The first thing Christian Belena noticed about the e-mail that landed in his in-box last October was its unusual blue font. But what really hooked his attention was the source. The sender was one DeeDee DiBenedetto, a Louisiana-based private investigator whose client—an amateur historian named Martin Gauthier—was hoping to locate the mortal remains of a long-dead Louisiana politician. She thought Belena could help.
A liberal arts major at BMCC and self-confessed history addict, Belena jumped at the request. The politician in question was Joshua Baker—the last military governor of Louisiana, he says. After he died in 1885, his body seemed to have disappeared. Gauthier had spent nearly three years researching, cataloguing and identifying the resting places of Louisianas governors going back to 1803. He had records for all but six; Baker was among the missing.
Preserving history
DiBenedetto had contacted Belena because she thought Baker might be buried in Green-Wood Cemetery, a National Historic Landmark in Brooklyn. Belena had worked there as a volunteer researcher and still led guided tours. He knew the place inside and out.
I was determined to help Martin and DeeDee, Belena says. I know firsthand what its like to lose your history. I see it all the time with the destruction caused by overbuilding in New York and, after the tragedy in Louisiana a few years ago, I wanted to help them preserve that little bit of history. If Baker was buried in Green-Wood, I knew I could find him, he says.
Packing a camera and laptop, Belena drove to Green-Wood where he pored through the archives and found a handwritten ledger confirming Bakers whereabouts. It took me about an hour and a half to find his grave, which had been badly weathered, he says. The letters were barely legible. But there was no doubt hed found his man. Savoring the triumph, Belena photographed the stone and sent the pictures along with copies of the documentation to DiBenedetto. Case closed.
Changing careers
For Belena, few pursuits are more enjoyable than exploring the lost byways of history—especially the history of New York City. After graduating from high school, I joined the Navy and was stationed in Italy for a while, he says. My fascination with history—which Id inherited as a child from my parents—was stoked by visits to ancient ruins in places like Rome and Pompey. Following his discharge, he returned to the States and embarked on a career in graphic design and desktop publishing.
The work provided a paycheck but little satisfaction. What he really wanted to be was an historian—something I hadnt given myself a chance to do when I was younger, he says. But first he would have to return to school and earn a bachelors degree, and in 2007 he enrolled in BMCC as a part-time student. He was 38 and married, with two children; sacrifices would be necessary. I told my wife Amanda this was something I had to do, he says. She was totally supportive.
Two semesters away from graduating, Belena has maintained a near-perfect GPA while continuing to lead private tours at Green-Wood and write prolifically for academic journals. His account of the search for Joshua Bakers burial place—co-written with DiBenedetto and Martin Gauthier—has been accepted for publication in a leading national history magazine. Eventually, he plans to earn a doctorate in history and teach at the college level, while continuing to immerse himself in the study of history.
The opportunity to be part of the search for Joshua Bakers remains taught me what it truly means to be part of an historic discovery, Belena says. But what mattered most of all was the feeling of helping someone regain a part of their history.
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What a smart guy! He really sounds like he has a passion for this kind of thing.
pegandkarl 2 years ago