WIFFAC--Books across the pond

I have lots and lots of books to tell you about in this new WIFFAC but I think we'll start with the ones I found furthest back--at Who Do You Think You Are Live.  Even though the world has shrunk so much with the advent of the internet, I'm amazed at how much we don't know about genealogists and genealogy resources in other parts of the world.  Even going through the British course at SLIG, I was again blown away by all the resources at WDYTYAL which I never would have known about.

The first set of books that are such great resources are put out by the Society of Genealogists in London.  Among other publications, they have the "My Ancestor Series" that is fantastic.
My Ancestor was an Agricultural Labourer by Ian Waller
My Ancestor was an Anglican Clergyman by Peter Towey
My Ancestor was an Apprentice by Stuart Raymond
My Ancestor was a Bastard by Ruth Paley
My Ancestor was in the British Army by Christopher and Michael Watts
My Ancestor Settled in the British West Indies by John Titford
My Ancestor was a Coleminer by David Tonks
My Ancestors were Congregationalists by DJH Clifford
My Ancestors were English Presbyterians or Unitarians by Alan Rustin
My Ancestor was a Fremason by Pat Lewis
My Ancestors were Gypsies by Sharon Silers Floate
My Ancestors were Jewish by Anthony Joseph
My Ancestor was a Lawyer by Brian Brooks and Mark Herber
My Ancestors were Londeners by Cliff Webb
My Ancestor was a Merchant Seaman by Christopher and Michael Watts
My Ancestor was a Mormon by Ian Waller
My Ancestor was a Railway Worker by Frank Hardy
My Ancestor was a Royal Marine by Ken Divall
My Ancestor was in Service by Pamela Horn
My Ancestor was a Studio Photographer by Robert Pols
My Ancestor worked in the Theatre by Alan Ruston
My Ancestors were Thames Watermen by James W Legon
How to get the most from Family Pictures by Jane Shrimpton
Tracing Births, Deaths, and Marriages at Sea by Christopher and Michael Watts.
Go to http://www.sog.org.uk and take a look at these and all of the other books around.  There is some fantastic research help there. 

There was also another bookseller that made me wish I could take home suitcase after suitcase of books.  Pen and Sword had so many British History books and they were all so detailed.  Book after book of resources that you don't see at home such as:
Jewish Lives by Melody Amsel-Arieli
How Our Ancestors Died by Simon Wills
Tracing Your Irish Family History On The Internet by Chris Paton
Tracing Your House Hisotyr by Gill Blanchard
Air Force Lives by Phil Tomaselli
Tracing Your West Country Ancestors by Kristy Gray
Tracing Your Ancestors Through Death Records by Celia Heritage
Tracing Your First World War Ancestors by Simon Fowler
Tracing Your Royal Marine Ancestors by Richard Brooks and Matthew Little
Tracing Your Army Ancestors by Simon Fowler
Tracing Your Aristocratic Ancestors by Anthony Adolph
Tracing Your Lancashire Ancestors by Sue Wilkes
The Wills of Our Ancestors by Stuart Raymond
Tracing Your Merchant Navy Ancestors by Simon Wills
Birth, Marriage and Death Records by David Annal and Audrey Collins
Tracing Your Ancestors From 1066 to 1837 by Jonathan Oates
Tracing Your Service Women Ancestors by Mary Ingham. 
And there are several dozen more at http://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk. 

So if you have British ancestors, you'll want to take a look at the offerings from these two booksellers.  There is fantastic stuff on all the details of your ancestor's lives.  Enjoy.

New Series.. What I Found At A Conference

I'm going to start a new series on this blog.  WIFAAC.  I get to go to so many genealogy conferences, and I find so many great things, but in the middle of the blitz of a conference I'm never able to blog much. 

I sometimes wish I was one of the bloggers that have time to go to classes and blog and social network during a conference but I'm not, so I don't get to blog real time much.  My time at conferences is spent talking to customers, speaking, sometimes even administrating the conference.  My evenings are spent working with partners, dealing with orders, putting last minute touches on lectures and demos and sometimes even managing my teenagers.  Even when we get home, it seems that all of the other bloggers have already covered everything, but often I find a few treasures they don't mention.  So here in this series, sometimes way too late, I've decided I'm going to talk about the exciting things that I've found at conferences anyway.  

I've been keeping a list of all the things I've wanted to blog about from the conferences I've been able to go to this year.  With the launch of the new book, and getting the workbook written it's been a busy year so far so the list just hasn't gotten fleshed out here--yet.  But there are some really cool things to talk about, so I've decided I'm just going to do it--no matter how late it is. 

I had a good friend in college that I made a deal with.  We agreed that no matter how long it has been since we had been in touch, we'd never make excuses, we'd just be glad to hear from each other and be happy to be in touch now.  Hopefully this will be a little like that.  Sometimes it might take me a while to get some blog posts written, but hopefully they can just be about great information anyway. 

And with that explained...  I'll get started blogging on several things I've been wanting to tell you about. 

