Carolina Girl Genealogy: Heirlooms

Showing posts with label Heirlooms. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 22, 2026

GenFriends Genealogy Chat Show: Finding a Home for Your Family Archives with Melissa Barker

What will happen to your genealogy research, family photographs, documents, and treasured heirlooms when you're no longer here? It's a question many of us put off, but planning now can make all the difference for the generations that follow.

In this episode of GenFriends, Melissa shares with Jenny, Shelley, and me why every family historian needs a preservation plan. We talk about deciding who should receive your research, photographs, records, and heirlooms, how to organize your collection so others can understand it, and what steps you can take now to help ensure your family's history isn't lost.

Watch this episode for an important conversation about protecting your family's history for the future and join Melissa's 10-item challenge!

How are you planning on finding a home for your family archives?

We'd love to hear from you!

Links in this episode:

To schedule Melissa for a presentation:
Melissa Barker -A Genealogist in the Archives
http://agenealogistinthearchives.blogspot.com/

Contact the Panelists:

Melissa Barker -A Genealogist in the Archives

http://agenealogistinthearchives.blogspot.com/

Bernice Bennett-BerniceBennett.com

http://www.BerniceAlexanderBennett.com

Jenny Hawran-Like Herding Cats Genealogy

https://like-herding-cats.com/

Laura Hedgecock-Treasure Chest of Memories

https://treasurechestofmemories.com/

Mary Kircher Roddy-MKR Genealogy

https://www.mkrgenealogy.com/

https://appliedgen.institute/

Shelley Murphey-Family Tree Girl

https://familytreegirl.com/

Thank you so much for watching!

Don't miss an episode. Please subscribe to my YouTube Channel!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,

Wednesday, July 1, 2026

GenFriends Genealogy Chat Show-Heirloom Plants with Special Guest Blaine Bettinger

Some of our family's greatest treasures aren't found in photo albums or courthouse records. They're growing quietly in backyards, along old fence lines, and beside forgotten homesteads.

In this episode of GenFriends, Cheri and the panel, Melissa Barker, Jenny Hawran, Laura Hedgecock, Shelley Murphy, and Mary Kircher Roddy, welcome Blaine Bettinger to explore the stories behind heirloom plants and discover how flowers, shrubs, trees, herbs, and vegetables passed from one generation to the next can provide meaningful clues about the people who planted them. We'll discuss how these living heirlooms can reveal migration patterns, family traditions, cultural heritage, and connections to ancestral homes while helping preserve memories that might otherwise be lost.

Whether you've inherited a rose bush from your grandmother, found daffodils blooming where an old farmhouse once stood, or wondered about the century-old fig tree in the backyard, this conversation will inspire you to look at your family history through a different lens. Sometimes the roots of our family stories are quite literally growing beneath our feet.

Do you have heirloom plants?

We'd love to hear from you!

Jenny's Heirloom Plant

Mary's Postcard

Links in this episode:

The Genetic Genealogist
https://thegeneticgenealogist.com/

Contact the Panelists:

Melissa Barker -A Genealogist in the Archives

http://agenealogistinthearchives.blogspot.com/

Bernice Bennett-BerniceBennett.com

http://www.BerniceAlexanderBennett.com

Jenny Hawran-Like Herding Cats Genealogy

https://like-herding-cats.com/

Laura Hedgecock-Treasure Chest of Memories

https://treasurechestofmemories.com/

Mary Kircher Roddy-MKR Genealogy

https://www.mkrgenealogy.com/

https://appliedgen.institute/

Shelley Murphey-Family Tree Girl

https://familytreegirl.com/

Thank you so much for watching!

Don't miss an episode. Please subscribe to my YouTube Channel!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

GenFriends Genealogy Chat Show: Sorting Through Family Things with Dan Earl

Melissa Barker, Jenny Hawran, Mary Kircher Roddy, and I welcome Dan back from his trip to Arizona, where he had the task of going through the things left behind in his parent's home after his mom's death and his father's move to Florida.

Watch as Dan shares some amazing discoveries and talks about the emotions of dealing with a loved one's belongings. What do you keep? How do you decide?

Melissa helps by sharing how to keep items preserved for future generations.

What has been your experience having to sort through family things?

Do you have a favorite heirloom?

We'd love to hear from you!

Upcoming Genealogy Education:
RootsTech 2024-Live or in person
https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/registration/online/?cid=PC-00038021&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiA5L2tBhBTEiwAdSxJX-wK3GwHuVe3X6gLujI72g_iv3j3d4UcjXM8J_6DBNPtMt4qK8DxvxoCM8kQAvD_BwE

Applied Genealogy Institute-Virtual
https://appliedgen.institute/

National Genealogical Society Family History Conference-Virtual
https://conference.ngsgenealogy.org/

Contact the panelists:

Melissa Barker -A Genealogist in the Archives

http://agenealogistinthearchives.blogspot.com/

Laura Hedgecock-Treasure Chest of Memories

https://treasurechestofmemories.com/

Jenny Hawran-Like Herding Cats Genealogy

https://www.herdingcatsgenealogy.com/about.html

Mary Kircher Roddy-MKR Genealogy

https://www.mkrgenealogy.com/

Applied Genealogy Institute

https://appliedgen.institute/

Cheri Hudson Passey-Carolina Girl Genealogy

http://www.carolinagirlgenealogy.com/p/genealogy-1-on.html

Thank you so much for watching!

Don't miss an episode. Please subscribe to my YouTube Channel!

Click Below to Share This Post!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,

Thank you so much for watching!

Don't miss an episode. Please subscribe to my YouTube Channel!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

Helping you climb your family tree,

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

GenFriends Genealogy Chat Show-Ask the Archivist: Preserving and Protecting Family Heirlooms with Melissa Barker

The panel, Dan Earl and Laura Hedgecock, and I ask our resident Archive Lady Melissa Barker questions on how to preserve and protect their family heirlooms. Melissa also shares some of her top tips for ensuring your priceless possessions are preserved for generations to come and gives an invitation to viewers to ask questions about yours!

Watch as Melissa shares her expert advice about saving our ancestors and our own important family treasure.