and her husband's sister! I imagine a concern for the welfare of this large family prompted Catherine's decision to join the Foresters. Perhaps she remembered how the Foresters helped her family after her father's death. In 1919, Catherine (only her name is on the deed) purchased the McShane family’s first home at 549 Pleasant Street in Malden. It was a large house that provided a home for many family members. My second photo shows Catherine (upper right) surrounded by family on the steps of '549.' My mother is the baby in the middle of the front row. As the director of TIARA’s Forester Project, I have first-hand knowledge of hundreds of ancestor stories revealed in the Foresters records. The stories are incredibly rich and varied. I have learned a tremendous amount from these stories and from the volunteers who have worked with me, and it's provided a wonderful retirement career for me! [This] was her passport photo for a 1925 trip to Rome to see her son ordained as a priest.'
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