Gala Event: A Celebration of Family History

Hope everyone is enjoying the conference, learning new information, techniques and resources to aid them in their research. There is plenty to see and do!

Some reminders about tonight's activity at the conference center on North Temple

• Arrive early to ensure your seats
• Don't bring large bags with you

Come and enjoy the celebration!

Presenter Profile: Debra Mieszala

Debra Mieszala, Certified Genealogist(SM), has been involved in genealogical research for over 25 years. Much of her work involves locating family members of past war MIAs for the Army and Air Force. She formerly worked under court order as a certified Confidential Intermediary (CI) in Illinois, assisting people in adoption situations to reconnect. Debbie is earning a certificate in paralegal studies.

In addition to presenting at the national conference level, she has taught classes at SLIG. Her articles have been published in _OnBoard!_, _NGS Magazine_, and _The Digital Genealogist_.

Debbie was a host society representative for the NGS 2006 Chicago conference, and had an active role as Registration Chair. She created, maintained, and contributed much content for the CGC/NGS conference blog.

She is looking forward to another visit to Salt Lake City!

She is teaching "The Curious Case of the Disappearing Dude" on Thursday at 2:30, "Two Dan Dyes: Correcting Past Errors with Solid Evidence" on Saturday at 11 am and "Patently Unique: Locating Patent Records Online and Off" on Saturday at 4pm.

Presenter Profile: Elizabeth Kelley Kerstens

Certified Genealogist and Certified Genealogical Lecturer, Liz is the creator of the software program Clooz—the electronic filing cabinet for genealogical records. She is managing editor of the NGS Magazine. She authored the books Plymouth's First Century: Innovators and Industry, a photo history of Plymouth, Michigan, and Plymouth in Vintage Postcards, a postcard history of 20th century Plymouth. Liz is also the executive director at the Plymouth Historical Museum in Plymouth, Michigan.

Liz is teaching "Effective Internet Searching" Thursday at 9:30am, "Researching Your Irish Here Before Going There" Thursday at 2:30pm, and "Is My Writing Ready for the Popular Press?" Saturday at 1pm

Presenter Profile: Laura Prescott

Laura G. Prescott is a professional researcher, writer, and speaker. She worked for the New England Historic Genealogical Society for seven years before starting her own research business. Originally from Charleston, West Virginia, she has lived in New England for over thirty years.

Laura graduated with a B.A. in History from Dartmouth College in 1980, ultimately putting her degree to good use over a decade later when she discovered a latent passion for genealogy.

Laura is the president of the Association of Professional Genealogists, genealogy project manager for the Nickerson Family Association, and a consultant for Footnote.com. She lectures and writes for national audiences on a variety of genealogical topics. Her specialties include the use of manuscripts in genealogical research, genealogy on the Internet, genealogy for Mac users, and merging history with genealogy.

Her articles have appeared in Ancestry, New England Ancestors, Genealogical Computing, NGS NewsMagazine, and Digital Genealogist.

Laura is teaching "Diving Deeper into the Unique Records on Footnote.com" on Saturday at 9:30 am.

Presenter Profile: Kory Meyerink

Kory Meyerink has been involved in nearly every aspect of genealogy and family history for the past 20 years, beginning as a record searcher while attending Brigham Young University where he received an Associate in Family and Local History, as well as a B.S. in Psychology. He later completed a Masters of Library and Information Science. Spending two years in Germany gave him a fluency that has served him well in his professional research. He became accredited in four areas (Germany, Midwest, Eastern and New England U.S.), specializing in tracing the origins of German and Dutch immigrants, before joining the staff of the Family History Library as a reference consultant.

Later, as the library’s publication coordinator, he developed instructional and reference material for the thousands of Family History Centers supported by the library. He also served as the primary content consultant for the PBS Ancestors television series. In his recent work developing electronic products, Kory’s tasks included serving as product manager for the LDS Family History Suite and also developed the largest genealogical gazetteer and largest genealogical bibliography available on CD-ROM.

As a teacher, Kory has spoken at many local, state, and national genealogical conferences throughout the U.S. and Canada, including NGS, FGS, GENTECH, and, since 1991, the annual BYU Family History Conference. Since 1991, he has also served as adjunct history faculty for that university’s Salt Lake Center. As the founding director of the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, he developed one of the nation’s largest such institutes. He has written extensively, including chapters in The Library, both editions of The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy, as well as numerous articles and book reviews for the Genealogical Journal, Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly, Genealogical Computing, New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, and The Genealogist.

He also writes for both Ancestry and Heritage Quest magazines. He is the author/presenter of Doing Genealogy: Foundations for Successful Research, an audio presentation with workbook. For his most recent book, Printed Sources: A Guide to Published Genealogical Records (Ancestry: Salt Lake City, 1998), he served as overall editor as well as primary author.

Kory is teaching "Documenting the Overland Journey with Diaries" Wednesday at 2:30 pm, "Has It Already Been Done? German Compiled Records" Friday at 8 am, and "City Directories: More than Just Census Substitutes" Saturday at 2:30 pm.

Presenter Profile: Patricia Shawker

Patricia O'Brien Shawker, CG is a professional genealogist whose interests are Maryland genealogy and research at the National Archives; certified since 1999. She is an alumna of the National Institute on Genealogical Research (NIGR), she received a certificate of completion of the NGS American Genealogy: A Basic Course, and for the Advanced Methodology and Evidence Analysis at Samford University. She has lectured at numerous genealogy conferences including the annual meetings of the National Genealogical Society. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG), the NSDAR, the National Genealogical Society, and the Maryland Genealogical Society. She is a past treasurer of the National Genealogical Society, and a past Assistant Director of NIGR and as been the Director of NIGR since October 2007.

Patricia is teaching "Before Statehood: Territorial Papers" on Wednesday at 2:30 PM, "ABCs of NARA Workshop" on Friday at 2:30 pm and "Passport Applications, 1795–1925" on Saturday at 11 AM.

Presenter Profile: Stephen Danko

Stephen J. Danko, PhD, PLCGS

Steve Danko is a Regulatory Affairs Professional and Professional Genealogist based in San Francisco, California. He is the author of Steve's Genealogy Blog, a daily genealogy research blog that was named one of the 25 Most Popular Genealogy Blogs for 2009 by ProGenealogists and one of the 40 Best Genealogy Blogs for 2010 by Family Tree Magazine.

Steve's genealogy research interests center on Eastern European Genealogy (especially Polish Genealogy), Immigration, and Naturalization. He has conducted research on site in Poland and Lithuania, where he has visited the villages of his ancestors, analyzed court records, census records, and church records at the Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw, the Lithuanian State Historical Archives, and at local parish churches.

Steve's research has led him to an appreciation of history and languages. He has formally studied Latin, German, and Polish, and has acquired a working knowledge of several other languages. He is the administrator for the Danko and Niedzialkowski One-Name Studies and the Danko and Niedzialkowski DNA Projects.

Steve is teaching "Polish Court Records and Census Records" Friday at 9:30 AM.