Upcoming Presentation Schedule

It has been a busy first half of 2013.  I have barely been able to keep up with everything.  Charts have been busy, the new books have been busy.  I have a huge list of things to catch up with and tell you about here and after this weekend I should be able to get going on that.  In the meantime, I hope I'll be able to talk to you in person.   Here is where I'll be in the near future:

This week, at the Southern California Genealogy Jamboree I am presenting:
Friday 11:00 - 12:00
Double Your Membership, Double Your Fun:
The UGA Case Study
Friday 2:15 - 3:15 Demo Stage
Apples and Oranges:
How the Genealogy Softwares Create Charts
Saturday 1:45-3:15 Demo Stage
10 Great Ideas to Zap The Grandma Gap
and Connect Your Family With Their Family History
Saturday 3:30 - 4:30
Saturday 4pm
Book Signing (as well as sales and signing in our booth all weekend long)
Beyond Scotch Tape: Charts to Fascinate Your Family
Sunday 2:30
Let’s Get This Party Started:
Family History Conferences for the Whole Family

Next weekend on June 15th I'll be giving the Keynote at the Riverton Family History Library.  
9-10 am  "How to Zap The Grandma Gap and Connect To Your Family By Connecting Them To Their Family History."

On Tuesday June 18th I'll be speaking at the Pleasant Grove Family History Center
"How to Zap The Grandma Gap and Connect To Your Family By Connecting Them To Their Family History."

On June 23rd I'm speaking at the BYU Family History Library.
4:30-5:30pm  "Engaging Your Family With Their Family History."

On August 2nd I'm speaking at the BYU Conference for Family History and Genealogy. 
11:00-12:00am  "Your History Makes Them Take A Nap, Come Learn To Zap The Grandma Gap"

On August 10th I'm giving the Keynote address at the Utah Valley Technology and Genealogy Group. 
9:00-10:00am   "How to Zap The Grandma Gap and Connect To Your Family By Connecting Them To Their Family History."

Then on September 14th we'll be at the Ogden Family History Conference

12:30-1:30pm  The Cool Parts of Family History: Engaging My Teenagers Case Study
1:45-2:45pm  Beyond The Fan and Scotch Tape: Charts to Fascinate your Family

And on September 21st we'll be at the Logan Family History Conference
I'll be teaching:
The Cool Parts of Family History: Engaging My Teenagers Case Study
Beyond The Fan and Scotch Tape: Charts to Fascinate your Family Times TBD

Lots of new and exciting things going on.  I hope we'll see you there.

A Tricky Chart

J. Hersh requested a tricky chart from us recently.  He wanted to show everything he had collected on 300+ people including 200+ photos and all of the in-laws' ancestors and step families, etc.  It was a tricky chart--and we always enjoy a good challenge.  We appreciated his willingness to let us share it with you here:

And this is what he sent us via email when he received the chart:

The chart arrived late yesterday afternoon. I must say that you did an outstanding job.

It is so large that it will take me a while to orient myself to look at all of the entries. However, no matter what, it is terrific. The paper quality is better than I expected. I thought it might  be textured making it a bit tricky to get good photo reproduction. Fortunately, it is smooth and a good weight.

Your team's level of competence is matched only by the incredible patience and unfailingly high standards of customer service. Everything you represented was delivered  as promised with respect to the quality, time line, design and price.

It has been a delight to have the experience combining old world customer service and new world technology.

It surpassed all expectations and fulfilled my dream.

Thank you so much.

Precious Photo

John Sneed sent us this photo this week.  We loved it and asked that we could share it with you.  He said, "You can really see the joy in her face in the picture - thanks for making that joy a reality!  The chart was a big hit at the birthday [her 90th] and generated lots of great "genealogy" discussions from my family. A real accomplishment since they don't like to discuss the family history."


We are so delighted to be able to help you John.  She is so adorable.  A picture truly is worth a thousand words. 

Come to our demos at NGS

If you are at the National Genealogical Society conference tis week you'll want to stop by our booth at lunch time.  We have a treat in store for you.  Besides my 9:30 class Saturday morning where I'll teach you all about how to "Visualize and Share Your Family Tree" in Pavilion 6, we've teamed up with Loss Louise Cooke of Genealogy Gems to bring you there days of great ideas in the vendor's hall that will quickly and easily help you with your genealogy research. 

I'll be teaching these classes:
THURSDAY 12:30 pm 
5 Best Ideas to Involve Your Family with Family History
FRIDAY 1:30 pm
Beyond Scotch Tape: Easy Charts to WOW Your Family Reunion
SATURDAY 12:30 pm
Making Family History Fun for the Next Generation

and Lisa will be teaching these classes:
THURSDAY 1:30 pm 
3 Free Cool Tools for Newspaper Research You Need to Use
FRIDAY 12:30 pm
Turn Your iPad or Tablet into a Genealogy Powerhouse
SATURDAY 1:30 pm
How You Can “Time Travel” using Google Earth!
So at 12:30 and 1:30 you'll know where to be to get the best ideas at NGS!
Booths #411 and #415  See you there.

Two Mother's Day Sales to Honor Your Heritage

We sent out an email today about the Mother's Day sales we have going.  I'll post them here too so that everyone gets to hear about it.  If you didn't get the newsletter, you can sign up here. 

