Meeting Results of August 15, 2015

MEETING Results

The Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego met on 15 August 2015 on the campus of UCSD, University of California, San Diego.  The meeting was called to order at 10:04 am to discuss and vote on the dissolution of CGSSD.  Voting results were as follows:

25 votes for dissolution of CGSSD

13 votes against dissolution of CGSSD

After the vote, there was a break followed by program:  "Using FamilySearch Digital Microfilm to Find Genealogical Records" presented by Randy Seaver.

Thank You Randy for your presentation.

Linda Brady

CGSSD VP-Admin

cgssdemail@gmail.com

Tribute to Joan Lowrey

I feel compelled to say a few words about Joan Lowrey. This is not an obituary or a remembrance, for Joan Lowrey is very much alive and active as a genealogy researcher. However, with the dissolution of the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego and its absorption into the San Diego Genealogy Society, it seems appropriate to give Joan Neumann Lowrey due credit for the contribution she has made to genealogy in San Diego and the many people she has touched.

Joan has been involved with computers before there were computers as we know them now. With a BA in Mathematics, she programmed early analog military computers and was involved in several high tech companies in San Diego.

But it's as a researcher and teacher that we know her best.  She became interested in her family's heritage and used her computer skills to augment her research talents. She researched the genealogies for others, particularly those with German ancestry like hers.

Joan wrote a user's guide for several versions of the early genealogy program Personal Ancestral File in the early 1990s and, together with Donna Przecha, wrote "Guide to Genealogy Software" in 1993. She organized many students of her PAF classes into a PAF user group that grew into the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego, which she founded. She was a frequent speaker at national genealogy conferences in those days, promoting the use of computers for genealogy and reviewed utilities and other software useful for researchers.

Not only did Joan serve as President of CGSSD for many years, she edited the CompuGen newsletter, the forerunner of this blog. She wrote many important articles and reviews for the CompuGen and encouraged others to make contributions, often drawing them out of their comfort zone. She was also very involved with the Germany Research Association and served nationally on various boards and conferences.

One of her most enduring contributions to genealogy in San Diego was her monthly newsletter of genealogy happenings that included meeting notices of all the societies in the area. I helped her bring this newsletter to the Events section of the CGSSD website and this online presence continued until the San Diego Genealogical Council founded their Google calendar in 2013. Joan continues to promote cooperation among societies and family history centers and still speaks to various groups on German genealogy research, immigration, and genealogy programs.

I'm sure there's much more to say about Joan's genealogical contributions and you are welcome to add your comment here about your interaction with Joan. I have met many strong and smart women in my day, who like Joan, I consider a "force of nature." But Joan stands apart with her drive, her focussed vision and her commitment to excellence. Thanks, Joan, for enriching our genealogy experience.

CGSSD Meeting Notice

MEETING NOTICE

The Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego meets on the 3rd Saturday of each month  (except December) from 9:00 am to noon on the campus of UCSD, University of California, San Diego.  See our web page www.cgssd.org  for directions.  The next meeting will be held on 15 August 2015.  Here are the details:

 9:00:  SIG groups - None are scheduled.  If this changes, an update to this notice will be sent.

10:00: Voting on dissolution of CGSSD  

NOTE: Any existing member who wishes to pay their dues to be able to vote, will be able to do so.  CGSSD will accept the payment.  The paid dues will not be refunded.  

10:00: Break, refreshments

10:20: Announcements followed by program:

"Using FamilySearch Digital Microfilm to Find Genealogical Records"

Randy Seaver

FamilySearch has over 2,000 record collections, and many of them are not indexed and cannot be searched using search engines.  They are digitized from FHL microfilms.  Think of them as "digital microfilm" - you have to browse these records.  There are finding aids to help the researcher find records for their ancestors - waypoints, volumes, volume indexes, etc.  This presentation will demonstrate how to find records for your ancestors in probate, land, town, tax and other unindexed records. 

Randy Seaver is a native San Diegan. His ancestry is mainly colonial New England and Upper Atlantic, with some colonial German, French and Dutch forebears, and several 19th-century English immigrants. He has been pursuing his elusive ancestors since 1988, and has been online since 1992.

Randy is a former President of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society, and is currently the Newsletter Editor and Research Chair. He speaks to Southern California societies, libraries and groups, and teaches "Beginning Computer Genealogy" adult classes at OASIS.  He is a member of NGS, NEHGS, SCGS, SDGS, CGSSD and CVGS. Randy blogs daily about genealogy subjects at Genea-Musings (www.geneamusings.com) and the Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe (http://CVGenCafe.blogspot.com). 

We meet at the Robinson Auditorium complex on the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) campus in La Jolla. From North Torrey Pines Road, turn at Pangea Drive into UCSD. Free parking is available in the parking garage on the left; use any space other than those specifically reserved for UCSD vehicles. Signs will mark directions to our meeting room. Please refer to our website www.cgssd.org; or the Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies website for directions.

