12 Months of Extraordinary… or Why Genealogy Conferences are Awesome

With J. Mark Lowe and
Terri O'Connell, NGS 2013
©Jen Baldwin, 2013-2014

Almost exactly twelve months ago today I was getting ready to depart for Las Vegas, NV and the 2013 Family History Conference hosted by the National Genealogical Society (NGS). 

It was my first major genealogy conference, and there was no point in trying to hide my excitement. I was thrilled to be attending, I was thrilled to be part of a team of Official Bloggers along with with Terri O’Connell and Jennifer Alford of the In-Depth Genealogist. I was thrilled to be meeting so many people that I had come to respect from their online presence. I was simply thrilled.


During the event, I did whatever I could to ensure that I got to the people I wanted to get to. As someone trying desperately to break into the genealogy profession, I knew that I needed to network – big time. I needed to cover every inch of that conference center, and I was ready for it. Business cards: check. Social media ready: check. Blog post drafts: check. Interviews with the big guns scheduled: check. I had it all together… I thought.

Great friendships were born! We were
"the fun table!" NGS2013
©Jen Baldwin, 2013-2014

 When the day finally came and I arrived in Las Vegas, I was standing in baggage claim at the airport and saw a familiar face walk by. It took me a minute to realize it was one of the “big gun” speakers I had hoped to meet… and I just stood there as he disappeared into the crowd. “Plenty of time for that,” I thought. I had all my lists, schedules and had allowed my Type A traits to run amok in preparation; I couldn’t be any more confident that I had it all together. The one thing I forgot to plan for ultimately became one of the most important: spontaneity.


Over the course of the week, I did manage to let myself relax… not too much, but enough. I had one interview in particular I was very anxious for. I had weeks to prep for it, I knew that far ahead that it was going to happen. But I was still unprepared for a scheduled 30 minute session to run into two hours of great conversation and unmasked laughter; I laughed so much during that interview, I was crying. And those two hours are impressed into my memory, they are moments I treasure that grew into an ongoing friendship.


The business networking was incredibly successful for me. I swallowed the advice of J. Mark Lowe, CG, when he talked of really capitalizing on your specialty - your niche - and making sure you know it inside and out. Then shout to the world that you know it inside and out. (Ok, not exactly Mark’s words, but that was the general message, and hey, it works! And yes, Mark was absolutely on that list of genealogy rock stars.)

With Josh Taylor, NGS 2013
©Jen Baldwin, 2013-2014

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak, D. Joshua Taylor, Warren Bittner, CG, and many, many more people that have continued to play a role in my life. I made some great friends who I continue to share a special bond with today, like Barry Kline, Julie Jones and Mary Jane Bennett. Some of these were planned, some were random meetings; like sitting down for dinner the first night with Julie and Mary simply because we were all waiting for a table at the same time. That’s another moment imprinted into my brain; sharing a great meal – albeit rushed – and great stories over dinner on day 1, and having these two dear ladies become a part of my life, become friends.

Barry, Mary Jane and Julie: laughter and
friendship in Las Vegas
©Jen Baldwin, 2013-2014

And that is one of the joys of conferences. Pretty much everyone you pass in the hall has a mutual interest, a starting point for conversation. You can jump into conversation with just about anybody and connect in some way. You learn together, you make memories together, and you plan the next conference together.
I've had twelve months of great moments, opportunity, and incredible challenges, and many are a direct result of my attendance at NGS2013. I wouldn't trade the last 12 months for anything.


Since then I've had the pleasure to represent Findmypast at the New York Family History Conference in Syracuse (Nov 2013), and RootsTech 2014. I also spoke at RootsTech, and will be happily presenting again at FGS in August. I'll be there at NGS and Jamboree, and even get to squeeze in a trip to the Ontario Genealogical Society Conference the first weekend of May; and although I'm "working," I'm really not. I love every minute of it.


So won’t you join me? Come be a part of it all, whether you choose NGS in Richmond, FGS in San Antonio, Jamboree in California or some other event close to you, you are cordially invited to be a part of this amazing family.


Here’s a few links if you are on the fence:

• National Genealogical Society 2014 Family History Conference, Richmond, VA
• Federation of Genealogical Societies 2014 Annual Conference, San Antonio, TX
• Southern California Genealogical Society 2014 Jamboree, Burbank, CA
• Conference Keeper: a site for all genealogy events!

NGS 2013: The Sessions

Although most of my NGS 2013 Conference blogging is taking place on The In-Depth Genealogist, I thought I would share a bit, here, too.

First, it was amazing. If you ever get the chance to attend a conference like this: do it.

We had wonderful opportunities to meet with other people, network, attend sessions, participate in un-conferencing discussions, and much, much more. My colleague and friend at IDG, Terri O'Connell, even won a registration for next year's conference in Virginia!

Terri O'Connell at Opening Session right after
winning a 2014 registration!

