Please join us for Tri-City Genealogical Society’s May General meeting at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14. The presentation will be at the Richland FamilySearch Center located at 1314A Goethals Dr. Entrance is down the ramp from the parking lot that is to the north of Dairy Queen. The presentation will also be on Zoom so you can join in from the comfort of your own home. See below for the Zoom link.
The May TCGS General meeting is entitled Capturing Living Memory with FamilySearch Memories App and will be presented by long time TCGS member Veronica Anguiano. Your kids and grandkids do not want boxes of unorganized paper to remember you by. They want your story in your words in your voice and that is where the application comes in. Veronica will explain the app and demonstrate its usage.
The FamilySearch Memories app is designed to help you collect, preserve, and share your favorite family memories easily. You can download the app for free from the FamilySearch website. Once installed, you can use it to snap photos, record stories, and save audio files related to family events like graduations and reunions. The app allows you to organize these memories into your family tree, making it a valuable tool for genealogical research and family storytelling.
Time: May 14, 2025 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
We want to provide an update on the officer election process. While no candidate was nominated for the position of President, your board is fully committed to identifying a qualified individual who can serve in this role. In the meantime, we are implementing an interim leadership plan.
Our current Treasurer, Michele Mattoon, was nominated to serve as Treasurer for the 2025–2027 term. Michele will continue in her role without the need for a ballot vote, as there are no competing nominees. She will be elected by acclamation at the next board meeting. Thank you, Michele!
May 17, 2025 10:00am Pacific Time is our Annual Membership Meeting held online via Zoom. During the business portion of the meeting, the proposed 2025-2026 budget will be recommended for approval. The link to register for the annual meeting can be found in the event schedule below. After the short membership meeting, we will enjoy our featured speaker.
Volunteers Needed Immediate opening à Can you lend a hand to help get the word out about our events? If you find this monthly schedule helpful, we’d love for you to contribute by volunteering to help create it. Contact publicity@skcgs.org for more info.
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PROGRAM UPDATES
All meetings are online except Genealogy Help at KCLS Auburn, Federal Way, and Renton Highland library branches
The monthly in-person Research Group is canceled for May, June, July, and August
The monthly online SKCGS Genealogy Chat is canceled for May, June, July, and August
Live transcription (captioning) is available during our Zoom meetings by request
Online meeting participants need to register for SKCGS Zoom meetings. Upon registration, Zoom will send a confirmation email with instructions on joining the meeting.
MAY – EARLY JUNE 2025 MEETINGS & EVENTS All meetings are Pacific Time (PT) zone Register at https://www.skcgs.org for all meetings unless stated otherwise Saturday, May 3, 2025, 10:00am – 12:00pm PT Family Tree Maker Users Group (online) Question & Answer. Each month, we will learn about using the features of FTM. Subscribe to the free SKCGS FTM email list for announcements and discussion: https://skcgs.groups.io/g/FTMUG
Tuesday, May 6, 2025, 6:30pm PT SKCGS Board of Directors Meeting (online) All SKCGS members are invited to attend; only Officers and Directors may vote. Write to Board@skcgs.org for the meeting link.
Thursday, May 8, 2025 ⋅ 11:00am – 1:00pm PT Genealogy Help with SKCGS at Renton Highlands Library (in-person) Genealogy questions? SKCGS offers one-on-one help with a volunteer 2801 NE 10th Street Renton WA 98056 Registration not required. In-person event.
Monday, May 12, 2025 ⋅ 1:00pm – 3:00pm PT Genetic Genealogy/DNA Interest Group (online) Topic: Another Look at your Ancestry.com Match List
Subscribe to the free SKCGS Genetic-Genealogy email list for announcements and discussion: https://skcgs.groups.io/g/Genetic-Genealogy Thursday, May 15, 2025 ⋅ 11:00am – 1:00pm PT Genealogy Help with SKCGS at the Auburn Library (in-person) Genealogy questions? SKCGS offers one-on-one help with a volunteer 1102 Auburn Way S Auburn, WA 98002 Registration not required. In-person event.
Thursday, May 15, 2025 ⋅ 2:00pm – 4:00pm PT Genealogy Help with SKCGS at the Federal Way Library (in-person) Genealogy questions? SKCGS offers one-on-one help with a volunteer 34200 1st Way S Federal Way, WA 98003 Registration not required. In-person event.
