THE GENEALOGICAL FORUM’s Thursday Evening E-News Edition March 07, 2019

Curious about the status of your GFO Membership? We’d love to have you as a GFO Member!

For more information visit www.gfo.org. Contact us at info@gfo.org or 503-963-1932. Be sure to check the complete GFO CALENDAR. Also, don’t miss the current issue of The Forum Insider During inclement weather this winter, please be sure to check our Facebook Page, website, or local TV & Newspaper closure web pages to see if we’re open! Or, call the library at 503-963-1932 to insure someone is here.

2nd Beginning Genealogy Class Added! Sign Up Now

Our Beginning Genealogy class on March 24th filled up so quickly (and so did the wait list) that we’ve decided to add an additional opportunity to attend—on March 22nd—the day before GFO’s Open House officially begins. Those of you who are registered for March 24th are welcome to change days if Friday would be more convenient to your schedule. We recommend you register for March 22nd first, then cancel your registration on the 24th to open the space to other attendees. Registration closes on March 19th at 11:59 p.m. (23.59 on the 24 hour clock!). After registration closes, please notify Laurel if you cannot attend so someone on the Wait List can be added.

Register, change, or cancel your registration

Notify Laurel if you can’t attend

African American Group Has New Meeting Time

GFO’s African American ancestry group is moving its meetings to a new time slot. Look for them on the third Saturday of each month from Noon to 2 p.m. We welcome everyone who might have African American ancestry themselves or whose ancestors’ lives intersected with Black Americans. All our special interest group meetings are free and open to the public at the GFO Library.

Storm Forces GFO Member to Live Like Her Ancestors

Heavy snow crushed a building on Debra Koehler’s farm. Photo: Debra Koehler. A strong winter storm in Oregon’s southern coast range has forced GFO member Debra Koehler to live like her pioneer ancestors. Debra lives on a farm in near Elkton where she’s likely to be without power for a full month. Heavy snows toppled many large trees causing damage so severe to electric lines that the local co-op says it has to rebuild entire sections on remote hillsides. After eight days without power, Debra and her neighbors landed on the news and the Oregon National Guard responded with additional resources. Debra says it’s like living in the 1920s. She told KGW-TV, “You develop a huge respect for the pioneer ancestors who got through entire winters you know, I’m hoping to get through three weeks without power they got through entire winters.” Access the full story here. Our hearts go out to Debra and all her neighbors.

Big Turnout for Family Tree Maker

We’d like to thank everyone who came to the library to make two Family Tree Maker presentations a tremendous success! On March 6, more than 100 people turned out to hear from the folks behind this popular software. We even got some sneak peeks of features coming in the future. Family Tree Maker graciously offered a few copies of their software to us to give away. Look for those at the raffle table at the Spring Seminar on April 27! Also, don’t forget that the GFO has two Family Tree Maker special interest groups that meet regularly.

Roots Magazine now at GFO

GFO will now have the Irish Roots magazine available at our library for the next two years courtesy of the Irish Special Interest Group (SIG). The group took up a collection recently specifically to make this wonderful donation. GFO’s library now has a full 24-month subscription to the Irish Roots magazine. Thank you to the members of the Irish SIG for their generous donation!

Office Depot Rewards Program Ends for GFO

It is with great reluctance we must end the practice of GFO members giving their Office Depot Rewards benefits to the GFO. In the past, you could give our phone number to make sure we got credit for your purchase. Unfortunately, Office Depot trained all their employees to then look at the account and offer dollars accrued to be used on the spot. As a result, a number of GFO members inadvertently spent our dollars on their personal purchases. Since Office Depot has no way to change the design of their program, we are discontinuing this program which has provided benefits to us in the past.

RootsQuest 2019 in Forest Grove

Clarification Notice… We confirmed from this event’s leaders that no registration is needed to attend. They also do not have a website this year for the event. Questions? Please email rootsquest@solidbluecircle.com.

Come to the GFO table this St. Patrick’s Day!

All the details about Portland’s 78th Annual St. Patrick’s Day Celebration can be found at their website. Be sure to visit the GFO table at this event. We’d love to meet and chat with you about all things Irish!

Surplus Book of the Week Dates Back to 1902

This week the GFO Bookstore features The Official Records of the Oregon Volunteers in the Spanish War and Philippine Insurrection. This original 1902 book was compiled by Brigadier-General C.U. Gantenbein. It is in good condition for its age, though the title page shows separation from the binding. Sale price: $30. Contact booksales@gfo.org if you’d like to buy it.

And the Survey Says…

Last week’s survey asked What was your favorite article in the March 2019 Bulletin. 50% of respondents selected Tracing the Andrew Göltl and Mary Kögel Family as their favorite article in the March Bulletin. Don’t miss out. Read the Bulletin and you can still respond to the reader survey.

Take the Survey Now!

This week at GFO … FRIDAY, March 8th Mexican Ancestry Group 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. This Special Interest Group (SIG) pertains specifically to Mexican ancestors from Mexico and the American Southwest (New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and California). Beginning and intermediate researchers are welcome. Some subjects will include online parish records, Hispanic genealogy societies, Family History Library/FamilySearch.org, Ancestry.com, solving genealogical problems, methodology of organizing your research, etc. Of course this group will also be about sharing our research experiences, and having fun. If you know of any other people interested in Hispanic genealogy tell them about the up and coming group. They don’t have to be a GFO member to participate. For questions or comments, please email Vince at sw@gfo.org. SATURDAY, March 9th Great Lakes Region 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. We all learned about the Erie Canal back in 6th grade. But what do we know about how it affected the experiences of our Great Lakes Region ancestors? The Canal enticed immigrants, settlers, and workers with the promise of better lives, and interestingly, it transported more than just people and goods. We will also take a quick look at some lesser-known ways to use the Family Search website and have time to share our genealogy brick walls and success stories. If your ancestors were in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, or Ontario CANADA, or if you just want to hear about this interesting time in US history, you are most welcome. Interest in the Great Lakes Region can be broad and diverse, as some ancestors settled and remained there for generations, while others spent a short time there before moving on. The group’s interests include migration, travel, trade, historical events, and research techniques specific to the area. For more information contact Lynn Rossing at GreatLakes@gfo.org. Writers’ Forum 1 – 3 p.m. This is a peer group of genealogists, who meet to learn about writing and to share our writing with each other. Peggy Baldwin facilitates this group and can be reached writers@gfo.org. SUNDAY, March 10th Library Work Party 9 a.m. – noon There’s another work party at the GFO library today for those of you who can come. There’s lots to do and we’d love to have your help. Doors open at 9 and work usually wraps up around noon. Some people come for just an hour or so; others work the full time. You are welcome to do either. Any time you can share is valuable. Hope to see you there. TUESDAY, March 12th GFO Board Meeting 6:10 p.m. – 8:10 p.m. WEDNESDAY, March 13th Library Open Late Until 8 p.m. PMUG College: Photo Management 6 – 8 p.m. Photo management on the iPad, iTouch, and iPhone. We will examine apps that make editing your photos in iOS a breeze. Many of these are free, including Apple’s versatile Photos program. Also explore apps that are recommended by PMUG members and other consultants. Why dig through the App Store for useful apps when you can choose from our tried and true recommendations. Come join the Portland Mac Users Group for this PMUG College class. Free to GFO and PMUG members. To register: Call 503-228-1779 or email: college@pmug.org.