Presenter Profile: Kelly Summers

Kelly R. Summers is an Accredited Genealogist® Professional. She received her B.A. in Family and Community History from BYU. Her specialty is U.S. research with expertise in U.S. Midwestern. Kelly is also experienced in Spanish & Latin American research. Kelly teaches and lectures on many genealogical topics including methodology, technology, and specific record types found in U.S. and Spanish research. She currently teaches Family History & Genealogy part-time at Brigham Young University. Kelly is serving as a Commissioner for the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists (ICAPGen).

Kelly is teaching "Getting to Know ICAPGen" on Saturday at 2:30 PM.

Presenter Profile: Maureen Taylor

Maureen Taylor is an internationally known expert on photo identification. She travels extensively giving presentations on photo identification, photo preservation, and family history. She has been featured in The Wall Street Journal and on NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s The View, and NPR.

She’ll be offering individual consultations at the conference. Email her at mtaylor@taylorandstrong.com for more information. She’ll be signing books at the NEHGS booth during the event.

Maureen is teaching "Kodak Moments and Technicolor Dreams: Twentieth-century Photos in the Family Archive" on Friday at 2:30 pm, "Immigrant Clues in Photographs" on Saturday at 8:00, "From Index Cards to Powerpoint and Beyond" on Saturday at 12:15 and " "Every Picture Tells a Story": Dating Family Photographs" on Saturday at 4:00pm.

Presenter Profile: Bruce Buzbee

Bruce Buzbee is the founder and president of RootsMagic, Inc., and the author of RootsMagic genealogy software. Bruce has been writing genealogy software for over 18 years. Bruce has taught thousands of users the ins and outs of RootsMagic, from the basics for beginners to advanced topics for the genealogy professional. Bruce is also the webmaster of Family-Reunion.com, the world's most popular family reunion planning site.

Bruce is teaching "What's New in RootsMagic 4" Friday at 2:30 pm.

Presenter Profile: Lynda Childers Suffridge

Lynda Childers Suffridge, BSE, MSE, a graduate of the University of Arkansas, completed six hours post-graduate work at the University of Central Arkansas, attended Draughon School of Business, and completed the Dale Carnegie Course in Public Speaking. She is a native and resident of Arkansas, is vice president of the National Genealogical Society Board of Directors, a Life Member of NGS, and serves as chair of the NGS Awards Committee. She currently serves as secretary of the Arkansas Genealogical Society. A twelve year employee, now retired, of the Arkansas History Commission, she is past-president of the Arkansas Genealogical Society, Heritage Seekers, and Arkansas Pioneers. She is author of NGS Research in the States Series: Arkansas; co-editor of the Perry County [Arkansas] Historical & Genealogical Society Newsletter, and co-editor of Perry County, Arkansas: Its Land & People. She was the 2007 winner of the “Arkansas Genealogical Society Family History Writing Contest Bobbie Jones McLane Award” and was presented the 2008 “Arkansas Historical Association Walter L. Brown Award for Best Family History in a Local Journal” for her article “Descendants of Reuben Searcy and Isabella McDonald.” Ms. Suffridge lectures in Course III at the Institute of Genealogy & Historical Research at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, at NGS and FGS Conferences, and to state and local organizations.

She will be presenting lectures on using the United States Census to trace your ancestors in the Beginner Workshops being held on Tuesday and on Saturday mornings.

Traveling to Salt Lake--Bringing the kids.

So what is there to do if you are bringing the family? I hope you are--and I hope you have signed up for the Kids Camp that is going on on Saturday. It is my passion in life to envelop my children in the larger picture--an extended family, and teach them about their heritage. And what better way than to bring them to a genealogy conference?

So--since I am telling you about traveling to Salt Lake, what is there for the family to do in and around the conference?

Two great resources are one trax stop, or about a two block walk west from the conference over at the Gateway Center. The Clark Planetarium is a favorite of our family's. There are interactive displays about the planets, laser shows and an Imax theatre, but my kids' favorite is "Newton's Daydream," a two story audio-kinetic maze of balls and bells and whistles that you can interact with. Exhibits are free, times and prices for the shows are at the website.

Likewise at the Gateway Center is the children's museum known as the Discovery Gateway. This museum is perfect for the 5-10 year old crowd, but all ages can find something interesting here. There is an interactive town with a store, farm and house and construction zone, a play area "beehive" of interactive ball chutes, a media center where kids can produce a newscast, a story telling stage with puppets and costumes, and much much more. Hours are Monday - Thursday 10 am - 6 pm, Friday and Saturday 10 am - 8 pm, and Sunday Noon - 6 pm. General admission is $8.50

Up emigration canyon on the eastern side of Salt Lake City, Hogle Zoo covers 42 acres with over 800 animals. This is the perfect time of year to visit the zoo--not to hot or cold, and lots of baby animals. If you are sticking around until May 15th, a new exhibit called "Natures Nightmares" is opening with all sorts of "scary" animals. Don't know if I'm going to go see that one (I'm typically squeamish) but of course you should ;-).

I already talked about the Tracy Aviary, located on seven wooded acres of Liberty Park, it is the nation's oldest public aviary. This bird park hosts a collection of 400 birds including many endangered species. During the summer guests can see a free-flying bird show and hand feed colorful parrots at the Lory Walk exhibit. Admission is nominal and all proceeds benefit the birds. Open year-round. 589 East 1300 South. 801-596-8500.

My all time favorite places to take the kids though are the historical sites I already listed for you. This Is The Place Heritage Park, The Beehive House, and the Heber Creeper. I hope as I spend time with them, and invest them in their history, they will become genealogists too. Good luck creating your own genealogical descendants.

Presenter Profile: John Colletta

John Philip Colletta is a Washington-based genealogist whose interest in family history goes back to his boyhood in Buffalo. His father's family was Sicilian, his mother's Bavarian, Alsatian and Swiss, and John was curious to learn how all these ancestors happened to converge in western New York. His research began in U.S. records. Then, while a graduate student in Paris, he ventured into the primary sources of Italy, Germany and France.

After serving in the U.S. Army, John completed his Doctorate in Medieval French Literature at the Catholic University of America. From 1984 through 2005 he conducting workshops for the National Archives and taught courses for the Smithsonian Institution. Now he lectures nationally to genealogical, historical and ethnic societies. He is a faculty member of the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University in Birmingham, AL, and the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy in Salt Lake City, UT. He has also coordinated and taught courses for the National Institute on Genealogical Research at the National Archives (Washington, DC), the Institute of Genealogical Research (Dallas,TX), and the Genealogical Institute of Mid-America (Springfield, IL). His areas of expertise include: tracing families of continental European origin, especially nineteenth century; federal records; and writing a narrative family history that is both a reliable document and a readable story.