Saturday, May 17, 2025, 9:30am PT social time; 10am – 11:30am PT program SKCGS Annual Membership Meeting and SKCGS Speaker Series (online) “The WPA Era: Free Records Boon from the Government” by Paula Stuart-Warren, Certified Genealogist®, FMGS, FUGA
During tough economic times in the 1930s and 1940s, government programs put many people to work. The Works Progress/Work Projects Administration and the Historical Records Survey created a goldmine of material useful for today’s genealogists all across the U.S. WPA record transcriptions, courthouse and manuscript inventories, vital records indexes, city/county histories, and histories of businesses and families may exist for your ancestral locale. We will discuss many of those WPA creations, some of which you already use regularly, and where others may be found today. We will also discuss the online explosion of WPA materials.
Paula is an internationally recognized genealogical educator, researcher, and consultant focusing on unusual resources, manuscripts, methodology, and analyzing records. She also specializes in railroad records, the WPA, and Native American research. She has spent extensive research time at libraries, courthouses, libraries, state archives, historical societies, and at various locations of the U.S. National Archives. She is currently a coordinator and instructor for the GRIP Genealogy Institute. She has presented courses for Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (GRIP), Texas Institute of Genealogical Research (TIGR), Research Write Connect Academy, Ancestry Academy, Family Tree University, and continues to present virtual seminars and webinars across the U.S. and in Canada. She is a former member of the Board of Directors of the Federation of Genealogical Societies, of the Minnesota Genealogical Society, a former officer of the Association of Professional Genealogists, and has been a Board-Certified Genealogist since 1988. She is descended from eight ancestral countries and has researched family connections across the U.S. and Canada, including many connections to Washington State. She currently has her own educational website and blog at http://genealogybypaula.com and is enthusiastic about sharing knowledge and continuing education. The program will be recorded for playback by SKCGS Members. Guests welcome!
Monday, May 19, 2025 ⋅ 1:00pm – 3:00pm PT Tech User Group (online) Topic: The Value of a Research Report, and How to Make One Subscribe to the free SKCGS Technical User Group email list for announcements and discussion: https://skcgs.groups.io/g/TUG
Tuesday, June 3, 2025, 6:30pm PT SKCGS Board of Directors Meeting (online) All SKCGS members are invited to attend; only Officers and Directors may vote. Write to Board@skcgs.org for the meeting link.
Friday, June 6, 2025 ⋅ 12:30pm PT EGS German Interest Group (online) Topic: “Using Ortsfamilienbücher to Research German Ancestors” by Robin McDonough Ortsfamilienbücher contain genealogical information about families within a specific town, village, or parish, sometimes going back to the beginning of written records. Learn about the Emerson History & Genealogy Center’s large collection of these books and how to use them.For meeting registration, visit https://egsgermangroup.wordpress.com/ Saturday, June 7, 2025, 10:00am – 12:00pm PT Family Tree Maker Users Group (online) Question & Answer. Each month, we will learn about using the features of FTM. Subscribe to the free SKCGS FTM email list for announcements and discussion: https://skcgs.groups.io/g/FTMUG
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MEMBERSHIP: We welcome guests to our meetings and special interest groups, which are free. Naturally we hope that visitors will want to become members. Support like yours helps us to educate and engage with our community to foster interest in family and local history. You can find more information about membership at our website at https://www.skcgs.org/support-skcgs/membership.
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NGS Conference Deadlines and OrgConnects! Video to Share with Your Organization
Dear Organization Members, Administrators, and Delegates, The National Genealogical Society (NGS) 2025 Family History Conference is less than a month away. I’m excited to see you or others from your organization in Louisville, Kentucky, or online through the new virtual access option. A few conference-related deadlines are coming up that your organization will want to share with anyone planning to attend in person: This Friday, 2 May, is the last day for NGS member organizations to request the conference registration discount benefit for people who are not individual members of NGS. Please read through the information and use the form linked on the Organization Registration page. Friday, 2 May, is also the hotel deadline to make reservations in the discounted room block with NGS at the Galt House. Visit the Hotel Information page to get the code and booking link. Monday, 12 May, is the final day to RSVP for the 23 May Delegate Council meeting. Organization member delegates are invited to RSVP for a light breakfast and meeting. If the delegate can’t attend and someone else from your organization can be there as a substitute, please have them RSVP instead. For those coming to Louisville, join us for FOCUS 2025: A Pathway to the Future for Genealogy and Family History Organizations, a special pre-conference event with the Filson Historical Society on 23 May, and the SLAM! Idea Showcase Dinner on 25 May. Also, I would love to meet in person and discuss any needs or feedback from your organization. Email me to set up a time to chat.
