Three years ago, while researching archival photographs and records for a documentary on American Indian war veterans, Dr. Patty Loew stumbled upon a long forgotten film about her Ojibwe grandfather's World War I unit buried in the basement stacks of the Wisconsin Historical Society. Though it was a remarkable find, the truth is, for Loew, it was just another in a series of events that have guided both her professional and personal path: watching the film raised even more questions for her about her beloved grandfather, and since finding the film, Loew says she has been discovering how deep her roots are with her extended Ojibwe family. This article discusses the history of Loew's research career, and how the film fit into her learning path.