Tuesday, September 29, 2020

GenFriends: Beyond Basic Journal Writing with Valerie Elkins

 


GenFriends welcomes Valerie Elkins for a discussion on her new book "Beyond Basic Journal Writing". Melissa Barker,  Dan Earl, Laura Hedgecock, Shelley Murphy, Mary Kircher Roddy, and I learn how the book came to be and how it can help become more intentional in keeping a journal.


Watch as Valerie discusses how to become motivated to begin journaling your story!







The person Valerie speaks of but couldn't remember his name is Wesley Eames, founder of Trace .com. 

Links Mentioned in This Episode:

Valerie Elkins.com

Beyond Basic Journal Writing

Day One App


Contact the Panelists:

Melissa Barker -A Genealogists in the Archives
Dan Earl-Family History Guy
Laura Hedgecock-Treasure Chest of Memories
Shelley Murphey-The Family Tree Girl
Mary Kircher Roddy-MKR Genealogy
Cheri Hudson Passey-Carolina Girl Genealogy


Do you keep a journal to pass down to your posterity?

We'd love to hear tips and ideas from you!




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Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,


Sunday, September 27, 2020

This Week On My Family History Calendar

 

Sept. 27~


 The 144th anniversary of the death of my paternal 3rd great-grandmother. Matilda C. Martin died in Statesville, Iredell, North Carolina in 1876. She is buried in Bethesda Presbyterian Cemetery.


Matilda C. Mathis Headstone
Bethesda Presbyterian Cemetery
Statesville, NC


Sept. 29~

  My maternal Grandfather, Gilbert Ernest Roberts, Sr. died 76 years ago. He was killed in action on the island of Peleliu while serving in the Marines during WWII.  He is buried in Quaker Cemetery, Kershaw, Camden, South Carolina. 



Gilbert Ernest Roberts (1920-1944)



October 2~

Frances "Fannie" Virginia (McRady) McManus (1856-1903), my maternal great great grandmother, was born 164 years ago. She was born in Sumter County, South Carolina. She was the daughter of Thomas J. McRady (1821-1896) and Mary Jane (Brown) McRady (1821-1894).                                                                                                                                                 



Fannie McManus
Headstone
Pisgah Baptist Church Cemetery
Pisgah Crossroads, Sumter, South Carolina
©Cheri Hudson Passey



Who are you remembering this week?


Thanks for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,


Celebration Sunday-Genealogy Happy Dance!

 



You know the dance. You know you've done it. The one every researcher does after finding something new. The one where you want to jump up and down and shout to everyone around that you found the document, contacted a cousin who has the family Bible, made a DNA connection, or found a whole new branch to your tree. The one that is met with glazed stares and eye rolls.

                                                          Celebration Sunday is a place to share your discoveries. 
This is a weekly series to enable everyone to tell about their Genealogy Happy Dance moment. 

Share by scrolling down and adding your story to the comments section or you may also put a link to a blog post telling about what had you dancing this week.





My Happy Dance Moment for this week: 

The first of 6 classes for the All-DNA Advanced Evidence Practicum started this week! Case study received and the homework is underway.
Expecting to learn so much in this course. Lots of friends to connect with virtually too!
  
What had you doing the Happy Dance this week?



                                                                      

                                                                                              Share your discovery!
                                                                                  
                                                                                         Let the dancing commence!


Share the fun! Click below to tweet this post! 
https://ctt.ac/8bH8M



Looking forward to reading about your Happy Dance moment!

Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,






Wednesday, September 23, 2020

GenFriends: The Underground Railroad-Rozlyn Kelly


 


Rozlyn Kelly, Genealogist and President of the Farmington Genealogical Society Vice President of the Michigan Genealogy Council, joins Cheri and the panel Melissa Barker, Bernice Bennett, Dan Earl, Laura Hedgecock, and Shelley Murphy to talk about her experiences discovering her ancestors through the Slave Narratives, records, and books dealing with Freedom Seekers who made their way to Canada through The Underground Railroad.

Watch as Roz shares her experience of serendipity in finding her ancestor's story of escape and shares resources to help others find theirs.





Links and Books Mentioned:

Dig MI Roots-Rozilyn Kelly

The Underground Railroad-History

 Shadow On The Household by Bryan Prince

I've Got A Home in Glory Land by Karolyn Smardz Frost

A Fluid Frontier edited by Karolyn Smardz Frost and Veta Smith Tucker

The Underground Railroad in Michigan by Carol Mull

Contact the Panelists:

Do you have ancestors who were involved with The Underground Railroad?

