ROB SEXTON, VOLUNTEER OF WINTER QUARTER
Each quarter, the Seattle Genealogical Society recognizes one member as our Volunteer of the Quarter. Our Volunteer for Winter 2022 Quarter is Rob Sexton.
Rob has been a member of SGS for over five years and he was our Director of Operations from 2018-2021.
Past SGS President, Jill Morelli, recalls she recruited Rob for the position of Operations Director over coffee at a national genealogical conference, by telling him the job consisted of a little vacuuming and emptying the waste baskets. “Two floods, one new HVAC unit, COVID, all new furniture, and a major move later – it all went well beyond vacuuming and emptying the trash!” she says.
“Rob has made the job of the next Operations Director easier and harder,” says Jill. “He brought everything up to date, but he also set a new standard. We all got spoiled by his attention – visible and invisible.”
Jill is not the only one singing his praises. Karen Knudson, SGS treasurer says, “Rob went above and beyond in his tenure as Director of Operations. He was thoughtful and helpful to me with his banking experience. He was always willing to answer questions and help in any way. And he was dependable. I also enjoyed his sense of humor!”
Cecellia Rogers, SGS Director of Education, says she was “awed by Rob’s patient, diplomatic, and systematic handling of acquiring the new digs and choreographing the move, from soup to nuts. Buy that man a cape! No one deserves the recognition more than he.”
In addition to SGS activities, Rob volunteers as a registrar for a local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR) and serves on the Genealogy Committee of the National Society of SAR. When he’s not digging into family history research, he can be found digging in his garden.
Thank you so much, Rob, for your years of service to SGS.
SIGN THE PETITION TO REOPEN
THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES RESEARCH ROOMS!
SPREAD THE WORD!
It’s been almost 2 years since NARA closed the research rooms due to COVID, and understandably so. There’s now a campaign and petition to get the archives reopened. Many feel 2 years is long enough and NARA can safely reopen with some safety precautions in place. You can help by contacting your senator and representative; let them know this is an issue you care about. Remember the old saying “The squeaky wheel gets the grease”. To sign the petition or learn more about the campaign, visit:
https://www.change.org/p/incoming-archivist-of-the-united-states-reopen-national-archives-research-rooms
SGS MEMBERSHIP MEETING
SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 2022
12:30 PM – 1:00 PM
ONLINE VIRTUAL
SGS members please mark your calendars and plan to attend this membership meeting. The slate of officers for the 2022-2023 term will be presented. As always, check the Calendar of Events on the SGS website for the Zoom meeting id.
NEED VOLUNTEERS FOR IRISH WEEK
Volunteers are needed to help man the SGS Booth at Seattle Center’s Irish Week Festal that takes place on Saturday, March 12 and Sunday, March 13, 2022. Ideally there will be enough volunteers that each will cover a 2 hour shift. There will be books on Irish, Scots-Irish, & Scottish genealogy to help people with the basics. For the most part, people are interested in what clan they belong to and the origin of their surname. It’s simple and fun.
If you can help either day, please call or text Jean Roth at 206 295-6125.
* SAVE THE DATE *Jewish Genealogical Society of Washington State,
2nd Monday meetings
usually 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM PST
JGSWS meets on the second Monday of each month, from Sept-June. Doors open at 6:30 PM unless noted otherwise. Watch their website for details on the next meeting.
The next regular meeting will be on Monday, Mar 14, 2022. Janette Silverman wil present a recap of her 27-day trip to eastern Europe.
Sunday, March 6, 2022 at 10:00 am, there will be a special meeting co-sponsored by the JGSBC and JGSWS. Megan Lewis of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum will speak.
http://www.jgsws.org/meetings.php
FamilySearch,
“RootsTech 2022”
March 3-5, 2022
The world’s largest family history conference, RootsTech will be online virtual again this year and it’s free. What’s not to like. Registration is required so do so today:
https://www.familysearch.org/en/blog/rootstech-2022-registration
All Day Irish Workshop with
Steven Morrison and Jean A Roth,
Fairview Church,
844 NE 78th St,
Seattle, WA 98115
Saturday, March 19, 2022
The Irish Heritage Club and SGS Irish SIG are jointly sponsoring this in-person event with Steven Morrison and Jean A Roth. Mark your calendars and check the Irish Heritage Club’s website for registration information. It should be available in about a week.
https://irishclub.org
AppGenInstitute,
Spring Semester Course Offerings,
March thru May dates,
Virtual Online
Two of the founders of the Applied Genealogy Institute are names that should be familiar to you from programs you’ve attended at SGS, Jill Morelli, CG, and Mary Kircher Roddy, CG. Jill prepared the message below to introduce the upcoming classes that will be able next spring.
‘Applied Genealogy Institute is excited to announce the next series of educational offerings to the genealogical community for our Spring semester. Whether you are educational addicts like we are or one who just wants to “do it right,” you will find a course for you in the Spring offerings.
Five courses will be offered: “Foundations I: Using the Records,” “Advanced Swedish Genealogy,” “Advanced Genetic Genealogy,” “Catholic Records” and “Getting Lost in Ledgers.” Registration will open after the first of the year.
If you want to know more, check our website and sign up for the mailing list: https://appliedgen.institute ‘
Olympia Genealogical Society,
“DNA: Today’s Matchmaker”
with Diahan Southard,
Saturday, April 9, 2022
8:30 am – 3:30 pm PDT
Diahan will speak on issues like :
- Making sense of your DNA results
- What to do if your matches don’t have family trees
- Organizing your matches
- Using female DNA to answer questions
For full details, visit:
http://olygensoc.org
SGS 2022 Spring Seminar,
“Lands and Maps and Deeds, Oh My!”
