Hi TobyJug,
This is so great to finally catch up with others in the family. I have wanted to do this for so long now.
Anyway a bit about our family. We live in New Zealand. My father (John Alan Bottomley) who he tells me was adopted by Martha Bottomley from birth. He was the youngest of all the family. He is now 85 years old and still active but a bit frail now, but lives around the corner so I see him daily.
Dad adored his adopted mum (Martha) and thought the world of her. She must have been really special and a great woman. We have all inherited her strong faith and we all are active in church life here. Dad married again after my mother died in 1995. He keeps in contact with many of the family and he has mentioned the Kennedy family.
I am in my late 50's now, married with three children (Lara, Shannon and Samuel). Lara (20) is studying at Auckland Uni, Shannon (17) is in her last year of school, and Sam (14) is at school. We named him Sam partly due to Dad's brother Sam, who was good at football (just like my Sam). My mother and father emigrated to NZ when I was about 2 yo in late 1950's.
I am an engineer (having studied engineering at university for 6 years) and much of my work is in Asia, where we lived (Indonesia) for three years.
Out of interest I would like if possible to find out more about dad's real mum and dad who gave him up for adoption. If the family know anything I would be interested.
Anyway that's probably enough for now.
Keep in touch
John Bottomley