Two Mother's Day Specials That Will Strengthen Your Family Relationships And Help You Honor Your Heritage.

Mother's day is a great time to celebrate the heritage you've been given and we want to help you honor and give back to the mothers and grandmothers in your life.  We've paired up offers from FamilyChartMasters.com and ZapTheGrandmaGap.com for some great ideas to show your love to the mothers and grandmothers in your life.

Our Deepest Discount Ever On Canvas Custom Charts 2 Days Only

If you've been waiting to create one of our beautiful canvas giclee masterpieces, now is the time.  Honor your Mom and teach your family about their heritage with a beautiful expression of your family.  Submit your files by midnight Thursday and get 1/2 off any custom canvas giclee genealogy chart. 
Sale Price: $54.95 - $142.45 Regular Price: $109.95-$285.95 S & H: $11.95Send us your files now.  We'll work back and forth with you until it is just what you are looking for, and have it shipped in time for Mother's Day.  Sale ends midnight May 2nd

Zap The Grandma Gap BooksNew Lower Pricing and Mother's Day Special

Because of the amazing reception we've already had for our new books, we have a new distributor who has allowed us to be able to dramatically drop the prices.   And we've dropped them even further for the Mothers and Grandmothers in your life.  Check out the excerpts and the great reviews.  A quick and easy present to strengthen your family and honor your heritage.
Our Price: $30.00 S & H: $5.00Order now, sale ends May 7th
When you honor the mothers in your life you strengthen those family relationships and create a culture of respect and gratitude in your own life and in the next generations of your family. Let us know what we can do to help you in that endeavor.  We send you our best wishes for a healing, inspirational, wonderful and blessed Mother's day. 

(And don't fret if  you want to take advantage of this opportunity to treat yourself to a chart or the books you've been wanting for yourself.  Your Mom would be proud of you for sharing your family's heritage and for taking good care of yourself too.  :))

The end of my UGA presidency

Another president of the Utah Genealogical Association will be voted in at our board meeting tomorrow night.  As I come to the end of my term as president of UGA I’ve had some time for reflection.  I’ve been so privileged to be able to serve as president of this great organization.  I’m lucky to be the president who has been able to actually serve longer than the maximum 2 years—because of the change in our fiscal year last year, I’ve been able to serve 27 months.  It has been a joy.  I believe strongly in what UGA is trying to accomplish and every minute I’ve spent serving here has been a great blessing to me.  As I wrote about in my last president’s message for UGA's Crossroads Magazine, I’d like to tell you how UGA has blessed my life and why I’m so thankful to have been able to serve as the president. 

1)    I’ve broadened my circle in genealogy.  When I first became active in UGA, I was constantly amazed at how many people I didn’t know who worked in the field of genealogy.  I had been going to genealogy conferences, speaking, and running a company for eight years and I thought I really knew a lot of people in our community.  But I found that there are several circles in this community that don’t see much of each other.  There are the professional genealogists and librarians, the FamilySearch employees, the Ancestry employees, the conference goers, the FamilySearch Center volunteers, the vendors, the hobbyists and the zealots, people inside and outside of Utah who all get to brush shoulders in the activities that UGA sponsors.  I’ve gotten to know a myriad of people who I probably wouldn’t have run into otherwise and they have enriched my life and my research immensely. 

2)    I’ve made dear, dear friends.  Many of the people I’ve worked closely with have become lifelong friends who I turn to when I need support and who know that they will always find support from me.  It is such a blessing to have good friends who are as passionate about family history as I am.  My neighbors don’t always understand my passion, but through UGA I’ve found a network of people who get it.  They know the soul satisfying journey of finding out where you are from and I’ve been so privileged to be able to share that journey with them. 

3)    I’ve become a better genealogist.  The resources that UGA sponsors are tremendous.  We had an amazing week at SLIG this year, as we always do, and it always blows my socks off what I didn’t know.  The Virtual Chapter has been a great resource to our community, and the various other conferences and events UGA holds always teach me something new.  Our conference next weekend is slated to be another world class education opportunity.  Committee meetings and emails back and forth with volunteers have even taught me amazing things that have helped my research.  The more active you become in UGA, the more brick walls will just seem like research you didn’t know how to do.  I promise. 

4)    I’ve had an opportunity for service.  It is very easy in today’s fast world to become concerned only about your own world and how things affect you.  Volunteer service is important to help you become less selfish, to be able to clearly see the needs of other people, and to keep a broad perspective on things.  I love this  quote by George Bernard Shaw :
This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being a force of nature instead of being a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work, the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no 'brief candle' to me. It is a splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.

I really think my service in UGA has softened my heart, helped me see areas of myself that need improvement and helped me care more about my fellow man.  My time in UGA has been a refining experience and I am better for it.  Some might ask if spending untold hours working for UGA might have been better spent on something else—perhaps something that would bring in income.   I’ve spent much of my time at UGA actually paying employees for doing things I should be doing.  But I honestly feel that the sacrifice of my time here has brought great blessings into my family, my company, and my life.  And I am very thankful for that.

So while I'll have more time for blogging again, I know I will continue to take full advantage of all the great education resources UGA offers.  And I hope to see you there as well.