Dr. Colletta has published many articles in both popular and scholarly magazines. He contributed the chart "How to Find Your Immigrant Ancestor's Ship" to

a permanent exhibit on Ellis Island, and his related book, They Came in Ships: A Guide to Finding Your Immigrant Ancestor's Arrival Record, first published in 1989 by Ancestry, Inc., Salt Lake City, is now available in an updated and expanded third edition. His book, Finding Italian Roots: The Complete Guide for Americans, first published in 1993 by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, is now available in an updated and expanded second edition. Only a Few Bones: A True Account of the Rolling Fork Tragedy and Its Aftermath, published in 2000, is a narrative history that reads like a murder mystery; it recounts the mysterious disappearance of a Mississippi ancestor during Reconstruction.

Dr. Colletta has been interviewed on Voice of America--Europe, National Public Radio, and has appeared on local and national television, including NBC's "Today" show. He is featured in Episode Four of "Ancestors," the ten-part KBYU-TV series that aired in 1997, and its sequel that aired in 2000. His national popularity as a speaker may be attributed to the warmth and wit, humor and humanity, that characterize his approach to the adventure of discovering ancestors.

John is teaching "U.S. Naturalization Records, Colonial Times to Early Twentieth-century" at 8:00 am on Thursday, "Passenger Arrival Records: Sources and Strategies for Challenging Cases" at 2:30 on Thursday, and "Naturalization Records: Alternative Sources and Strategies" on Saturday at 8:00am

Traveling to Salt Lake--Day Trip to Provo

I've already told you about the Family History Library at BYU and the Gardens at Thanksgiving Point. I'm going to give you a few other places to make a day trip out of Utah County. I think the Family History Library and the gardens would be the perfect day. So I'm pretty much just going to give you a few places to eat.

Thanksgiving Point has a really good restaurant called the Harvest Restaurant. It has fresh good food and the walls of the restaurant are painted with fun "trompe l'oeil" art on the walls. Right next to Thanksgiving Point is another favorite burger place--JCW's. A little further south on the BYU campus is the Museum of Art Cafe. The Cafe is only open from 11 to 2 for lunches, but they have wonderful salads and an amazing cold raspberry soup. Other fun places to stop include Cabelas where you can see the wildlife displays and aquariums and dine on buffalo or ostrich at the High Uintas grill. And if you ever come later in the fall, the most beautiful place on earth to see the leaves change is the Alpine Loop drive between American Fork Canyon (stop and see Timpanogos Cave) and Provo Canyon (home of Sundance Ski Resort).

Traveling to Salt Lake--Day Trip to Park City

Although Dear Myrtle already posted a bit about Park City's Historical Museum, I thought I would add my $.02.

Park City makes a fun day trip from Salt Lake. The ski areas have just closed for the season, but there are still lots of fun attractions to visit. The Olympic Park has tours and rides and a fun zip line that opens May 8th, the Tanger Factory Outlet is a great place for shopping deals and Main Street is a good place to wander through art galleries and especially enjoy the nightlife. Park City is about a 40 minute drive up Parley's Canyon on the I-80 freeway.

If you go, you have to eat at Stein Erickson or Grub Steak, both pricey but absolutely legendary.

Traveling to Salt Lake--Day Trip to Ogden

Ogden is about a 45 minute drive north on the I-15 freeway. I suppose I'm partial to Ogden for a family history day trip because my maternal grandfather's parents settled in Ogden for a time. But it has an amazing railroad history that is most fascinating. You can take the FrontRunner train up to Ogden in about 45 minutes and it will drop you off just a block or so from the Union Station. In 1869 when the transcontinental railroad was connected at Promontory Utah, Ogden became the central hub of transportation in the intermountain west. The station is not in use for trains anymore but houses three interesting museums: the John M Browning Firearms Museum, The Utah State Railroad Museum and the Browning-Kimball Classic Car museum. The station is open Monday-Saturday 10am to 5 pm and admission for all three museums is $5.

Or, if you would rather learn about Airplane history, make the stop on the way up to Ogden at Hill Air Force base and visit the Hill Aerospace Museum. The museum boasts one of the largest collections of vintage aircraft with over 90 military aircraft and military aerospace vehicles. Exhibits take you through the dawn of the airplane and the history of the Air Force with interesting stories about the people who were involved. The museum is open 9:30 am to 4:00 pm seven days a week and admission is free but donations are appreciated.

Presenter Profile: Tom Kemp

Tom Kemp has been working in genealogy for the past 45 years. He is the author of more than 35 books and has lectured around the world. He was a presenter at the first genealogy conference held in China (Shanghai 2001) and has routinely spoken at the National Genealogical Society and local genealogy conferences across the country. Tom is the "Father" of GenealogyBank. He is the 2010 recipient of the American Library Association's GPC Award - the lifetime achievement award for Genealogy Librarians.

Tom is teaching "Genealogy Boot Camp--Twenty-first century Core Resources." on Saturday at 2:30pm.

Presenter Profile: Thomas Shawker

Dr. Thomas Shawker is a physician and has over 200 scientific publications including articles on genetic genealogy. He has spoken at numerous national and state genealogical meetings. Dr. Shawker currently serves as the Chairman of the National Genealogical Society Committee on Genetic Genealogy. He is the author of the book "Unlocking your Genetic History: A Step-by-step Guide to Discovering your Family’s Medical and Genetic Heritage" in the National Genealogical Society book series.

Thomas is teaching "The ABCs of DNA Testing" on Friday at 9:30 and "DNA Testing for Race, Ethnicity, and Ancestry" on Saturday at 2:30.

Presenter Profile: Russell S. Lynch, A.G., MLS

Russ received an Honors BA in French from the University of Utah in 1987 and studied for a semester in Lisieux, France. He grew up in the Salt Lake City area in Utah and has a Masters of Library and Information Science from Brigham Young University.

He is an Accredited Genealogist researcher in Midwestern States. Russ served as president of the Utah Genealogical Association (UGA) and in other UGA leadership positions. During that time, he served as exhibit coordinator for the GENTech Conference.

In 1993, he attended his first NGS Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. That conference was a wonderful experience which he has repeated many times over the past 17 years! He has enjoyed serving as the Local Host Chair for this Family History Conference and looks forward to the great events that they have planned.

Russ has worked at the Family History Library since 1985 as a reference manager, a database specialist, and a reference secretary. He has worked on many databases for the FamilySearch.org website, taught classes on record sources, software products, and research methodology at local, state, and national conferences. Currently, he is a Collection Management Specialist for FamilySearch.

As a librarian, he participates on the RUSA Local History Committee and the Genealogy Committee of ALA (American Library Association). He serves as Secretary to the Genealogy and Local History Section of IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions). He has lectured at and arranged many large conferences for libraries and genealogy.

NGS Class: Saturday, 1 May, 2010 on the "West" track at 9:30 a.m.

