" The support and help given to my family in bringing my Mother's history to life has been a wonderful experience to me and my family. My mother was born in Clare in 1900 with the family name of Kelly. The report that we have is so helpful to understand life as it was back in the 1800s. The Clare Heritage Centre kept us fully updated as the research continued. During this time the Centre took time out to telephone me at home in England to tell me about a map they had found of one of the River Fergus Islands – Low Island – where they had found the place where my great-grandfather was born. This was great news but I can add that in August 2013 my wife and I plus my cousin were actually taken over to the island and we were shown the family homestead as it now stands this has really made all the work that the Centre has done for us so worthwhile. I now have the research, pictures of where my great-grandfather plus his siblings lived and I know I have also touched the family home itself. I have so many memories to share with my own family and this would not just have been possible without all the support I have had from the Clare Heritage Centre. "

John Cannon, London

" Visited the Centre just over 3 years ago with details from my great-grandparents Marriage Certificate, They actually married in Australia but one was from Clare. The Clare Heritage Centre staff got onto the job and within 6 months forwarded me a detailed dossier on my paternal ancestry (which is what I was seeking). From this information I was able to trace a relative of same generation as myself in Ireland. I recently returned to Ireland and met him. He was able to show me the original home sites of my Great-grandfather and my great-great-grandmother as he was raised in the area. This was a highly successful venture as that is what I originally set out to achieve. "

William Kenny, Melbourne Australia

" On a family history visit to Ireland, my 84 years old mother and I found the Clare Heritage and Genealogy Centre a very useful resource. With the help of the staff we were able to locate the workhouse, townlands, baptismal church records and family paupers grave relating to our ancestor who came out to Australia as an Irish orphan girl. The Centre also has a wonderful small museum nearby. "

Kath Mackie, Canberra, Australia

" In April of 2013 my husband and I realized one of my dreams, when we travelled from the USA to Ireland to visit my ancestral country. While we had some details about my family tree we were woefully ignorant of the finer details about the family background. What a life changing experience we had after crossing the Clare Heritage and Genealogy Center threshold! The welcome we received from this amazing little Center enable us to not only find my ancestral farmstead where my great grandmother was born, but also to locate some of our long lost cousins!

The staff and volunteers at the center were truly a gift to my family. Because of the welcome and information we received (within 24 hours of us walking through Clare Heritage Center's doors) I was able to provide my 97 year old mother with a picture of the home her grandmother was born in as well as photos of one of her cousins who still resides a few miles from the old farmstead.

The capability of the center to locate my ancestral home on such short notice is a testimony to their dedication to their mission. This small but dynamic center is a MUST visit for anyone who has ties with this beautiful county. "

Molly Smith, Cleveland, Ohio

" I recently received my report from the Clare Heritage and Genealogy Centre and it brought tears to my eyes. The detailed information about my Irish roots was completely unknown to me. Twice I had tried to begin my own research on visits to Dublin and was unsuccessful as I continually ran into dead ends. The Centre's research went back 5 generations. Whenever a roadblock was reached, they suggested resources for continuing research outside of Clare, for example, for my family in Limerick. The Centre even made phone contact with my mother's first cousin and provided a mailing address that allowed me to immediately send off a letter. I would recommend the Clare Heritage and Genealogy Centre to anyone interested in learning about their Clare roots. Thank you, you have given a precious gift to me and my siblings. "

Sharon Kay (Fitzgerald) Greenwood Naples, New York USA

" The Clare Heritage and Genealogy Centre was outstanding. They were very thorough in researching my family. The information I received was absolute amazing! I was amazed with the wealth of information I received. Anyone I dealt with was patient and very professional. I have been researching for the last 10 years and have used the Centre at least 3 times. Any time I either emailed or called them I always received a response within days. I have been to Ireland many times in the past 8 years doing family research. My visit to the Centre in Corofin proved to be very rewarding and a highlight of my trip. My experience with research is to have patience and work with competent people. The Heritage Centre in Corofin is such a place. I highly recommend using the Centre. "

Betty Condon, Boston, Mass.

" There is no way I can put into words the amazing gift I received on this trip and will continue to receive throughout my life and especially on every return visit to see family there. I sat in the home where my great-great grandmother had been born and died, and talked for hours with my great-great Aunt. It is bringing tears to my eyes at this moment to recall it. It is a life-changing experience worth every hour of work and every penny of expense. I'm very thankful for the Clare Heritage and Genealogy Centre, and for you and the others working there. "

Tom Lynch, Georgia

"Your report on the Dooleys of Tulla arrived and I am delighted. You and your people have done a splendid piece of work. It is fascinating. And quite humbling to read -- seeing all of these lives laid out before me, some of them even bearing my own name. It puts things in perspective. I think of their struggles, their hopes and dreams and disappointments, their joy in their children, their sorrows standing beside the graves of their parents. I am touched and honoured to be one of their descendants, and hope I can do them credit. All those good  people gone before me. It is , as I say, chastening and humbling, to think about. "

Dennis Dooley, Ohio

" Thank you so much for sending the information about my family so quickly.  I am overjoyed with the result, and I have especially to thank you and your team for unearthing a previously unknown Great Uncle.  My family and I would like to thank you for increasing our knowledge of our own history. "

Kenneth Hopkins, UK

"I feel truly blessed to have 'come home' and how I cherish my Irish ancestry!  I will be forever grateful to the Clare Heritage Centre and the 'local angels' of Clare who enabled my search to materialize from a dream to reality and my quest to result in such a successful fruition  and treasured memories".  

Kate Nugent, Penn. USA

" Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I arrived home from school today to find your glorious report. I am so happy I cannot even begin to express it! I live in northern New Jersey directly behind the Statute of Liberty in NY Harbor. We saw the terrorists attack on the World Trade center from the classroom windows at Bayonne High School. There has been a pervasive sadness here since 09/11/01. Today, I had tears of happiness and joy. "

Pat McFadden, New Jersey