Mary Anne invites our team to her condominium, an apartment in Louisville - three miles away from where she grew up. Her second home is in Columbus, Ohio, near daughter Michelle. The ­commuting does not bother her at all, says Mary Anne Kaelin, a widow for 17 years; “in four hours by car I make the 230 miles; no problem.”

Mary Anne’s brothers, George and William Schureck are here this afternoon - the cordial connection between the siblings is clearly noticeable. “I have close ties with Switzerland, with Einsiedeln and Euthal in particular. My husband came from Euthal and emigrated to America in 1948. And my mother is originally from Einsiedeln - her name was Schoenbaechler; her father came from Egg as a 20 year-old, in 1883, and lived on the Kaelin Farm in Louisville. My father was German and was called Schureck.”

Mary Anne was asked by Vicky ­Ullrich-Birchler if she would like to join the “Einsiedeln Elsewhere” project. She said yes, spontaneously. “I think it’s important for younger generations to know why their ancestors came to this country; that they also make contact with their relatives in Einsiedeln. Many do not even know that they have such in the Canton Schwyz. I think that’s why so many were at the info evening; they thirst for information. And I would like to know more about what happened in the 1850s and later.”

Mary Anne’s (love) story with Einsiedeln is a special one: “My uncle J.J. Kaelin, who lived on a large dairy farm in Louisville, kept receiving letters from Euthal for weeks in 1950 that were addressed to a J.J. Kaelin - the contents of which were clearly not addressed to him! What should he do? His wife and aunt Clara, (my dad’s sister) hired her daughter, an accountant in the city, to investigate the unknown J.J. Kaelin in Louisville. Within two days the situation became clearer - J.J. Kaelin, an engineer for Whayne Supply Co (distributer for Caterpillar Equipment) was found. The young man from Einsiedeln had very spontaneously ­decided to take up a position in Louisville. Before that, he had been working for two years in Akron, Ohio.

He completely forgot to inform his mother, postmaster in Euthal, of his move. She continued to send her letters to Akron and became very worried when they remained unanswered. It was only thanks to the prudence of the post office officials that these letters had been forwarded to Louisville, but rather to J.J. Kaelin on the farm. My uncle was not a matchmaker, but after meeting Jeremy Joseph Kaelin thought I really needed to get to know this young man from Einsiedeln. After picking up the letters, the young man came to visit them again and again and one day me, too… that’s how our love story ­began.” Mary Anne shows us the airmail letters from Euthal, neatly typewritten - precious memories for her.

“Jeremy Joseph and I - were really meant for each other; we married in 1953. Five children were given to us; our eldest son, ­Joseph, has been living in Switzerland for decades as an engineer, and William, a pilot and captain at American Airlines, often flies to ­Europe and Switzerland. Our third son, David, unfortunately died in 1990 during a climb on the Fluebrig. Our family was on vacation in Euthal at the time - the accident was a tremendous shock, a heavy blow to all of us. Daughter ­Michelle lives in Columbus and Catherine Anne in Cincinnati.”

Mary Anne Kaelin has a great deal of contact with the family and relatives of her deceased husband in Euthal and Einsiedeln. In 1969, twenty years after emigrating, Jeremy Joseph Kaelin and his son flew across the Atlantic to Europe for the first time in their own seven-passenger airplane. “In the 1980s to 1995, each summer we had an apartment at the Hotel Post with my sister-­­in-law during the holidays. I love Euthal and the region around Einsiedeln; 2014 was the first year I did not travel to Switzerland.” But the sprightly, elderly woman has plans: “We’re trying to fly with the whole family to Switzerland this autumn… and again rent the ‘Finkennestʼ in Alpthal, as we did five years ago. It is not easy to find common dates. But we do not want to forget our roots in Einsiedeln, never ever. And I would like to keep looking for the traces of my Schoenbaechler-Kaelin ancestors.”