Utah Territorial Records

Presenter Profile: Paula Stuart Warren

Paula Stuart-Warren, CG℠ is a Certified Genealogist working full-time in genealogical and historical research, lecturing, consulting, and writing, Paula has researched at the National Archives, FHL, NEHGS, DAR Library, and many other repositories. She has been a member of NGS since the 1980s. Since 1997 she has been a Course Coordinator for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, lectured at National Genealogical Society and Federation of Genealogical Societies conferences since 1993, and in 29 states and Canada. A former officer of the Association of Professional Genealogists and Minnesota Genealogical Society board member, she currently serves on FGS’ Board of Directors. She has written for Ancestry Magazine, FGS Forum, NGSQ, NGS Magazine, New England Ancestors, Minnesota Genealogist, and is editor of FGS Conference News Blog and Paula’s Genealogical Eclectica . Her articles and lectures focus on unusual resources, manuscripts, analyzing records, the Midwest, and Native Americans. She is descended from eight ancestral countries with connections to many states and provinces.

Paula is teaching: Wednesday at 11:00 a.m., Session W125: Right on the Shelves at the FHL: Discovering Back Issues of Periodicals, Wednesday at 4:00 p.m., Session W155: American Indian Research at the Family History Library and Beyond and Friday at 8:00 a.m., F306: Tho’ They Were Poor, They May Have Been Rich in Records

Traveling to Salt Lake--what's playing now?

I know you are all going to be busy with the multitude of events surrounding the conference. But I thought I'd let you in on a couple of the other events going on in Salt Lake next week.

• The Temptations are at the Abravanel Hall next weekend right next to the Family History Library and the Salt Palace.
• 42nd Street is playing at the Pioneer Theatre Company up at the University of Utah.
• Hale Centre Theatre--a local favorite theater in the round--is showing The Three Musketeers.
• If Thursday night's performance leaves you wanting for more, The Mormon Tabernacle Choir has several other events including organ recitals and their longest-running network television program Music and the Spoken Word started in 1929.
• The Salt Lake Acting Company is performing Charm.
• Pirates of the Car-Rib-eee-An Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Fun is being performed by the ever comical Desert Star Playhouse.
• Regular movies can be seen downtown at the Mexaplex 12 at the Gateway Shopping Center.
• And various other art shows and concerts can be found at the Now Playing Utah website.

Presenter Profile: Ronald G. Coleman

Ronald G. Coleman

Before joining the University of Utah faculty in 1973, Dr. Ronald Coleman taught in the San Francisco Unified School District from 1968 to 1970, and at Sacramento City College from 1970-1973.

Dr. Coleman is an associate professor of history and ethnic studies and former coordinator of the Ethnic Studies Program, a post he held from July 1984 to July 1991. He held the position of Associate Vice President for Diversity and Faculty Development from December 1989 to July 1999.

Dr. Coleman received a B.S. degree in sociology at the University of Utah. He received an M.A. degree in social science(history emphasis) California State University, Sacramento, and a Ph.D. degree in history at the University of Utah. R. Coleman was elected to Phi Kappa Phi in 1977.

Professor Coleman’s primary research focus is African American history. He has presented his work at a variety of history and ethnic studies conferences. Dr. Coleman is frequently invited to lecture on topics varying from African American history to contemporary race relations in the United States. His publications include articles on western black history. “Is There No Blessing for Me? Jane Elizabeth Manning James, A Mormon African American Woman” in African American Women Confront the West; “Blacks in Utah: An Unknown Legacy;” in The Peoples f Utah; “The Buffalo Soldiers: Guardians of the Uintah Frontier;” and “Black Pioneers in Utah, 1847-1869.” He has served as an educational consultant for the University of Vermont, California State University, Hayward; Utah Transit Authority, Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Trust for Historic Preservation and several school districts in the state of Utah.

Dr. Coleman contributes to the University and larger community. His activities have included membership on the University of Utah Senate; the Athletic Board; the faculty mentoring program; and the faculty affirmative action committee. He is a life member of the NAACP and on the Alberta Henry Education Foundation Board. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Utah Chapter of the National Conference for Community and Justice, Salt Lake County Sports Advisory Board and was a member of the Salt Lake City Civil Service Commission from 1983 to 1993. He currently serves on the Utah State Board of History, the Cottonwood Heights History Committee and the Afro American History and Genealogical Association/Utah Chapter.

Professor Coleman’s contributions to education and community have been recognized by a number of organizations. In 2001 he was inducted into the University of Utah Crimson Club Athletic Hall of Fame. He was the recipient of the Utah Humanities Council’s Governors Award for the year 2000. In 1990 the University of Utah awarded him the Calvin and Jeneal Hatch Prize in Teaching. In 1991 the Salt Lake Chapter of the NAACP named Dr. Coleman the Albert B. Fritz Civil Rights Worker of the Year. In 1993 Dr. Coleman received the Olaudah Equiano Award of Excellence from the University of Utah Ethnic Studies Program. The University of Utah Honors Program recognized Coleman with the Distinguished Honors Professor Teaching Award for the 2005/2006 academic year.

Traveling to Salt Lake--the weather/what should I pack?

We've been getting hit with erratic spring showers today. At one point the hail looked like snowballs on the windshield, then 10 minutes later it was a light shower. Common for spring, they don't last very long.

According to the weather channel, I have good news for Sheri. By this Saturday there are no more plans for showers. So Sheri, you might want to bring a sweater or a light jacket for cold classrooms and late night walks. But you can leave your coats and probably your umbrella at home. That should leave you more room for shoes. :-)

And Dick, I guess you have more room for electronics, and Randy you should be able to fit in more t-shirts. See you soon.

Traveling to Salt Lake--The beautiful mountains

The first thing you notice when you come to Salt Lake City is our beautiful mountains. You can see on this great satellite picture that they surround the Salt Lake Valley with the Great Salt Lake (and Antelope Island) in the Northwest corner of the valley. Downtown Salt Lake is in the Northern part of the valley and the suburbs stretch out to the south. You can see on the satellite image the I-15 main freeway corridor stretching through the middle of the valley (the white line) and down before you come to Utah Lake is the Point of the Mountain where the mountains come together before heading down into Utah Valley.

Salt Lake sits on the western edge of the Rockies. The mountains provide great opportunities for recreation such as rock climbing, hiking, mountain biking and of course skiing. The highest mountain in the valley is Twin Peaks, which reaches 11,330 feet. This stretch of mountains with it's cities to the North of Salt Lake (Bountiful, Layton, Ogden, etc.) and it's cities to the South of Salt Lake (Alpine, Orem, Provo, etc.) are commonly called the "Wasatch front." The Oquirrh mountains that border the western edge of the valley are the home to Kennecott Copper Mine, the largest copper mine in the world. You can always tell where you are on the Wasatch front because the big mountains are to the East and the smaller mountains (the Oquirrh mountains) are to the west. And in fact once you spend a bit of time on the Wasatch front, you miss that instant location guide when you leave.

The main part of the valley is just over 100 square miles. City Creek, Emigration, Millcreek, Parley's, Big Cottonwood, and Little Cottonwood are the main canyons that stretch off to the East. Several of them are full of ski resorts. You can tell if the valley was cut by a stream or by a glacier by looking to see if the mouth of the canyon comes to a v or a u. U shaped canyons were cut by glaciers and V shaped canyons were cut by the river.

