My paternal grandfather, George Lewis Capwell, was raised near Salamenca, New York. His father, John, was an engineer during the construction of the railroad while the canal was being built in Panama. George moved to Ecuador and became the president of the power company there and later in Panama. My father, George "Spike" Capwell, was raised in Ecuador and Panama. When my family (six boys and a girl) was transferred to the Canal Zone in 1974, we became the fourth generation of Capwells to live in Panama. My sister Michielle's son, David, was born while we were there, making him the fifth generation. Like my mother, my sister married an American raised in Panama.