We'd love to hear from you!


Thanks for watching! Don't miss an episode- please subscribe!


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Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,


Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Join the 21 Day Family Connections Experiment: A Family History Project



 Join the 21 Day Family Connections Experiment: A Family History Project

Starting October 1st in honor of Family History month, participants from around the world are taking part in a 21-Day Family Connections Experiment by making daily connections with their families, past and present, through simple and engaging activities.

"Our mission is to inspire more happiness through increased family connections," said Taralyn Parker, assistant project manager. "Through this online experiment, we are showcasing the benefits of family history and highlighting that there are so many fun and easy ways to do it."

Created during the world-wide pandemic by a group of family historians, a psychologist, and college students, the Family Connections team decided to measure the psychological benefits of increasing family connections during times of crisis, stress, or even personal struggles.

 

"There are lots of stories that I've heard about my family that have helped me," said Quincy Walker, a college freshman. "Some of my family has gone through similar experiences that I have, and reading how they got through their trials gives me hope that I can, too."

 

In May, over 5000+ worldwide participants of all ages took pre and post mood surveys as part of the first experiment.  While not a controlled scientific study, the results did indicate that doing family history several times per week had a positive effect on mood.  In addition to traditional genealogical tasks, other family history activities were encouraged. These family-friendly activities include discovering and sharing stories of living relatives and ancestors, playing family history games, learning quick and easy genealogy tools/apps, recording and sharing your own unique stories, and more.


"I love how the experiment reaffirmed to me that doing family history is not 'another thing' to do, it can be part of your life in small ways every day," said Lyn Wroe, a participant and volunteer from Brisbane, Australia.


This same experiment will be replicated in October with a growing number of participants from Ecuador, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Africa, and across the United States. This experiment will include over 100 new family connection activities that will be released in our new Connections Idea Generator, as well as 4 new plans with daily connections ideas built to appeal to a wide audience from homeschooling parents to Gen Z participants and even empty nesters.

The experiment is conducted virtually by individuals from their own homes, but all have access to activities, expert interviews, and how to's via the web-site and social media pages/groups.

 Find out more at: www.connections-experiment.com

Photos/video available upon request.

Media Contacts:

Olivia Jewell, Founder, hello@connections-experiment.com , 435-764-6000

Taralyn Parker, Assistant Project Manager, taralyn.parker@gmail.com, 801-815-7650

 Social Media:

https://www.facebook.com/FamilyConnections21Day

https://www.facebook.com/groups/21dayexperiment

https://www.instagram.com/connections.experiment/

https://twitter.com/Connections_Exp

#21DayExperiment #familyconnections

Join me and others from around the world as we celebrate 21 Days of Family Connections!



Sunday, September 20, 2020

This Week On My Family History Calendar

                       

  



Sept. 24

 Manning David Daughrity, Sr., my 2nd maternal great- grandfather, would be 176 years old. He was born in Sumter County, SC in 1844. He was the son of William J. Dorrity (1820-1897) and Martha (Mathis) Dorrity (1820-1905).


Who are you remembering this week?
Thanks so much for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,


Celebration Sunday-Genealogy Happy Dance!

 




You know the dance. You know you've done it. The one every researcher does after finding something new. The one where you want to jump up and down and shout to everyone around that you found the document, contacted a cousin who has the family Bible, made a DNA connection, or found a whole new branch to your tree. The one that is met with glazed stares and eye rolls.
                                                          Celebration Sunday is a place to share your discoveries. 
This is a weekly series to enable everyone to tell about their Genealogy Happy Dance moment. 

Share by scrolling down and adding your story to the comments section or you may also put a link to a blog post telling about what had you dancing this week.



My Happy Dance Moment for this week: 
  Finishing a client report had me dancing this week! This one was tough but I managed to get it done just in the nick of time!
Always a great feeling to get a project completed.

What had you doing the Happy Dance this week?




                                                                      

                                                                                              Share your discovery!
                                                                                  
                                                                                         Let the dancing commence!


Share the fun! Click below to tweet this post! 
https://ctt.ac/8bH8M



Looking forward to reading about your Happy Dance moment!

Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,







Wednesday, September 16, 2020

GenFriends: Assumptions in Genealogy-Lisa Lisson

           
               

In this episode of GenFriends Lisa Lisson from "Are You My Cousin" drops by to discuss Assumptions in Genealogy. Cheri and the panel Melissa Barker, Dan Earl, Laura Hedgecock, Shelley Murphy, and Mary Kircher Roddy have a fun discussion with Lisa about what happens when we make assumptions while climbing our family tree.
Watch as we share our stories of assuming things as we've researched and how we learned from them.




Links Mentioned in This Episode: Lisa Lisson-Are You My Cousin

Contact the Panelists:


Have you made any assumptions while researching your family?
We'd love to hear from you!

Thanks for watching! Don't miss an episode- please subscribe!



Click Below to Share this Post!




Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,







Sunday, September 13, 2020

Celebration Sunday - Genealogy Happy Dance!







You know the dance. You know you've done it. The one every researcher does after finding something new. The one where you want to jump up and down and shout to everyone around that you found the document, contacted a cousin who has the family Bible, made a DNA connection, or found a whole new branch to your tree. The one that is met with glazed stares and eye rolls.
                                                          Celebration Sunday is a place to share your discoveries. 
This is a weekly series to enable everyone to tell about their Genealogy Happy Dance moment. 

Share by scrolling down and adding your story to the comments section or you may also put a link to a blog post telling about what had you dancing this week.





My Happy Dance Moment for this week: 
  Hopefully, next spring, my mom and I will be able to sail away to Bermuda for the cruise we've been planning for over a year. Covid-19 has canceled it twice. Maybe three attempts will be the charm?
When I was in elementary school my father was stationed at the base in Bermuda. Mom and I want to go and visit the sites and sounds we remember.
We'd also like to visit the two homes we rented while there. The problem is that since we had an APO address, we are not sure WHERE the homes were.
It has been decades!  I was able to get in touch with the local library and ask for a lookup in the city directory and one of the addresses was located.
The other? WE are still looking for clues.  And? We may have found it!
This week while cleaning out my master bedroom closet, I discovered a box of my old school papers my mom saved. In it I found an assignment to describe my neighborhood.  I wrote not only the name of the road but the name of the cottage we were living in! Yay! So glad mom saved so much for us to look back on!  Now, we just need to be able to get on that cruise and head back in time! Finding my assignment describing our neighborhood with the clues to help us get back there had me dancing!

What had you doing the Happy Dance this week?




                                                                      

                                                                                              Share your discovery!
                                                                                  
                                                                                         Let the dancing commence!


Share the fun! Click below to tweet this post! 
https://ctt.ac/8bH8M



Looking forward to reading about your Happy Dance moment!

Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,



Tuesday, September 8, 2020

Tuesday's Tips-Gettin' by With Help From Our Friends: Creating a Podcast-Heather Murphy












{This article contains an affiliate link for Buzzsprout.  If you use this link and purchase a service from Buzzsprout you may qualify for a $20 Amazon gift card and Heather Murphy may receive compensation.}

Share Your Family Stories Through Podcasting
Ask anyone what they love most about family history and most often the answer will be learning the stories of their ancestors.  In today’s fast-moving world it is difficult to gather multiple generations to hear those stories, let alone keep everyone engaged for an hour, or sometimes more, as older generations reminisce. Podcasts are a great way to share your family stories across generations and can be listened to in almost any circumstance.  Here are 5 tips to help you start your own family history podcast.

Tip #1:  Find a Podcast Hosting Service
Podcasts work best when you have a podcast hosting service to hold all your episode audio files.  This is where you will upload your audio files, graphics, and show notes.  Even if you have a family website, those websites often come with limits on how much data you can transfer.  Self-hosting your podcast may cause you to exceed those limits. Many of the podcast hosting services include a webpage for your show, one less thing to do if you don’t already have one.
Podcast hosting services range from free to about $20 per month if you upload 4-6 hours of audio a month.  There are many services available; I recommend Buzzsprout (affiliate link) or Libsyn.  Buzzsprout has a free option with a cap of 2 hours of audio each month.  There is a completely free service, Anchor, but the trade-off is that technically the company will own what you produce.

