GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday E-News

THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday Evening E-News Edition October 3, 2019
Curious about the status of your GFO Membership? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member!
gfo.org | 503-963-1932 | info@gfo.org Be sure to check the complete GFO CALENDAR.
Also, don’t miss the current issue of The Forum Insider
Seats Available: Last Chance for Fall Seminar
You still have time to sign up for this weekend’s Fall Seminar, Deutsche & Dutch on Oct. 5 & 6. Professional genealogist Fritz Juengling brings us lessons on German genealogy on Saturday and Dutch research on Sunday. He’s an accredited genealogist for Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium and serves as a German, Dutch, and Scandinavian Research Consultant at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. He dazzled us at a previous smaller workshop at the GFO. Now is your chance to benefit from his rich expertise by attending one or both days. Seats are still available, but online registration closes at noon on Friday Oct. 4, and lunch orders closed yesterday (Wednesday). There will be space available for walk-ins both days, so if you miss the Friday noon deadline we’d love to see you anyway on Saturday and/or Sunday morning! Download the flyer for full details.
Register Now
Seminar Bonus: $5 Books and $1900 in Prizes
Here’s another nifty reason to attend this Saturday’s Fall Seminar. We’ll have books discounted to just $5 each. Even better, we have $1900 worth of prizes to raffle, including DNA test kits, subscriptions to pricey genealogy databases, and lunches with guest speaker Fritz Juengling or GFO DNA expert Lisa McCullough.
The book sales will be on the honor system. Please bring exact change as no one will be at the table to make change. Raffle tickets cost $1 for one ticket and $5 for six tickets.
Beware! Marathon Route Skirts GFO on Sunday, Oct. 6
If you’re coming to the GFO on Sunday, Oct. 6, please allow extra time to drive in. The Portland Marathon has changed its route from previous years. For the first time, it’s coming through southeast Portland and will run just blocks from the GFO. This could affect day two of our fall seminar and library researchers in the afternoon.
This map shows the portion of the 2019 Portland Marathon that comes closest to the GFO on Oct. 6.
If coming from the west side of the river, you’ll want to avoid the area near OMSI, or SE Water Ave. near the Morrison and Hawthorne bridges. The Ross Island Bridge and Powell Boulevard will remain open, so that’s a good route to plan on. You can see the course map here. Use that map’s zoom tools to enlarge the area you want to see. Sunday’s Seminar on Dutch genealogy will start promptly at 9:30 a.m. The Library will open for patrons at 12:00 p.m.
Free Monday Reminder
Don’t forget, the GFO Library is free to everyone on the First Monday of each month. That’s next Monday, October 7.
Support the GFO with Amazon Smile in Shopping App
If you are an AmazonSmile customer, you can now support Genealogical Forum Of Oregon Inc. in the Amazon shopping app on your Android device!
Simply follow these instructions to turn on AmazonSmile and start generating donations. 1. If you have the latest version of the Amazon Shopping App, open the App on your Android device. 2. View Settings and select AmazonSmile. 3. Follow the in-App instructions to complete the process.
If you do not have the latest version of the Amazon Shopping App, you can update your App. Click here for instructions. AmazonSmile is not currently available for Apple iOS users. Amazon will let us know when it becomes available. If you haven’t yet registered to support the GFO while you shop, click here to get going! And we’d like to say, “Thank you!” to all of you who are already AmazonSmile users.
Two Genealogy TV Series Air Soon
If you enjoy watching genealogy stories unfold, you’ll have two TV shows to choose from this fall. Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates Jr. returns for its sixth season on PBS. It will feature a wide range of well known people including Terry Gross, Jordan Peele, Nancy Pelosi, Queen Latifah, Jeff Goldblum and Angelica Huston, to name a few. It debuts on OPB on Tuesday, October 8 at 8 p.m.
A brand new program called A New Leaf by Ancestry is coming to NBC. Unlike other genealogy programs, A New Leaf focuses on everyday people, not celebrities finding their roots. If you read online that it’s part of the network’s Saturday morning line-up, that does not hold true in Portland. KGW-TV is airing the first episode on Saturday, October, 5 at 6:30 p.m.
PCS Offers GFO Discount to New Play “Redwood”
We are delighted that Portland Center Stage is offering friends of GFO two special offers for an upcoming play that happens to revolve around genealogy! Redwood is billed as “A beautiful, humor-filled excavation of our shared history. When a hip hop lovin’ uncle obsessed with Ancestry.com starts digging into the past, an interracial couple finds that they have a lot more (and a lot less) in common than they thought. Filled with comedy, wit, and dance, this singular American story is about learning to live and love in a present that’s overpopulated with ghosts.” On October 26, GFO President Vince Patton and Director at Large Julie Ramos, will talk before the performance, at about 6:45 p.m., about all the GFO offers and why we find building personal links to history so valuable. Redwood runs from October 26 through November 17 at Portland Center Stage at the Armory. PCS has two offers for friends of the GFO:
October 26: Use promo code “GFO” for $25 tickets.
October 27-November 17: Use promo code “COMMUNITY” for $10 off tickets. Get tickets here.
Survey Results: Years dedicated to family history
Last week, we asked how many years you’ve been doing genealogy, and at what age you began.
How old were you when you started?
▪ preteen – 4
▪ teens – 7
▪ 20s – 8
▪ 30s – 12
▪ 40s – 17
▪ 50s – 6
▪ 60s – 8
▪ 75 – 1
The average being 38.17 years. Common themes among the comments were the wish to have started sooner and how much fun it is to research. Here are a couple of comments we particularly enjoyed. I was interested, yes, but mainly since my new husband was working an insane number of hours, I just needed something to do. I enrolled in a community education course and have been hooked ever since, much to my husband’s chagrin. All his fault! I still love everything but my piles of paper. If you’d like to see all the comments, you can do so here.
New Survey: Ancestral Education
Many of our ancestors didn’t have the opportunity to get much schooling. There were chores and farming to be done. This week, we’re asking questions about high school and advanced education your ancestors may have received. Take the survey now.
Take the survey now
This week at GFO …
Saturday, October 5th
Fall Seminar with Fritz Juengling: German Research 10:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Held at Self Enhancement, Inc., 3920 N Kerby Ave, Portland, OR 97227, USA (map)
This event requires registration.
GFO Library Closed all day.
Sunday, October 6th
Fall Half-Day Seminar with Fritz Juengling: Dutch Research
9:30 a.m. – Noon

Held at the GFO Library. This event requires registration.
GFO Library opens to patrons at 12:00 p.m. See above for information regarding traffic impacts due to the Portland Marathon.
Monday, October 7th
Free First Monday 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
GFO Library open to non-members for free.
Tuesday, October 8th
Board Meeting 6:10 – 8:10 p.m.
Wednesday, October 2nd
PMUG College 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Join us for Mac Photos 101.

Make your photos look their best

Learn how to retrieve photos from other sources

…. and much more!
To register: Call 503-228-1779; Email: college@pmug.org. Bring your Mac/iPad to participate with instruction. If you would like additional info for attending this class, please email us.
GFO Library Open Late to 8:00 p.m.