“Retiring vital records clerk witnessed Boulder County's growth - Daily Camera” plus 1

Retiring vital records clerk witnessed Boulder County's growth - Daily Camera

Posted: 29 Jan 2010 06:06 PM PST

When Emma Snyder started her job in Boulder County's vital records department, there were about 1,300 births a year and 900 deaths.

Jessica and Michael were the most popular baby names.

Snyder, who retired Friday after three decades with the county, has worked with vital records since 1987.

Oh, how times have changed.

The county now registers 4,000 births a year and 2,100 deaths.

Born in 1934, the Boulder County native said she's witnessed the area's development through its vital statistics. New names showed up in the birth records, as families moved here to work for companies like StorageTek, Sun Microsystems and IBM.

"What has marveled me most are the names," Snyder said.

It just so happens that Emma is now the No. 1 baby name for girls in the country. And Jacob is the most popular for boys.

Zubida Kruger, a supervisor in Snyder's department, said Snyder is well-known by local mortuaries for her extensive knowledge on the death-certificate process. As a Boulder County native, her knowledge about local history, mines and farms is an added bonus.

"She's been tireless in her research for genealogy requests," Kruger said. "She rarely comes up empty-handed when people are doing research. We're going to miss her terribly."

Snyder said that working with people is her favorite part of the job. With death certificates, she typically deals with mortuaries. But when she communicates directly with families, she understands it's an emotional time for them.

"I'm a very compassionate person, and I try to show them my compassion to make it as easy on them as I can," Snyder said.

She started her job with the county following the death of her own husband when she was raising four young children.

Snyder said she will use her retirement years to spend time with her children, and travel. She's planning a trip with her sister to Scotland, the home country of her maternal grandparents.

Contact Camera Staff Writer Brittany Anas at 303-473-1132 or anasb@dailycamera.com.

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Kourtney Kardashian Explains Whe She And Scott Disick Named Their Baby Mason Dash - MTV.com

Posted: 05 Jan 2010 12:34 PM PST

By Cara Alwill

Celebrity baby names are always a hot topic. Stars seem to pick the most unique names for their bundles of joy, and let's be honest ... sometimes they are a bit, well, strange. But Kourtney Kardashian and boyfriend Scott Disick didn't just pull a name out of the hat when naming their new son, Mason Dash. In the current issue of Life & Style, the new parents talk about the meaning behind the name and why they chose it.

"The first time I started looking at baby names, Mason was the only one I liked," Kourtney tells the mag. "It was the only one that stuck with me. Right before he was born, I told my aunt we were thinking about going with that for a name. She told me that Mason means the same thing in English that Kardashian means in Armenian — stone worker. Another aunt told me my great uncle used to use the name Mason when he made dinner reservations, because Kardashian was too long. When I heard that, I thought, Oh my god, it's meant to be."

And while fans are most familiar with the name Dash from the Kardashian sisters' clothing boutique, Kourtney insists that's not where Baby Mason's middle name is derived. "Dash is not for my clothing store, as some people have suggested online," says Kourtney. "That would be stupid. Dash is short for Kardashian, and it was my father's nickname."

Kourtney and Scott admit that Mason Dash is not the only name this baby is called. He also goes by "Gorgeous, Precious, Munchkin, Angel," she tells the magazine. We're not surprised!

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