Report #1: NGS 2009 Family History Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina

CGS member Jeffrey Vaillant took time out of his busy schedule to send this report from the NGS 2009 Family History Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina. Thanks, Jeffrey!

The conference opened Wednesday, May 13, 2009 with what appeared to be about 1500 people in attendance. The Opening Session included a significant announcement – the recognition of Thomas W. Jones as a Fellow in the NGS. He was pleasantly surprised. The opening presentation was an entertaining event with Ira David Wood III sharing his theatrical experience with his family history using the Romeo and Juliet line: "Romeo where art thou?" which he read as "Romeo who are you?"

There are 250 sessions of information to choose from. I am basically being a Thomas W. Jones and Elizabeth Shown Mills groupie. Their presentations are fantastic, combining methodology theory with practice research examples. You can view the full conference program online at the NGS website.

At 5:00 p.m., thirty-two genealogy societies, primarily from North Carolina and Virginia, set up tables to display their wares. There were lots of tempting books to purchase. That was followed by presentations at 7:00 p.m. I attended the one by the Trading Path Association on trails in North Carolina in the 1600-1700 period. It was a full day to be followed by another.

Read the entire series:
Day One: NGS 2009 Report
Day Two: NGS 2009 Report
Day Three: NGS 2009 Report
Day Four: NGS 2009 Report

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday
May Membership Meeting
Saturday, May 9, 2009
CGS Vice-President Steve Harris

Photograph courtesy of Tim Cox, Oakland, California, 5/9/2009.

Book Repair Workshop Returns June 12, 2009

The California Genealogical Society is taking reservations for the popular Book Repair Workshop to be held on Friday morning, June 12, 2009, from 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Taught by Book Repair Committee Chairman, Bill O'Neil, the workshop is limited to ten enrollees.

Book Repair Committee Chairman Bill O'Neil

Workshop participants learn book repair techniques by creating a book for themselves. Pages are provided and the pupils create the binding. The finished product will be a copy of a "how to" pamphlet written by the late Dick Thrift, founder of the CGS Book Repair Committee. Everyone goes home with a self-made instruction book and souvenir of the day.

PLEASE NOTE:
• Workshop is limited to ten.
• $25 charge for materials.
• Reservation form and pre-payment of fee required.

Download the registration flier and mail with a check for $25 to CGS. Questions? Call CGS at 510-663-1358 or E-mail CGSLevents@gmail.com

Photograph by Kathryn M. Doyle, Oakland, California, 1/13/2009.

DNA and Genetic Genealogy: A Morse and Morse Presentation

DNA and Genetic Genealogy
Saturday, June 13, 2009, 1:30 p.m.
California Genealogical Society and Library
2201 Broadway at 22nd, Suite LL2
Oakland, California

Please join us for this special program by noted lecturer Steve Morse and his daughter, Megan.

Stephen Morse is the creator of the One-Step Website for which he has received numerous awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award. He is a computer professional with a doctorate degree in E.E. – Electrical Engineering. He is well-known as the architect of the Intel 8086, which sparked the PC revolution. But his best accomplishment was that of fathering his daughter, Megan.

Megan Morse holds a bachelor's degree in "E.E.", but hers stands for Evolution and Ecology. She works as a wildlife educator and animal handler for Wildlife Associates, a non-profit wildlife sanctuary in Half Moon Bay, California. She raises and trains everything from anteaters to porcupines, cats to snakes and foxes to hawks. She travels with these animals to schools, libraries, and recreation centers throughout the Bay Area to give educational presentations.

Megan, with her formal training in evolution and her knowledge of DNA, complements her dad who is self-taught in these areas. Together they explain genetic genealogy and how it applies to the human species as well as the larger animal kingdom.

One Lovely Award From One Lovely Blogger

CGS member Cheryl Fleming Palmer of Heritage Happens and the Graveyard Rabbit of South Alameda County has bestowed the "One Lovely Blog Award" to the CGSL blog. Thanks, Cheryl!

Genea-bloggers use awards to support each other and to spread the word about new blogs with a family history focus. The honor comes with the stipulation that it be passed on to seven more "lovely" blogs. Here is my list:

Before My Time by T.K. Sand

Blue Bonnet Country Genealogy by Ruth Stephens

Genealogy and Family History by Carolyn L. Barkley

Granny's Genealogy by Pam Warren

Orations of OMcHodoy by Colleen McHugh

Spence-Lowry Family History by A. Spence

Who Will Tell Their Story? by Julie Cahill Tarr

Please visit these lovely blogs and leave a comment for the author!