A Special Board Meeting and Lunch at Peralta Hacienda

The CGS Board of Directors meets on the third Wednesday of every month, usually in the conference room in the CGS Library. This month the directors took a field trip to The Peralta Hacienda Historical Park.



After a delicious lunch arranged by director Chris Pattillo we were led on a personal tour of the Peralta House by its Executive Director, Holly Alonso.




I've written before about the collaborative Peralta Project that was orchestrated by Chris when she learned that plans were being made for a Peralta family tree exhibit. Chris' firm, PGA Design, has been working with the Friends of Peralta Hacienda on the implementation of the landscape masterplan for the hacienda, a six-acre park, in the Fruitvale district of Oakland, which includes the restored 1870 home of Antonio Peralta and preserves the lost legacy of the 44,800-acre Peralta rancho that once covered nearly all of present-day Alameda County. The park site is a city and state landmark and is on the National Register of Historic Places.



In the last room on the tour was what we had been waiting to see – the large wall mural featuring the Peralta family tree created by graphic artist Gordan Chan. The genealogy of the Peraltas was first researched by Beverly Enz, a descendant of Antonio Peralta, who put together a scrapbook of newspaper clippings, original letters and photographs.



Her work was painstakingly reviewed and documented by the CGS research team who then traced the descendants of Luis Peralta into the twentieth century. The team - Judy Bodycote, Dick Rees and Lavinia Grace Schwarz – were feted at a banquet last October.



The Peralta Tree Exhibit is fairly extensive, concentrating mainly on Antonio's branch, and covers two walls. It is a beautifully executed display and we were all thrilled to see the project completed and beyond our expectations. Well done, all!



Photographs courtesy of Kathryn Doyle and Jane Knowles Lindsey, Oakland, California.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday
Shelf Reading at the California Genealogical Society Library
Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Photograph courtesy of Jane Knowles Lindsey.

The CGS 2009 Nominating Committee

In fulfillment of the California Genealogical Society Bylaws, Article VII, Section 1, President Jane Knowles Lindsey has appointed the 2009 Nominating Committee. General members are Dick Rees and Lorna Wallace; director Chris Pattillo will act as the committee chair.

The committee is seeking nominees for two openings on the board of directors. They welcome suggestions of candidates or volunteers to serve. Nominees must be members of the California Genealogical Society. Please e-mail Chris with your suggestions.

The full requirements as stated in the society bylaws, page 3, are as follows:

ARTICLE VII: NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS

Section 1. The Nominating Committee shall consist of at least three (3) members to be named not less that ninety (90) days prior to the Annual Business Meeting. The President shall appoint the Nominating Committee. The chairperson of the committee shall be from the Board of Directors and additional committee members from the general membership.

Section 2. The Nominating Committee shall submit its report to the Board of Directors and the Board shall give timely notice of nominations to the general membership prior to the Annual Business Meeting.

Section 3. Following the Nominating Committee’s report to the membership at the Annual Business Meeting, the floor shall be open to additional nominations, provided nominees have given consent to serve if elected.

Section 4. Nominees shall be members in good standing in the Society.

Section 5. Members in good standing who are present at the Annual Business Meeting shall elect the Directors. A plurality vote shall elect.

Section 6. If there is only one candidate for an opening, the ballot may be dispensed with by general consent and the election held by voice vote.

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday
French-Canadian Special Interest Group
Mary Beth Frederick, Tom Gesner, Lorna Jones and Bill O'Neil
May 9, 2009

Photograph courtesy of Tim Cox, Oakland, California.

What You Missed: July Membership Meeting with Steve Danko

This month's second Saturday membership meeting on July 11, 2009, was a high tech show-and-tell by CGS member Steve Danko. Genealogist, blogger and specialist in Eastern European research, Steve recently earned his Professional Learning Certificate in Genealogical Studies (PLCGS) with specialties in both United States and Canadian records from the National Institute for Genealogical Studies in Toronto.




After some society business by CGS President Jane Lindsey and the unveiling of the new iceberg poster by Tim Cox, Steve presented Genealogy Gadgets and Gizmos: New Technology to Help in Your Research. He brought along lots of his favorite genealogy toys for a grown-up version of "show and tell." Tim got a shot of the collection of electronic devices that Steve brought to share.

Steve's Genealogy Gadgets and Gizmos.

Any regular reader of Steve's blog knows that he is one organized guy so it was no surprise that his presentation was well-ordered and his delivery crisp. Steve divided his gadgets into different categories of "family history" aides: gizmos for learning, for "finding your way," for recording, preserving, presenting and even "dressing for family history."

Steve and the 2GB Pulse SmartPen.

I won't go into detail about the items that Steve presented. He covered an impressive amount of technological gear and I don't even want to think about how he keeps track of all those power cords.

Steve spoke to a full house.

Needless to say, Steve's use of audio-visual aides gets an A+. (He even brought his own InFocus portable projector.) If you missed Steve you'll get another chance next year when he'll be presenting Genealogy Gadgets and Gizmos to the San Mateo County Genealogical Society on Wednesday, February 17, 2010, at 7:30 p.m.

Photographs courtesy of Tim Cox and Kathryn Doyle, 7/11/2009, Oakland, California.