Do not hesitate to reach out with any questions about the conference and organization events, and please email me to set up a time to meet if you will be in Louisville (and if you won’t be at the conference, you can always meet with me via Zoom). Thank You, Kate Smith Organizations and Communities Manager
Using Real Estate Deeds Real estate deeds can be a gold mine of information about our ancestors, yet researchers often forget to check them. While the search process can initially seem daunting, once you figure out which indexing system a particular town or county is using, it’s not so bad. Learn how to tell a grantor from a grantee. What are metes and bounds? Which part of a deed are boilerplate phrases that you can safely skim over? What can you learn about family relationships from deeds? Learn all this and more from Al E. Fiacre, Jr. Albert E. Fiacre Jr. Al is currently the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Godfrey Memorial Library. He has been involved with the library since 2003 and been a Board member since 2015. He also is the principal researcher on genealogical research requests received at the library. In 2018, he was the winner of the NGS’s competition for Best Genealogy and Family History; he similarly won the 2019 competition of the Connecticut Society of Genealogists for Best Genealogy. Prior to his involvement with Godfrey, Al was the CFO of 2 Connecticut banks, with an extensive background in financial management and securities. He holds a BA degree from Middlebury College and an MBA degree from NYU. When: Thursday, May 15, 2025
11:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Where: ZOOM & limited in-person (8)
Cost: $20 members, $25 non-members
Sign-up and Payment:
ZOOM
Go to hqrl.com and click on the HQRL Store (sign in as a member to get the discount.)
In-person (8 only)
Call: HQRL at 253-307-8033 or come into the library at 2102 E Main, Suite 105 Puyallup, WA 98372A link will be sent to your email the Tuesday before class.
NOURISH OUR ROOTS A $10,000 Matching Contribution March 1 through June 1 Hooray! We are almost halfway there! Our members have given our matching fund drive a good start as they have generously donated toward our goal of $10,000. It has been fun watching the thermometer in the library inching up every week. An easy way to donate is online at the Heritage Quest Research Library website. Copy and paste this link https://hqrl.com/cpage.php?pt=5 for quick access.
You can also donate in-person at the library, by a phone call to the library (253) 863-1806, or by mail to Heritage Quest Research Library, 2102 East Main Avenue, Suite 106, Puyallup, WA, 98372.. With your help, we remain confident that our goal of $10,000 will be reached by the first of June. (Remember your contributions are tax deductible) AUTUMN QUEST You spoke, “It’s time to have an in-person Seminar!” We listened. Because of Covid and the fire, it has been too many years since we’ve had our annual Autumn Quest Seminar. We’re starting over, so every type of position is open. It takes a lot of hands to plan such an event. (Choosing the speaker and topics, Finding a location and arranging catering, Registration, Marketing and Promotion, Silent Auction, Raffle Prizes and Ticket Sales.)
Autumn Quest is a daylong seminar. It’s a great way to meet and socialize with other researchers. It has also been one of our main sources of income in the past. Please attend this, our first meeting, at 1:00 pm on Saturday, May 17th. Let’s make this event a reality. QUEST CONNECTIONS Great opportunity to express your creativity Beth Scott. our newsletter editor for two years, has stepped down. We will sorely miss her eye-catching, creative and informative newsletters. Thank you, Beth, for a great job. While we wait for a new editor, you can contact Sara McGlothlen at saleemcg@gmail, or Carmen McIntyre at camway@outlook.com with your submissions and ideas for the June newsletter. (cut and past the links). MANAGEMENT TEAM POSITIONS Calling all members and prospective members Would you like a say in and a vote on the operation of the library? If so, then join our Team! Our meetings are held every third Wednesday of the month and can be attended in person or by Zoom. Open Management Team positions are Management Team Secretary Bookstore Manager Newsletter Editor IT Tech
UPCOMING MAY EVENTS May 1 Thursday – 11 am to 12 noon Google Your Way to Genealogy Gems Presenter: Suz Bates Suz Bates will show you state, county, local and international websites and databases, including online government sites to support your genealogy research. All our classes can be attended in person or by Zoom. Sign up online or at the library. Members $20 and Non-members $25. Call the library at (253) 863-1806, if you have any questions.