The valley was formed by Lake Bonneville, ancient lake that stretched out to the West. The foothills at the base of the mountains, or locally called the "benches," were once the beaches of this huge lake. At its largest, it was almost as large as Lake Michigan. Eventually though, the lake dried up and what is left of it is now the Great Salt Lake. Lake Bonneville's former beaches are now exclusive properties for homes with a sweeping view of the valley--especially beautiful at night.

Elevation in the valley is 4,330 feet/1,320 meters above sea level. There is usually clean fresh air except for when clouds get trapped up against the mountain and create an inversion. High elevation makes it harder to breathe while you are exercising (making it a great place for athletes to train) and alcohol has a stronger effect. It is good to drink more water to help with elevation adjustment. And you should add a little more flour to cakes so that they rise right. The valley isn't high enough to cause any real altitude problems in travelers.

I love being able to look up at the snow capped mountains when the summer starts to heat up. There will still be snow at the top when you arrive making the view just beautiful. But you'll be able to enjoy the warm spring weather and beautiful plants starting to wake up in the valley below.

Presenter Profile: Paul Lipinski

Paul R. Lipinski, BS, has been a researcher for over thirty years and has traced most of his ancestral lines to the 1700s. He joined the Polish Genealogical Society of California (PGS-CA) and has served on the Board as President and Vice-President (1996-99) and (2002-2005). Currently he is Editor of the quarterly publication, the Bulletin. He has written articles for PGS-California, PGS-America, and the TRW Genealogical Society (GS). He has organized and chaired conferences sponsored by PGS-California and UPGS (United Polish Genealogical Societies). He is a volunteer-consultant at the Los Angeles Regional Family History Center where he teaches classes and assists people in their research. He has spoken to the PGS-CA, German Research Association, Immigrant GS, FEEFHS, TRW GS, Questing Heirs GS, South Bay Cities GS, Temecula Valley GS, Murrieta GS, Whittier Area GS, Corona GS, Pomona Valley GS, UPGS (United Polish Genealogical Societies), and San Diego GS.

Paul is teaching "Researching in Poland" on Friday at 4:00 pm.

Presenter Profile: Wendy Elliott-Scheinberg

Wendy is a professor of history at California State University, Fullerton. She currently is immediate past president of the Federation of Genealogical Societies and held several positions on its Board of Directors for many years. Wendy also served on the national Records Preservation and Access committee. She completed several terms as president of the California State Genealogical Alliance during the 1980s and 1990s.

She is an internationally known genealogical teacher and beginning in 1984 annually lectures at the NGS and FGS national conferences held throughout the United States. In 2010 she’ll present one lecture in Salt Lake City, and three in Knoxville. In July 2003 Wendy attended the National Institute for Genealogical Research at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. Her articles on the War of 1812 will appear in the next two issues of FGS FORUM Online.

Wendy is teaching "California Voter Registrations: A Wealth of Information for Genealogists" at 2:30 pm on Saturday.

Presenter Profile: John M. Kitzmiller II, AG

John has always been interested in too widely different subjects – genealogy and geology. Combine that with an interest in all things military and that would explain a lot about his career(s)! He was born on an Air Force Base in Illinois but mostly lived in Michigan. He was the eldest son of the eldest son etc., so was basically raised with his grandparents and great grandparents. He knew 5 of the later generation, the last one passing away when he was a young teenager. His grandfather has much to blame for his genealogical interest, in that he would tell stories about the family while his father and grandfather played checkers. He was never once asked to play, but he sure learned how to.

Geology was another hobby that turned into a profession, and John obtained two degrees in it – the last one at BYU. He worked for the State of Utah (mapping), Phillips Petroleum (off-shore California), Texas Oil & Gas (California), the Department of Energy (Utah), and Hewitt Energy. During this time John inquired at the Family History Library, and was hired. He worked in the Correspondence Unit, then went to work on record linkage and its application to duplicate checking. He became the supervisor, the manager, and then was transferred to Ancestral File as a product manager and the manager of the Medieval Unit. He also can be seen on KBYU when he lectured on British military and Heraldry (became a fellow of two heraldic groups).

During this time he obtained his credentials in England and Scotland, was elected a Fellow of the Society of Genealogists, and a fellow of several other British societies. In his spare time he wrote many articles and books, and also worked with several Native American groups. After awhile, he decided to strike out and work with some outside companies where he further polished his skills. This even included genealogical lectures on cruise ships! John has lectured around the world, and has been to all of the Record Offices in Britain except one – Lincoln! Still he felt the tug of the Family History department, and decided to become a Church Service Missionary. After some time, an opportunity occurred where he could work with his favorite topic – medieval genealogy. One of the thrills of his life was to obtain a golden Reference tag, where he substituted weekly. Although only in the Medieval unit for a year, he thoroughly enjoyed it and misses the people there. He then moved into a group that helps define which strategic records needed to be obtained by the Department.

NGS Class: on Saturday, 1 May 2010 in the ICAPGen Track at 11:00 a.m.

Advanced Methodology: The Paradigm of Family History Research

Presenter Profile: Howard Bybee

Howard C. Bybee is the Family History Librarian in the Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University. He and his wife Sue, who has a BA in family history, are parents of six children. He is Faculty Advisor for the French section of the Immigrant Ancestors Project. He and his wife have taught Religion 261, Introduction to Family History at BYU. He has spoken about the Lee Library genealogy resources at conferences throughout Utah. He has Masters degrees in French, Anthropology, and Library Science, and has been employed in the Harold B. Lee Library since 1988.

Howard is teaching "Discover Your Heritage at the BYU Library: Catalog and Genealogy Resources" on Thursday at 11:00

Presenter Profile: Pamela K. Sayre

Pamela Boyer Sayre, CG, CGL, is director of education and publications for NGS and coordinator for Samford University’s IGHR Techniques and Technology course. She has also taught in the Advanced Military and Southern Research courses at IGHR and in the Certification/Accreditation course at Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. Pam is co-author of Online Roots: How to Discover Your Family’s History and Heritage with the Power of the Internet (Nashville, TN: Rutledge Hill Press, 2003); Research in Missouri (Arlington, VA: NGS, 1999 & 2007); the Missouri chapter in the third edition of Ancestry’s Red Book (Provo, UT: Ancestry, Inc., 2004), and she was the FGS FORUM’s Digitools columnist for several years. Pam is a former board member of FGS, NGS, and the Genealogical Speakers Guild, past editor of the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly, former chair of APG’s Publications Advisory Committee, and former copy editor of the BCG publication OnBoard.

Born in St. Louis and reared in New Mexico, Pam received a bachelor’s degree with emphasis in sociology, English, and history from Eastern New Mexico University. She completed some coursework toward an MBA (emphasis in Computer Information Systems) from Bentley College, Waltham, Massachusetts. Easily bored in earlier years, Pam worked in law enforcement, personnel administration, and software testing, training, and documentation before following her heart to become a full-time professional genealogist in 1994. She has spoken at genealogy conferences and seminars in thirty states.

Pamela is teaching "Google Earth for Genealogists" on Wednesday at 2:30pm, "Effective Editing and Writing" on Saturday at 9:30 am and "Westward Ho! But How?" on Saturday at 4:00pm.