Friday-Sunday, June 3-5, 2022
Attendees will have 3 registration choices:
- All 3 days
- Friday and Saturday only
- Friday and Sunday only
As usual, SGS members will receive a discount on the registration fee.
In the coming weeks, watch the SGS Calendar of Events, the SGS social media pages, and the eNews! for further details on this seminar featuring Cyndi Ingle, Angela Packer McGhie, Rebecca Whitman Koford, Melinda Kashuba, and Kimberly Powell. You won’t want to miss any of these outstanding speakers.
SGS CALENDAR OF EVENTSTake note of the SGS Library’s new location, new hours, and new rules:
Good Shepherd Center, Suite 302
4649 Sunnyside Ave N
Seattle, WA 98103
206 522-8658
Monday, Tuesday, Friday, Saturday
10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Masks are required at all times inside the Good Shepherd Center. Due to COVID the events listed below continue to be virtual, online via Zoom. Always check the SGS Website Calendar of Events for the meeting links, registration, or for last minute updates or changes to the schedule. Be advised you may need to register in advance to join a meeting.
NOTICE: SGS has imposed more security on our Zoom meetings. Some meetings will begin with a waiting room. The host must take action to let people into each meeting. The host will try to open the waiting room about 10 minutes ahead of time. Please be patient.
* All times listed are Pacific Time unless otherwise noted
Wednesday, Feb 16, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.
Friday, Feb 18, 2022, 10:30 am-12:30 pm, Family Tree Maker by MacKiev meets online via Zoom on the 3rd Friday of the month. Share and learn tips and tricks for this software. This SIG is jointly sponsored by the Eastside Genealogical Society and Seattle Genealogical Society. To join in you must be on the email list. Send you request to egsgenealogyhelpfer@yahoo.com
Saturday, Feb 19, 2022, 10:00 am- 12:00 pm, Irish SIG is back! With Susan McKee and Jim Ryan. See the SGS website Calendar of Events for further information.
Saturday, Feb 19, 2022, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm, German SIG is back! With Carolyn Schott. See the SGS website Calendar of Events for further information.
Sunday, Feb 20, 2022, 1:00 pm-2:30 pm, Virtual Sundays: Something Old, Something New, Jill Morelli is the host. Visit the SGS website Calendar for details and updates. Please register in advance. This Sunday’s topic will be “Friedrich Eiler: Building an Identity from Scant Clues”.
Tuesday, Feb 22, 2022, 10:00 am-11:00 am, Tech Tuesday (Virtual), back by popular demand, the informal consultation time on DNA, genealogy software, or genealogy-related technical issues. All are welcome. No appointment necessary.
Wednesday, Feb 23, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.
Sunday, Feb 27, 2022, 1:00 pm, New! Japanese American SIG, with Caitlin Oiye Coon. This is the second meeting of our new SIG. Please sign up if you would like to attend; send an email to family.history@densho.org
Wednesday, Mar 2, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.
Saturday, Mar 5, 2022, 10:15 am-12:15 pm, FamilySearch Interest Group with Lou Daly (Virtual), Discover the many ways to use FamilySearch. At each meeting a different aspect of the website will be featured. There will be time for Q & A. Want to be included on the mail listing? Email Lou: loudaly@nwlink.com
Sunday, Mar 6, 2022, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm, DNA WORKSHOP (Virtual), with Cary Bright and Craig Gowens. To participate you must be on the DNA SIG email list. Contact Cary at sgsdnasig@gmail.com to join.
Tuesday, Mar 8, 2022, 10:00 am-11:00 am, Tech Tuesday (Virtual), back by popular demand, the informal consultation time on DNA, genealogy software, or genealogy-related technical issues. All are welcome. No appointment necessary.
Wednesday, Mar 9, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.
Wednesday, Mar 9, 2022, 7:00 pm-9:00 am, MAC Computer Interest Group (Virtual), Jointly sponsored by SGS and Fiske for users of MAC (Apple) computers and the Reunion genealogy software. Co-chairs Lisa Marker and Diane Hettrick. You must be on the MAC SIG email list to join the meeting. Email macusersig@seagensoc.org to be included on the list.
Saturday, Mar 12, 2022, 12:30 pm-1:00 pm, SGS Membership Meeting, the slate of officers for 2022-2023 will be presented. This will be a virtual meeting. Check the SGS Calendar of Events.
Saturday, Mar 12, 2022, 1:00 pm-2:30 pm, Second Saturday Speaker Series: Finding Records to Help Document Your Farming Ancestor with Lisa S Gorrell.
Wednesday, Mar 16, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.
Saturday, Mar 19, 2022, 10:00 am- 12:00 pm, Irish SIG is back! With Susan McKee and Jim Ryan. See the SGS website Calendar of Events for further information.
Saturday, Mar 19, 2022, 1:00 pm-3:00 pm, German SIG is back! With Carolyn Schott. See the SGS website Calendar of Events for further information.
Sunday, Mar 20, 2022, 1:00 pm-2:30 pm, Virtual Sundays: Something Old, Something New, Jill Morelli is the host. Visit the SGS website Calendar for details and updates. Please register in advance.
Tuesday, Mar 22, 2022, 10:00 am-11:00 am, Tech Tuesday (Virtual), back by popular demand, the informal consultation time on DNA, genealogy software, or genealogy-related technical issues. All are welcome. No appointment necessary.
Wednesday, Mar 23, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.
Sunday, Mar 27, 2022, 1:00 pm, Japanese American SIG, with Caitlin Oiye Coon. This is the third meeting of our new SIG. Please sign up if you would like to attend; send an email to family.history@densho.org
Wednesday, Mar 30, 2022, 10:00 am-11:30 am, Brags & Bricks Social Interest Group (Virtual), Join us for an informal social gathering. Share your recent genealogical successes and challenges, or just come to hang out with other genealogists.