Tip #2:  Good Audio Quality Does Not Have to Be Expensive
Most people listen to podcasts through headphones which makes good audio quality important.  To record you can use a headset with a microphone, even some earbuds have a microphone feature or purchase an external microphone with a USB connection.  It isn’t a good idea to use your computer’s microphone as it generally is not good quality and it will pick up more of the background noise of your computer running.  To test a microphone you already have, record audio and then listen back using earbuds.  Find a quiet place to record where there isn’t much of an echo.  Some people record in their closets because all the fabric absorbs the sound resulting in a nice clean recording.

Tip #3: Use Free Software for Recording and Editing
Audacity is free software you can use to record and edit your episodes.  Save yourself the headache of learning new software by finding an introduction video online before you get started.  Use the free version of Zoom if you want to interview another family member.  Make sure the recording setting will record a separate audio file from the video file and then you can put the file into Audacity to edit.

Tip #3:  Batch Content
Putting out podcast episodes every week can quickly get overwhelming.  It can feel like recording/editing/posting is always on your to-do list and if you miss one episode it can quickly snowball into missing more.  Batching content means setting aside time to do batches of work to help you get ahead.  This is especially easy if you are recording the family stories yourself.  Choose one week to record a certain number of episodes, another week to edit, and another week to create show notes and upload.  You can produce 1-3 months of content in one block and your podcast hosting service will post them according to your schedule.

Tip #4:  Keep Episodes Short and Focus on the Story
Your episodes can be any length or frequency you choose, but keep in mind who you want to listen.  Do they have time to listen to a 45-minute episode or would 15 minutes be a better fit?  You are more likely to keep your listeners, especially younger ones, engaged and coming back if your episodes are short.  Keep your dialogue focused on the story of the ancestor.  For instance, telling how old they were at a certain event is more relatable than telling the audience what year it happened.  You can put the specific biographical dates, places, and relationships in the show notes.

Tip #5:  Make it Easy to Find
When you have 2-3 episodes finished is the time to submit your podcast to directories like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or many others.  This is where people can find and listen to your podcast.  Listings on these platforms are free and you only need to set it up once.  Then, each time you publish an episode in your podcast hosting service these platforms will grab the new episode and add it to their directory.  After you are listed share with family members and encourage them to subscribe on their favorite platform.  If they subscribe new episodes automatically pop up in their podcast app and make it easy to catch every episode.
Share Those Stories
Podcasting is a great way to share those family stories genealogists gather over the years.  Many people multitask as they listen to podcasts on their way to work, clean house, or ride the bus.  What stories will you share?





Heather Murphy is a genealogist, family history coach, speaker, and host of the Stories in Our Roots Podcast. She helps people gain clarity and strength by learning not just names, but the stories of their ancestors. To learn how researching the stories of your ancestors can guide your life, head over to heathermurphygenealogy.com.






Such good tips, Heather!


What podcasts do you listen to? Have you ever thought of starting your own?
We'd love to hear from you!


Click on the Ribbon Below and Share Tuesday's Tips!




Thanks so much for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,



Sunday, September 6, 2020

Celebration Sunday-Genealogy Happy Dance!







You know the dance. You know you've done it. The one every researcher does after finding something new. The one where you want to jump up and down and shout to everyone around that you found the document, contacted a cousin who has the family Bible, made a DNA connection, or found a whole new branch to your tree. The one that is met with glazed stares and eye rolls.
                                                          Celebration Sunday is a place to share your discoveries. 
This is a weekly series to enable everyone to tell about their Genealogy Happy Dance moment. 

Share by scrolling down and adding your story to the comments section or you may also put a link to a blog post telling about what had you dancing this week.





My Happy Dance Moment for this week: 

Being able to moderate the FGS LIVE conference event this week was so much fun! Everyone worked so hard to produce a virtual learning experience that all would benefit from.  Unfortunately due to COVID-19, we were not able to hold the last FGS Conference in Kansas City as planned but we were able to go out with a bang! If you didn't get a chance to watch the videos will be available plus many additional sessions on September 15, 2020.
Congratulations to FGS for a fun-filled day of learning!

Want to register to watch the on-demand recordings? Click here.

What had you doing the Happy Dance this week?




                                                                      

                                                                                              Share your discovery!
                                                                                  
                                                                                         Let the dancing commence!


Share the fun! Click below to tweet this post! 



Looking forward to reading about your Happy Dance moment!


Thanks so much for stopping by!
Helping you climb your family tree,