Presenter Profile: Kip Sperry

Kip Sperry is a professor of family history at Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, where he teaches American and LDS genealogical research methods and sources. Kip was born in Chardon, Geauga County, Ohio, holds graduate and undergraduate degrees from BYU, and previously worked at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. He is an Accredited Genealogist, Certified Genealogist, and a Certified Genealogical Lecturer. His national awards include Fellow, American Society of Genealogists; Fellow, National Genealogical Society; and Fellow, Utah Genealogical Association, among others. He received the Richard Lloyd Anderson Research Award from BYU in 2003. Kip is author of A Guide to Mormon Family History Sources; Kirtland, Ohio: A Guide to Family History and Historical Sources; Genealogical Research in Ohio; Reading Early American Handwriting, and other books, chapters, and journal articles. He has lectured at national, regional, and state family history conferences and seminars, including BYU computer and family history conferences. His areas of research interest are American and LDS family history; New England states; Ohio and other Midwestern states; Western Reserve in northeastern Ohio; England, Scotland, Isle of Man family history; and paleography (reading early handwriting).

Kip is teaching "Latter-day Saint Family History Research" Friday at 8:00am, "Tips for Field Research for Family Historians" Friday at 4:00pm, and "Finding Your Ancestors in U.S. Census Records" on Saturday at 8:00 am.

Presenter Profile: J.H. Fonkert

J. H. (‘Jay”) Fonkert is a Certified Genealogist^SM specializing in Midwest and Dutch genealogy.

He is President of the Minnesota Genealogical Society (MGS), as well as a genealogy author and educator. Jay teaches a Beginning Genealogy course in St. Paul (MN) Community Education, is a course coordinator and instructor in the MGS Intermediate Genealogy Course, and has been a Genealogy Help Desk consultant at the Minnesota Historical Society Library. He has lectured on census research, immigration, Dutch genealogy and other topics in Minnesota, Iowa, Florida and Ontario.

He has is a columnist for The Septs, the quarterly journal of the Irish Genealogical Society International and has published articles in Family Chronicle, Minnesota Generalogist, the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, and the NGS Magazine. Jay’s writing earned the 2009 Scholar Award from the American Society of Genealogists, and has three years running won 2^nd or 3^rd place in writing competitions sponsored by the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors.

He has studied advanced research methods and professional genealogy at the Institute for Genealogical and Historical Research at Samford University and English genealogical research at the Salt Lake Genealogy Institute. He has also attended the National Institute for Genealogical Research in Washington, D.C.

He is a Director of the Association of Professional Genealogists, and a member of The Genealogical Speaker’s Guild and the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors.

A stubborn Dutchman, his favorite research topics come from his wife’s family, namely the Fawkners of mid-19^th century Kentucky and Indiana, and the Tidballs of Somerset and Devon, England. He also has done extensive research on Midwestern Dutch immigrants, and has tried his hand at Swedish and Norwegian research.

Outside genealogy, Jay’s volunteer service has included stints as Treasurer and President of Czech and Slovak Sokol Minnesota and as President of the Saint Paul District 1 Community Council. In his real world life, he is the Sr. Workforce Analyst in the Office of Rural Health and Primary Care, in the Minnesota Department of Health.

A graduate of Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, Jay has M.A. degrees in Political Science and Public Affairs from the University of Illinois and the University of Minnesota, respectively, and has completed advanced geography coursework at the University of Minnesota.

Jay is teaching"Anatomy of a Genealogy Research Report: Adding Muscle and Flesh" on Saturday at 2:30 and has graciously

Traveling to Salt Lake--When are you coming?

The registrations for NGS look great and we are exited to have lots of people coming from everywhere. While we have driven and flown many of these distances to meet with you, here are some mileage estimates since you are coming our way this time.

• New York City to Salt Lake City is about 2190 miles
• Oklahoma City to Salt Lake City is about 1100 miles
• St Louis to Salt Lake City is about 1360 miles
• San Diego to Salt Lake City is about 760 miles
• Seattle to Salt Lake City is about 850 miles
• Phoenix to Salt Lake City is about 650 miles
• Nashville to Salt Lake City is about 1700 miles
• Las Vegas to Salt Lake City is about 420 miles
• Grand Junction to Salt Lake City is about 290 miles
• Detroit to Salt Lake City is about 1670 miles
• El Paso to Salt Lake City is about 870 miles
• Houston to Salt Lake City is about 1440 miles
• Kansas City to Salt Lake City is about 1110 miles
• Columbus to Salt Lake City is about 1680 miles
• Cheyenne to Salt Lake City is about 440 miles
• Boston to Salt Lake City is about 2380 miles
• Atlanta to Salt Lake City is about 1930 miles
• Billings to Salt Lake City is about 640 miles
• Boise to Salt Lake City is about 340 miles
• Albuquerque to Salt Lake City is about 600 miles
• Anchorage to Salt Lake City is about 3416 miles
• Ottawa to Salt Lake City is about 2957 miles
• Vancouver to Salt Lake City is about 1292 miles
• Toronto to Salt Lake City is about 1671 miles

I actually love driving and getting to see the sites along the way. If you aren't so inclined, I hope you are flying. But if you are driving, there is another great list of driving distances from many of the western national and state parks.

We're vacuuming the red carpet. We'll see you soon.

HELP US HELP YOU!

Dear NGS Conference Attendee –
If you,

• Have foreign ancestors you want to find
  
• Are going to visit the Family History Library during your stay in Salt Lake City
• PLEASE DO THE FOLLOWING TO HELP THE FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY RESEARCH CONSULTANTS HELP YOU IN THAT PROCESS
  

• Find your ancestors in minimally the 1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930 U.S. censuses to obtain year of immigration information
  
• If they came early, find them in the 1850-1900 censuses
  
• If there are state censuses, you may try and find them in those – information given there can be also helpful. You can check on our Wiki to help you with this. US State Censuses

Family researchers also need to do a “genealogy dig” in the basement and attic and look for things such as:

• Hanging or stored tintypes, daguerreotypes, copper plates, or old brass photos with names, dates, or places on them, either front or back
• Vital records (birth, marriage, death, burial certificates or notices, doctor’s records or equivalent), both U.S. and foreign .
• Church records (baptismal, confirmation, marriage, death, burial,), both U.S. and foreign.
• Letters/picture postcards from the old country with people and/or place names on them.
• Obituary notices about aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, neighbors, and friends who may have come from the same area in the old country as your ancestors.
• Scrapbooks with any articles, pamphlets, newspaper clippings, and so forth in a foreign language.
• Photos or picture plates of any kind with printed and/or written names of people or places
• Commemorative certificates which may list schooling / other accomplishments in a foreign place
• Certificates of or applications for insurance policies, driver’s licenses, fraternal orders, clubs, employment, social benefits cards, pension benefits, savings funds, bank accounts, and so forth.
• Copies of civil or criminal court papers, or documents which ask for birth place, age, birth date.
• Front, middle, back fill-in pages of Bibles, religious books, or any other types of printed booklets, pamphlets or printed matter from a foreign country.
• Medical records of any kind which asked for date and/or age, and place of birth or residence.
• Copies of homestead applications, deeds, wills, naturalization applications, etc.
• Information obtained from family stories, legends, oral interviews with relatives, friends and neighbors of relatives, which can then be checked against more reliable sources. A nosy or gossipy neighbor can also be a great source of family history info!
• ANY documents, certificates, postcards, pictures and so forth with place and/or people names on them which are in a foreign language and/or ”funny” handwriting. Example: many European immigrants brought their copy of their smallpox (kopper) vaccination with them, and it’s now lying in the attic or basement trunk because no one can read it nor knows what it is. It could list a birth place!
• Bring excellent photo copies or digitized images of anything you find with you. They may contain the clues needed to get you back across the ocean!!