Linda Brady

CGSSD VP-Admin

cgssdemail@gmail.com

Randy Seaver To Speak In August

The Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego (CGSSD) will welcome back Genea-Musings blogmaster, Randy Seaver, on August 15th. for a one-hour presentation entitled...

Using FamilySearch Digital Microfilm to Find Genealogical Records

FamilySearch has over 2,000 record collections, and many of them are not indexed and cannot be searched using search engines.  They are digitized from FHL microfilms.  Think of them as "digital microfilm" - you have to browse these records.  There are finding aids to help the researcher find records for their ancestors - waypoints, volumes, volume indexes, etc.  This presentation will demonstrate how to find records for your ancestors in probate, land, town, tax and other unindexed records.


Bio: Randy Seaver is a native San Diegan. His ancestry is mainly colonial New England and Upper Atlantic, with some colonial German, French and Dutch forebears, and several 19th-century English immigrants. He has been pursuing his elusive ancestors since 1988, and has been online since 1992.

Randy is a former President of the Chula Vista Genealogical Society, and is currently the Newsletter Editor and Research Chair. He speaks to Southern California societies, libraries and groups, and teaches "Beginning Computer Genealogy" adult classes at OASIS.  He is a member of NGS, NEHGS, SCGS, SDGS, CGSSD and CVGS. Randy blogs daily about genealogy subjects at Genea-Musings (www.geneamusings.com) and the Chula Vista Genealogy Cafe (http://CVGenCafe.blogspot.com).

Randy Seaver at the Family History Library, Salt Lake City

Details:

Date: Saturday, 15 August 2015

Schedule for the Day: 

9:00 User Groups & Special Interest Groups 

10:00 Break and Refreshments - Special vote for members.

10:20 Announcements 

10:30 Featured Presentation 

Place: Robinson Auditorium Complex, Graduate School of International Relations and Pacific Studies (IR/PS), 

University of California, San Diego (UCSD), La Jolla. Parking in Pangea Garage. 

For more details including maps to UCSD visit www.cgssd.org

CGSSD Votes "Yes" to Merge with SDGS

 At last Saturday's meeting at UCSD the membership voted to merge with the San Diego Genealogical Society.

Message from our President:

Good Day,   

April 18th 2015 marked a major change to the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego.  

Numerous factors were considered by the elected Officers and appointed chairpersons and directors both singularly and in conjunction with the Officers and directors of the San Diego Genealogical Society.  Following these discussions it was deemed appropriate to MERGE the two groups into a more wide ranging and beneficial Society.  

All the members of CGSSD were advised in February 2015 with a follow up in March 2015  that this MERGER would be voted on at the regular monthly meeting on April 18th 2015.  The motion was read: Should the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego MERGE with the San Diego Genealogical Society?, seconded, discussion was allowed for 45 minutes. Hearing no more requests for time to discuss, the Members in good standing voted by written ballot.  

The votes were counted in front of the Members.   The outcome: 34 YEA, 9 NAY, 2 ABSTENSIONS.  By simple majority, the MERGER recommendation passed.

The Board members of both organizations will now meet to complete the details of the MERGER process.

Please continue to associate yourself with the one entity, SDGS aka San Diego Genealogical Society in the future.

Thank you for your association with the Computer Genealogy Society of San Diego.

 

Respectfully,

David Tooley

President, CGSSD

The CGSSD Board has sent the following letter to all members pertaining to the proposed merger with the San Diego Genealogical Society. A member vote on the proposal will take place at the April meeting. Please read this letter for more details. Click to view or download the PDF version below.

http://www.cgssd.org/Merger_letter.pdf

CGSSD Meeting Notice: Francie Kennedy

The next meeting will be held on 21 Mar 2015 from 9:00 am to noon. Here are the details:

9:00: SIGs: Ancestry, DNA

10:00: Break, refreshments

10:20: Announcements followed by program:

Advanced Google Tools for Genealogists
presented by
Francie Kennedy

    Most of us barely scratch the surface of what Google can do. Looking things up with Google is only one of the many useful tools available to us! Have you made a family map showing migration routes and everywhere your families have lived, over time? Catalogued all of your books in a format you can access remotely from a book sale (so you don’t wind up with three copies at home)? How often have you read a rare book about your ancestor’s home town – that is every-word searchable? Have you found an image of a historic postcard of Main Street in that town to use as an illustration in your family history? This session will guide you toward finding many things Google can do beyond the basic search function we all use. There is a lot more within this site, beyond the simple home page!

    Francie is a 4th generation Californian, and studied English and biology at Pomona College in Claremont. She managed a business in landscape design and consulting for years before joining the local water district to help with drought response and customer questions in the early 1990s. Francie has been helping city residents and businesses manage their water use for over 22 years. For seven years she taught water conservation to professionals at Santiago Canyon College and continues to teach landscape classes to residents.

    In her free time, she is an award-winning watercolor painter, and recently started quilting. Francie has been involved with community groups for over 30 years, serving as president of the Friends of the Library, chair of the Los Rios Historic District Review Committee, and she is the immediate past president of the South Orange County California Genealogical Society. Historical research is her passion.