The Genealogy Search

Jessica 2009 Jessica and I 1984 My heart is still heavy with the loss of my eldest daughter Jessica.  There are no words of comfort for me - I am getting by with the love and care of my family and friends.  I am angry, sad, confused and hurt while I am happy, comforted, loved and holding on.  One day I hope to be able to understand, meanwhile we wait for the coroner's report.  I always called Jessica my "life sucker"  she was the one child that could take my soul and twist it around.  She knew my hot buttons.  She also knew that I loved her.  She always made of point of telling me every time she saw or talked to me. Jessica was a fixer.  She brought both people and animals home that she felt needed care.  She and her dog Bear Bear were inseparable.  He faithfully stayed by her side after she passed away.  We have added her dog to our menagerie at home, he does give me comfort.  My husband has been a bless...

Janice and Bob Urman, Phoenix, AZ  1971

Yes, I am sooooo there!  I have paid for my registration, workshops, and dinners for the Jamboree.  The hotel room is booked, and Leslie Carney and I will be driving out to enjoy Burbank!  I am looking forward to spending time with fellow Arizona gals Laurie Desmaris and Bev Fieg - (the four of us recently terrorized Salt Lake City) we are dangerous together but oh so much fun! Can't wait to attend the Documenting a Respectable Family History with Tom Jones, Creating a Digital Scrapbook with Barb Groth and dinners with speakers Tom Jones and Michael Lacopo.  For more information on the Jamboree visit:   http://www.genealogyjamboree.com/

Did you miss rootstech or did you attend and miss a few lectures?  Check out some of the free lectures that are available on line.  They can be found at   Rootstech free videos .                                 

I had a wonderful time at FGS/Rootstech.  I am hoping to get to work tracking my ancestors with my new ideas as soon as possible.  I just need to get caught up in the office and with everything that has been neglected while I was away. I have already started to work on improving our society with classes I attended FGS Society day and the Innovator Summit.   Lisa Louise Cooke did a wonderful class on marketing and it applies across the board with both the society and my personal business. Me and Lisa Louise Cooke I must admit to being partial to Lisa. I worked for her in the expo hall (and previously),  she is one of the best bosses a person could work for.  She also allowed me to slip away to wander the exhibit hall and to attend some classes.  She didn't even mind when I was late getting to work on Saturday (the photo op with Donny Osmond was just too great to resist). I can't wait to attend FGS 2016 in Springfield.  Let this serve as a w...

Wow!  Completely overwhelmed and filled with new research ideas.  The day started out with Laura Bush and Jenna Hager Bush. Laura Bush and Jenna Hager Bush Spent the the majority of my day working for Lisa Louise Cooke - goodness that woman is the Google Goddess!  It was enjoyable talking to all her fans.  I also had the pleasure of working with Sunny Morton.  Sunny writes for Familytree, and works with Lisa Louise Cooke in many facets including the Genealogy Gems book club. Dick Eastman Thomas MacEntee and Laurie Desmarais I had the pleasure of sitting with many talented bloggers during Laura Bush's speech.  Some of my favorites including Lisa Louise Cooke, Amy Lenertz Coffin, Thomas MacEntee and Dick Eastman. I did attend a class by Michael Lacopo talking about tax records.  I will be hitting the tax rolls for my hard to find ancestors asap.  I also learned that Michael has a blog called Whose your Daddy that is a must read. Tomo...

Paula Stuat-Warren offered up some great ideas for affordable society seminars.  I am looking forward to putting her suggestions to work.  I was a little disappointed in the education programming topic, I was looking for something to help our society with programming ideas. Luckily I caught up with Lisa Louise Cooke in the innovator lectures to get my day back on track, she got my mind racing with ideas on how market the society.  Last lecture of the day coming up at 4 PM 'Killer YouTube Strategies for Societies" featuring once again the delightful Lisa Louise Cooke.

What a bunch of of wonderful volunteers FGS has!  So great to see the awards being given to such hard working groups and individuals. Great ideas for making our society grow.  I am looking forward to implemeneting some of the ideas that were shared. Best of all I caught up with Cousin Russ to get my bloger beads!

William Skibbe and adopted daughter Violet Gollnick Skibbe Gollnick

Leslie Carney and I spent a fun filled day researching at the Family History Library here in Salt Lake.  We are lucky to be at the same hotel as Laurie Desmarrais and Beverley Fieg!  The Arizona Girls will be hitting the town soon for dinner.  Can not wait to get back to the library.  I still have family histories ot pull and microfilm but made a huge dent today.

 Irene Mikolajczak Sobczak at the lake house in Wisconsin

It almost here!!!!!  I am so excited to go to FGS and RootsTech.  I am not sure how things could possibly get any better.  Donny Osmond, Laura Bush and Jenna Bush Hager will be keynote speakers.  The family history library is close by.  Thousands of people that enjoy the same things I do and vendors that sell things I would love to own will be gathered at the Salt Lake Convention Center.  There will be speakers on every possible subject for societies and family history.  There will be social events for both FGS and RootsTech.  FGS will be hosting Behind the Scenes: Family History & Television. This event will explore television and family history.  RootsTech will be hosting YouTube sensation Alex Boye and the One Voice Children’s Choir.  RootsTech will also be hosting extended hours in the Expo Hall featuring a night of culture.   The RootsTech closing event will feature David Archuleta and the cast of BYUtv’s Studio...

William, Ella, Julia Ann, Edward, George, and Wilhelm Skibbe.  North Judson, Indiana circa 1920

Wedding of Stanislaw Mikolajczak and Agnes Kwiecienski, Milwaukee, Wisconsin  prior to 1907

Christmas 1967 Lorraine, Amy and Matt Clark

No it does not matter is your naughty or nice –however making a list will help you get all that vital research done.    I currently have two lists that I am developing.   The first list includes hard copy books; the second is a listing of film to be reviewed.     My book list includes the name of the book, location(call number), what I am looking for and some brief background such as William Hobbs 1787 SC – 1837 AL wife Frances McWilliams and a space to designate findings and whether or not copies were made.  I will sort the books into like call numbers and pull sections at a time to review.  My second list is similar with a listing of microfilms that I want to review.  I did find a few that I will need to order ahead of time to have available during my visit.  I am also making a list of items I will need to bring with me to the library.  The usual items include pen/pencils, paper, several USB drives (I have a tendency to ...

1967 Matt and I with Santa

Taffy our Great Dane, Me ready for church choir, and Matt cir 1967

When we were little, every Christmas my mother would have us listen to "The Cinnamon Bear" radio show.  We would listen almost every day starting after Thanksgiving to the adventures of Paddy o'Cinnamon and siblings Judy and Jimmy Barton.  The Barton's lost their Silver Star that belonged on their Christmas tree.  The radio show takes you through the adventure as Jimmy and Judy try to recover the star in Maybeland.  They run into the Crazy Quilt Dragon, The Wintergreen Witch, Penelope the Penguin and many others. I know my brother and I would listen attentively while the show aired - it was a station in Chicago that replayed the original.  The show originally broadcast in December of 1937.  The radio show is available at  Cinnamon Bear .   “The Advent Calendar of Christmas Memories (ACCM) allows you to share your family’s holiday history twenty-four different ways during December! Learn more at  http://adventcalendar.geneabl...

Irene Drezdon Sobczak, Steve Urman, and Eva Urman 1977