Help us help you!

Traveling to Salt Lake -- Parks at Springtime

There is another reason that NGS picked the perfect week to come to Salt Lake City. And that is that the gardens around the city come alive with tulips and daffodils this time of year.

You'll get to see the beautiful tulips around the library pretty easily, but be sure to take a walk one block to the east and look around Temple Square. The sight is spectacular this time of year. It is an amazing place to take pictures.

Likewise. 26 miles to the south is Thanksgiving Point. The 35 acres of gardens boast 250,000 tulips. Until May 1st, they are hosting the Tulip Festival from 10 am to 8 pm Monday through Saturday. Entrance fees are $10 adults, $8 children and $9 seniors. It's hard to explain how beautiful the gardens are, you just have to go see them.

There are lots of other beautiful parks around Salt Lake too.

Liberty Park is Salt Lake's foremost park. There are all sorts of things to explore at the park. Tracy Aviary is a popular site for bird watching, my first birthday party was held at the amusement park, and more recently they have built a fun interactive playground map of the Salt Lake Valley with fountains and rock features. Liberty Park is at 11th South and 6th East.

Red Butte Garden is also a popular place for locals to hike and go exploring. It is a 100 acre botanical garden that is part of the University of Utah and largely organized to help learn about local horticulture. It is open from 9am to 9pm throughout April.

And if you are downtown a great place to stretch your legs or have a picnic are the Brigham Young Park and City Creek Park. They are beautifully landscaped parks just east of State Street and on the corners of North Temple. Delightful places to get some air at lunch time.

And finally, Memory Grove is a serene place, close to downtown wonderful for a jog or bike ride. It stretches up city creek canyon to the east of the capitol.

Lots of beautiful places to see and to get some fresh air. Hope you enjoy them.

Presenter Profile: Suzanne Russo Adams

Suzanne Russo Adams, MA, AG® specializes in Italian research. She is a Brigham Young University graduate with degrees in sociology and family history/genealogy. Suzanne currently works as the Society Partnership Manager for Ancestry.com and has worked at Ancestry.com for more than 11 years. She currently serves on the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) board, as a commissioner for the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists (ICAPGen) and is a former board member of the Utah Genealogical Association (UGA). Suzanne also has a Master’s degree in European History from BYU (December 2008) and she is the author of Finding Your Italian Ancestors: A Beginner’s Guide (2009.)

Suzanne is teaching "What's New at Ancestry.com?" at 11am on Wednesday

Presenter Profile: Alan Mann, A.G.

Alan E. Mann, AG, is an accredited genealogist in England, Australia, and the Channel Islands. He is a community manager for the FamilySearch Community Services team, a workgroup in the Family History Department, Corporation of the President, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Alan was formerly the Information Services manager for the Family History Library and he teaches British Research (History 412, 413, and 481) for Brigham Young University and various computer courses for Salt Lake Community College. He writes columns, reviews, and articles for several magazines, and presents around the country on "the Internet" and "British Research."

Alan is a director of the Utah Genealogical Association and was program chair for GenTech 2000 in San Diego, and is co-founder and co-chair of the BYU Annual Computerized Genealogy Conference (1998-2002, 2006 to present).

NGS Class: Thursday, 29 Apr 2010 in the Utah Genealogical Association Track at 8:00 a.m.

A Fresh Look at the Family History Library: A Library without Walls

Presenter Profile: Glen Fairclough

Glen Fairclough, a processing and reference archivist, has worked at the Utah State Archives and Records Service since April 1989. Fairclough arranges and describes numerous records series and also researches and writes agency histories. He also provides reference services, conducts guided tours of archives's facilities, and lectures about archival research. Fairclough designed "Utah's Road to Statehood," an electronic exhibit which tells the story of Utah's 50-year struggle to achieve statehood using the wealth of documents, photographs, and memorabilia held at Utah repositories. Fairclough received a bachelor of arts degree in journalism and mass communication from the University of Utah in 1976. Before becoming an archivist, Fairclough was employed as a reporter, editor, and photographer at various daily, weekly, and monthly publications. Fairclough writes and distributes news releases to local media as well as regional and national professional journals.

The History Research Center is jointly operated by the Utah State Archives and State History. The center is open Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

NGS Class: Thursday, April 29, at 2:30 p.m. in the Utah Genealogical Association track. The class is titled "Wake the Dead: Family History Resources at the History Research Center."

Presenter Profile: Elizabeth Shown Mills

Genealogical audiences on three continents have dubbed Elizabeth Shown Mills “The SuperGenie,” the “Pied Piper of Family History,” the “Mother of Modern Genealogy,” and “the person who has had the greatest impact on genealogy in the post-Roots era.” For a quarter century, she has pushed the cutting edge of research methodology, standards, and quality, serving as president of both the Board for
Certification of Genealogists and the American Society of Genealogists, as well as an officer or trustee of other major organizations.
During her 16 years as editor of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Elizabeth made that journal into the leading forum for the teaching of research methods and principles. For even longer, her Advanced Methodology Track at the Samford University Institute of Genealogy & Historical Research has been a rite of passage for serious family historians. Two of Elizabeth’s 500+ publications, the award-winning Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian and Professional Genealogy: A Manual for Researchers, Writers, Editors, Lecturers, and Librarians, are considered “absolute essentials” for both personal and professional genealogists. Her 2004 historical novel Isle of Canes, an epic account of a Creole family through four generations as it rose from slavery to rule Cane River’s fabled Isle (a story drawn from Elizabeth’s personal research in the archives of six nations) was declared a “masterpiece” by Historical Novels Review who promised its readers “You’ll never look at American History the same way again.” Her latest book, Evidence Explained: Citing History Sources from Artifacts to Cyberspace, earned Library Journal’s Best Reference 2007 designation.

Elizabeth is teaching "Smith & Jones: How to Cope with Families of Common Name" Wednesday at 2:30pm, "What Kind of Document is This: Original? Derivative? Primary? Secondary? Or Whatchamacallit!?" Thursday at 11am, "Hell on the Home Front: Damages & the Claims They Generated" Friday at 11am and "Finding & Using Birth, Marriage, & Death Records Prior to Vital Registration" on Saturday at 11am

Presenter Profile:Dear Myrtle

DearMYRTLE's Bio

Pat (Player) Isaacs Richley-Erickson, who attended Brigham Young University, is the proud mother of three grown daughters, and the grandmother of six -- Tracen, Aubrey, TJ, Tannon, Braden and Tyler. She considers being a grandmother her greatest joy and accomplishment.