May 10 Saturday – 10:00 am to 3 pm Nordic Fest “A celebration of all things Scandanvian” Host: the Auburn chapter of the Vesterdalen Lodge Sons of Norway Messiah Lutheran Church 410 H Street NE Auburn, WA 98002 HQRL will have a promotional booth at Nordic Fest this year. May 15, Thursday – 11 am to 12 noon Using Real Estate Deeds Presenter: Albert E. Fiacre, Jr. Join Albert E Fiacre, Jr. to learn about the information available in real estate deeds. All our classes can be attended in person or by Zoom. Sign up online or at the library. Members $20 and Non-members $25.. Call the library at (253) 863-1806, if you have any questions.
May 17 Saturday – 1 pm Autumn Quest Planning Meeting Heritage Quest Research Library classroom
May 21 Wednesday – 12 noon Management Team Meeting Members are welcome to attend the monthly Management Team meetings and the quarterly Board of Trustees meetings. BY THE WAY Have you checked our Education Blog lately? (The Blog is listed on the HQRL home page menu) Contributor: Heid Geise, Education Coordinator If not, you are missing out on some valuable information. Thank you Heidi, for an outstanding job as our Education Coordinator! MAY BOOKSTORE SPECIALSThese three books – 50% off The Ultimate Search Book, Worldwide Adoption, Genealogy & Other Search Secrets By Lori Carangelo $32.50/Now $16.25 A wealth of hard-to-find data. No other resource comes close to the scope of this book. This is an idea book that substitutes for an expensive private investigator.
Following the Paper Trail, A Multilingual Tranlastion Guide By Jonathan D. Shea & William F. Hoffman $23.75/Now $11.50 This book shows researchers’ actual documents in 13 European languages. Each language section begins with a page showing the alphabet in print and cursive form. Languages covered are Germanic (German, Swedish), Romance (French, Italian, Latin, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish), Slavic (Czech, Polish, Russian), and other (Hungarian, Lithuanian).
Tracing your Female Ancestors Volume II, More Research Resources By Gena Philibert-Ortega $9.00/Now $4.50 A follow-up release to Tracing your Female Ancestors first edition. A toolkit of tried and tested strategies and resources for locating those difficult-to-find female ancestors.
Tacoma-Pierce County Genealogical Society Legacy Family Tree SIG Meeting Tuesday, May 6, 2025, from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm virtual via Zoom
This month’s topic is: What do you want to learn about Legacy Family Tree Software?
Due to low attendance the last two months I am considering pausing or canceling this special interest group. If you are interested this wil be your chance to provide input on what you would like to see this SIG focus on learning.
This is our monthly meeting to share tips & tricks, problems & solutions. Sometimes we will watch videos or share our screens to aid in learning more about using Legacy Family Tree software.
Everyone is welcome to attend and participate in the learning. If you are just thinking about trying Legacy for the first time, you’ve been using it for a year or two or you are an old pro with many years of experience using Legacy this is the group for you. If you have any suggestions for future topics, please send them in.
We look forward to meeting with you, every month on the First Tuesday at 7:00 PM Pacific Time
Meeting Invite with Links in file attached below:
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Classes: “Getting Started in Family History Series” presented by Cheri Hudson Passey (Legacy Family Tree Webinars) -Classes are on Saturday and start at 10:30am. These events are hybrid. In person at the Sylvan Way Library in Bremerton and on Zoom. Zoom link will be posted on our website (psgsociety.org) and our Facebook page the day before.
May 3: Home Sources, Forms, and Family Stories
May 10: Documents, Vital Records, and Census Records
May 31: Cemetery & Church Records, Online Research: Finding Family on the Internet, and Researching On Location
Program: May 28 (Wed), 1pm. ” Inspire the Next Generation” with Sue Schlichting.
Who’s going to take over the family history quest when you’re no longer able? Getting the younger generation interested in their family history is important work. Learn creative ways to get young people engaged in their own history research.
You are free to copy articles to any non-commercial web site or message board or printed publication you wish. Don’t bother to ask permission, just do it.
Kate Smith
