Welcome Home Party

We talked with many residents at the Welcome Home Party Saturday. Our table was quite near the center of the park walkways, so we visited with everyone who had an interest in genealogy. The volunteers expect a large group at Tuesday's workshop.



Karen, Susan and Carolyn were three of our volunteers.
 

Ann and Nancy greeted folks later--before the raindrops arrived.

 

Our club mascot attracted lots of attention.

 

 

Brickwall Genealogist Blog

Family Tree Magazine's weekly newsletter offered another challenge for those of us who might need a small push to get back to our genealogy research. This comes from a blog called the "Brickwall Genealogist," written by Susan Bankhead. I have copied part of her plan from her website so you can see what she will be covering during the year.


Brick Wall Genealogist blogger Susan Bankhead will issue a genealogy organization challenge to herself and to you each Monday morning in 2015. Each challenge post will include instructions and suggest tools to help with the task. ("Organize your desk and computer" is the theme for January).


Here's what Susan said:


 "I’m going to issue a weekly challenge. These challenges will go out each Monday morning with specific assignments for you to complete. I’ll give you instructions and show you tools to help complete each weekly task."

Here’s a monthly list of the line up:

• January: Organize your desk and computer
• February: Choose a Research Project and Bring Old Research Up to Date
• March: Analyze Background
• April: Ask a Research Question and Determine Research Sources
• May: Create a Research Plan
• June: Execute the Research Plan and Record Path Taken
• July: Analyze Research Evidence
• August: Correlate Evidence
• September: Resolve Conflicts
• October: Record Findings
• November: Write up Findings and Notes for Future Research
• December: Publish Findings!
• I’ll be doing these challenges right along with you. Please let me know how you’re doing!

If you visit www.brickwallgenealogist.com you'll find a post with the January 5 instructions to get started on organizing your desk and computer. Use what works for you!

New Year's Writing Project

Genealogy Insider, Family Tree Magazine's online newsletter, has suggested an interesting idea for those of you thinking about getting some family history written. Make it your goal to write a sketch about one ancestor/relative each week during the coming year. (If that seems overwhelming, try one every two weeks!) At the end of the year, you will have a biographical collection. Family Tree Magazine says that Amy Johnson Crow originally posted this idea last year on her blog, "No Story Too Small."

Reminder: PInal County Genealogy Workshop

Just a reminder that registrations for the Pinal County Genealogy Workshop need to be postmarked by January 15 to take advantage of the $20 fee. Walk-ins are welcome, but the charge at the door is $25 and lunch is not guaranteed.

At this time the syllabus (with handouts for all classes) has been posted on the website. It is available for download or you can order a printed copy with your registration for $5.


Here is a repeat of the original post:

The 2015 Pinal County Genealogy Workshop will be held on Saturday, January 24. This is the 12th year for the workshop, and it is a great bargain. You can choose from among 25 classes over five sessions, and lunch is included with the $20 registration fee.


The speakers, lecture descriptions and registration form have been posted on the website and lecture handouts will be added by January 1. Visit www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~azpcg/workshop/2015 for all the details. There are two separate links: one to the speakers/lecture descriptions and the other to the registration form.


Many of our club members have attended in the past and we recommend this workshop to beginners and those who have been doing genealogy for many years. We can answer any questions about the workshop during our weekly meetings.

January 6 Genealogy Club Meeting

Wendy Carlson, director of the Casa Grande Family History Center, spoke to a group of about 30 members Tuesday night. She demonstrated the Family Search website, concentrating on the family tree section of the site.



Wendy Carlson

 

We learned about this fairly new feature of Family Search, where you can upload your family information and others can add to or change it! You can search the databases for additional information and add sources to your tree, along with photographs, documents, stories, etc. The ultimate goal is to create a world family tree that can be shared with anyone.

 

Part of Wendy's audience



Other parts of the Family Search website include the searchable records area, the genealogies, the catalog of microfilm available for rent, books and the Wiki (a genealogy-based internet encyclopedia).

We used all the available tables!

Genealogy Club News

Our 2015 season begins Tuesday, January 6. Our first speaker is Wendy Carlson, director of the local Family History Center. She will give an overview of what is available at the center and a tutorial of the Family Search website, where records from all over the world are free to access. We're inviting everyone to bring computers to participate in this hands-on presentation.

During next week's workshop we will present some tips and hints to make your Ancestry.com searches more successful. Our field trip to the Casa Grande Family History center follows on Wednesday, January 14, from 9-12. Sign up at either of the next two meetings.

Legacy Webinar

Legacy's first webinar of the year will be presented by Lisa Louise Cooke on Wednesday, January 7. These webinars are free to view either in real time or at your leisure for about a week following the presentation. To learn more and/or to register, visit www.familytreewebinars.com.


The description of this week's webinar, which is recommended for both beginner and intermediate researchers, follows:


Genealogy on the Go with iPads and Tablets
               

"Technology has brought much more than the convenience of digitized genealogical records to our home computers. It has also delivered an incredible level of portability to family history research! iPads and tablets are built for hitting the road and are ideally suited for genealogy due to the sleek lightweight size, gorgeous graphics and myriad of apps and tools. In this class you will discover the top apps and best practices that will make your mobile device a genealogical powerhouse!"

Mesa FamilySearch Library News

The Mesa FamilySearch Library Newsletter arrived yesterday with an update regarding their remodeling process. It looks as if we will have to wait until at least late February for reopening.

 

 

Here's a clip from the January newsletter:

 
As you may know, we are in the process of a total remodeling of the first floor of the Library with some minor changes on the second floor. We closed the Library on the 24th of November with plans to reopen on the 5th of January, 2015. We have had some major complications that will delay our opening date. We are not certain at this time, but anticipate opening in late February. If you will call 480-964-1200, our Library phone number, we will include the new opening date in our message as soon as we have a firm date. We will also post it on the entry door of the Library as soon as we have the date.


We are excited for the changes that are being made. We are confident you will see them as a significant improvement. A great deal of time and effort has gone into the design of the new floor layout and other changes. The new changes include two new classrooms with computers, computer desks, projectors and screens. There will be a folding partition between the two classrooms that can be opened to create one very large classroom. We will add thirty new computers and new computer desks for all computers, and will have space for an additional twenty plus computers if needed in the future. We are also adding new carpet, paint and floor tile at the entry. The Library will have a new modern look and feel that we are sure will please you. Please stay in touch for the opening date.