Computer Instructor: From 1991-2006, Pat taught computer classes part time at the Manatee Technical Institute with an emphasis on corporate training. She also provided computer tutoring services in Sarasota and Manatee county, Florida. Specialties include corporate and government training in Windows, Excel, Access, PowerPoint & Outlook.

Radio Show Host: In January 2000, she began co- hosting The Seeker & DearMYRTLE, a weekly call-in talk radio show on local AM radio, with internet streaming. In June 2000, Myrt began exclusive internet broadcasting of DearMYRTLE's Family History Hour internet radio show. Now in podcast format, listeners may automatically download the next episode through iTunes.com.

Public Speaker: As DearMYRTLE, Pat has spoken at national, regional & local genealogy society meetings since the late 1990s. She has spoke at the NGS Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, giving 2 computer lab training sessions. Myrt has been featured as the keynote speaker, instructor at numerous genealogy conferences in Florida, Canada, Washington, Utah, Georgia, Tennessee and Virginia.

Genealogy Training & Service: Pat received training at the Washington, DC Temple Family History Center in Kensington, and served for five years as the Patron Services Librarian at the Family History Center in Bradenton, FL. She has spent hundreds of hours researching at the National Archives, the Library of Congress and the DAR Library in Washington, DC. In addition, Myrt now resides in the Salt Lake City area, facilitation intensive research at the Family History Library.

From 1993-2006 Myrt has served as the instructor & newsletter editor for the Manasota PAF Users Group. She is a past president and webmaster for the Manasota Genealogical Society. She is also webmaster of the Weiser Family Page.

Author: Beginning in 1995, DearMYRTLE's Daily Genealogy Column appeared in the Golden Gate Genealogy Forum on AOL until AOL folded the forum in Sept 2003. DearMYRTLE.com debuted in 1999 as a place to archive special columns for access by anyone on the net. Myrt's The Everything Online Genealogy Book debuted in Nov 2000 followed by DearMYRTLE's Joy of Genealogy in 2006. Myrt has written numerous magazine articles, published in Heritage Quest Magazine and Everton's Genealogical Helper. She wrote the chapter on church records for Family Chronicle's Introduction to Genealogy. In March 2003, Myrt began her series of "little books", including Getting Started with Your Family History and Internet Research: Top 20 Things to Do Online.

Chat Room Hostess: Myrt joined the Your Family Tree on Q-Link for Commodore computers in the winter of 1984/1985. Working with Russ Kyger, they expanded the chats from 1 to 7 week nightly. She remembers begging Russ to "hire" Terry Ann Morgan as the message board host. Q-Link and Apple-Link merged to become AOL, where Myrt served on the leadership team of the Golden Gate Genealogy Forum (AOL's Keyword: roots) until it was disbanded in August 2003. Now sign on to Second Life and search for JUST GENEALOGY and Clarise Beaumont.

Pat/Myrt lives in Utah with five computers, 113 research notebooks and enough shelves to finally unpack her genealogy library.

Dear Myrtle is speaking at the Utah Genealogical Association luncheon on Thursday. Here presentation is titled "Genealogy: It's Not Just for Mormons"

Presenter Profile: Elissa Scalise Powell

Elissa Scalise Powell, CGSM, a western Pennsylvania researcher, is a Trustee for the Board for Certification of Genealogists, and their Exhibit Booth Coordinator. She is the instructor for the “Foundations,” “Genealogy Profession” and online “Ethnic and Geographic Specialties” modules in Boston University’s Genealogical Research Certificate program. Elissa is the Professional Genealogy Course Coordinator at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, and was co-coordinator of the Accreditation/Certification Survey course at Salt Lake Institute 2010. She is a regional and national speaker on such topics as Pennsylvania records, methodology, professional development, and society management. She was a Director for the Association of Professional Genealogists for 6 years; co-edited a cemetery book series and appeared on the PBS-TV show "Ancestors 2" in the cemetery episode. You can see her in a video presentation on the BCG website and a video lecture from the 2009 Professional Management Conference on the APGen.org website (PMC webcast). She is a past-President of two societies, taught a beginning genealogy course at a community college for fourteen years and is a contributing author for many publications.

Elissa is teaching "The Research Cycle: Don't Pedal Backwards" on Thursday at 8am, "Beating the Bushes: Using the GSP to Find Jacob's Parents" on Saturday at 8am, and "Twenty Years of Stuff--Now What Do I Do?" on Saturday at 11am.

Presenter Profile: David Curtis Dearborn

David Curtis Dearborn has been a member of the staff of the New England Historic Genealogical Society since 1976, and serves as a reference librarian. A graduate of the University of Massachusetts (B.A. History, 1971), Northeastern University (M.A. History, 1974) and Simmons College (M.S. Library Science, 1982), he is also a consulting editor and contributor to the Society’s newsmagazine, American Ancestors, and has also published a number of articles in the Register, and in a number of other local and national genealogical publications.

He is a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists, former president of the Massachusetts Genealogical Council, and a contributing editor of The American Genealogist. He is a frequent speaker at NEHGS educational programs, as well as at local and national genealogical conferences around the country.

His areas of genealogical interest include northern New England families, families of Essex County, Mass., migrations, urban and twentieth-century genealogy, finding maiden names, and research in England, Scotland and Italy. His current projects include tracing descendants of Godfrey1 Dearborn (1603-1686) of Hampton, New Hampshire, and William1 Banton (1762-1848) of England and Waldo County, Maine.

David is teaching "Migration out of New England" on Friday morning at 9:30 am.

Presenter Profile: Barbara Vines Little

Barbara has been a professional genealogist since 1982, specializing in Virginia record sources, land platting, neighborhood reconstruction, complete genealogies, lineage society applications and problem-solving; lectures at national and regional conferences and conducts all-day workshops; past-president, National Genealogical Society; former president and board member, Virginia Genealogical Society, coordinator Virginia track, Samford University's Institute of Genealogical Research, former Track II coordinator, VIGR (Virginia Institute of Genealogical Research); editor, quarterly Magazine of Virginia Genealogy, author, NGS Research in the States, West Virginia and former editor bi-monthly Virginia Genealogical Society Newsletter and MidAtlantic Germanic Society's newsletter, Der Kurier; published three volumes of Virginia court records and edited others for publication.

Barbara is teaching "On a Scale of One to Ten: Weighing the Evidence" Wednesday at 4pm, "One Document, Three Steps: Transcribe, Abstract, Evaluate" Friday at 8 am, and "Identifying Women: The Ultimate Brick Wall" Friday at 4pm. She is also giving the presentation for the BCG Luncheon on Thursday at 12:15 entitled "It's All In How You Look At It: An Opportunity or a Chore"