I was able to attend several sessions, some of which held local interest for me, which was great. Here's the list of what I was able to see:

• People, Policy, and Records: The Importance of Historical Background (Opening Session), Marian Smith
• Rough Riders in the Spanish-American War, Mary Penner
• The Genealogical Proof Standard in Action! Case Building When No Record States An Answer!, Elizabeth Shown Mills
• Birdie Monk Holsclaw Memorial Lecture. Impossible Immigrant! I Know Everything About teh Man Except Where He Came From, F. Warren Bittner
• Maximizing Your Use of Evidence, Thomas W. Jones
• The Civil War in the American West, Rick Sayre
• Borders and Boundaries: Creating Locaility Profiles for Research, D. Joshua Taylor
• ProGen Study Groups Breakfast, Angela Packer McGhie
• To See the Elephant: The Lure of Riches, Jean Wilcox Hibben
• Solving Historical and Family Mysteries with DNA, Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak
• Baker's Dozen to Writing Research Reports, Elizza Scalise Powell
• Striking it "Rich" with a Great Genealogical Career: A Guide For Professional Researchers, J. Mark Lowe.

I've been asked more than once already which was my favorite, and my answer is... well... I just cannot say. They were all good in their own way, all the speaker's brought something completely different to the podium, and the lessons learned varied with each. 

As an Official Blogger for the conference, I am very grateful to F. Warren Bittner, D. Joshua Taylor, Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak and J. Mark Lowe for letting us sit down with them for some one-on-one time. You will be able to read more about those conversations on the IDG site. 

Some truly fantastic ideas came out of the week in Las Vegas, and I'm looking forward to being a part of some new projects and taking advantage of all that networking to move closer to reaching my professional goals. 

I made several new friends in the industry, and we had some very good times, enjoying each other's company and talking about dead people. We raised a glass to Uncle Boone. I have so much more to write about, I really don't expect my "job" as an Official Blogger to be over any time soon. I might be able to get it all done before NGS 2014.... 

Book Review: Hey America, Your Roots Are Showing

Hey, America, Your Roots Are Showing by Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak.

I'll start with a disclaimer: this book was not what I expected. However, the natural question to that is, "what did you expect?" and I'm not really sure about that either. I guess I thought it was going to be more like a reference text, versus stories.

I also have to admit, this is the first of her books that I've read.

I know! That must be some kind of crime, somewhere. But, I have a family, I have my own research to do, I have a blog to write... I just don't have a lot of time for books anymore. My other defense is that I have a very small local library with a very small selection of genealogy related books, and not a whole lot of time to work the inter-library loan system (see my first point in this paragraph). So, guilty. I will also defend myself with this: I have only been trying to "go pro" since January. Therefore, when I reached for a new book to read, I grabbed the one mostly recently released, most talked about, most "now".

Last confession: I've never written a book review before.

I'm 0 for 3 here. (This may be the only time you ever see a baseball reference in one of my posts.)

If you haven't read it yet, stop now. Go get it, read it, come back to my blog to share your opinions. I'm a firm believer in not reading a review of a book until after I've read it myself.

Ok, here goes.

whotalking.com

First of all, this was an easy read. What I mean by that is, it flowed well; the stories pieced together well; it was easy to follow even for a non-genealogist. In fact, in my opinion, it was not written for genealogists at all - it was written for those that think that we all sit in dusty back rooms staring at microfiche's for hours on end with no social engagement, nor the desire to engage. It was written to prove that our study, our search, can be exciting, invigorating, and engaging.

It's written to show that genealogy is more than names and dates; it's a story. These are real people we work with every day, real lives. Non-fiction. Real history, lived by every day people having every day lives.

As a genealogist, I think what I gained from it most was exposure to the new. New ideas, projects I was unaware of, different ways to go about gaining results. Although Mrs. Smolyenak touches very briefly and lightly on technique, I was still able to learn through her innuendos and by "reading between the lines."  A particular moment that caught me was her discussion of researching Mabel Calvin (pages 179-186). She uses the term "black sheep" and that really got me thinking about my own livestock (see my recent post: Baaaa... Black Sheep, inspired by this chapter.)

I also learned about www.UnclaimedPersons.org. I was truly intrigued by what the the author has done with coroner's offices, the FBI, and the Army. What a wonderful way to utilize your skill and passion! So of course, I'm now registered with the site and on Facebook. The grace and respect in her story telling came through every word, she obviously is very passionate about this work.

In short, getting a quick glimpse at the varying situations she has encountered during her career was a fun way to learn more about the "other side" of genealogy, where the grass is so green, and the opportunities that may still be out there for the rest of us. It was eye opening and, yes, inspirational to a point.

I'm giving this book five stars in my brains' "general reading" category, and four (out of five!) in my "genealogy" category. Simply because I stand by the idea that it wasn't necessarily written for genealogists - if it had, it would have included more technical information. If you are at all interested in family history, American history in general, or any other such area of study, pick up a copy and enjoy it.