Friday, October 18, 2013

“The Knowles Collection - What Is It and How Do I Use It?”



 “The Knowles Collection - What Is It and How Do I Use It?”
Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando Program

ORLANDO, FL, October 17, 2013 — Join the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando (JGSGO)  for a program featuring FamilySearch and Jewish genealogy expert, Todd Knowles, “The Knowles Collection – What Is It and How Do I Use It?”.

The Knowles Collection contains the genealogical records of Jewish people throughout the world. The people listed in the records are linked as families, and are compiled from over 1200 different sources. The collection has six databases, Jews of North America, Jews of South America and the Caribbean, Jews of Europe, Jews of the British Isles, Jews of Africa and the Orient, and the Jews of the South Pacific. As of 1 Jan 2013 the collection held the records of almost 700,000 people. Todd will show how to use this free research tool and how to make the most of it. The collection also has its own blog at knowlescollection.blogspot.com . Todd will be speaking to the group from Salt Lake City, headquarters of FamilySearch and the Family History Library.

Prior to the program, starting at 6:30pm, there will be time for newcomers to network and to receive free   consulting assistance or mentoring from a Jewish genealogy maven
                                       


W. Todd Knowles is a member of the reference staff at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. He specializes in Jewish and English research. He began searching for his great great grandfather, a Polish Jew over 35 years ago. That search and the records found began what today is known as the Knowles Collection, six databases containing the genealogical records of the Jewish people. Today those databases contain the records of almost 700k people. Todd has lectured around the world and his papers have been widely published. He has a blog, knowlescollection.blogspot.com, discussing his database. 

DATE: Tuesday, November 5, 2013
TIME: 7:00pm - 9:00pm (6:30pm for networking and mavens)
ADMISSION: Open to the public. $5.00 for non-members. Free for members.
LOCATION: Jewish Community Center of Greater Orlando – Roth JCC – Maitland Campus, Senior Lounge, 851 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751.

About the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando
The Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando (JGSGO) is a not for profit organization dedicated to sharing genealogical information, techniques and research tools with anyone interested in Jewish genealogy and family history. Anyone may join JGSGO. Annual dues are $25 for an individual and $30 for a family. For more information visit our blog at www.jgsgo.blogspot.com , “like” us at www.facebook.com/jgsgreaterorlando  or call us at 407-494-4230.

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Contact Information: 
Marlis Humphrey
JGSGO VP Programs & Publicity
jgsgo.programs@gmail.com

Thursday, October 3, 2013

“Finding Your Family on the Web”



Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando Program

ORLANDO, FL, October 2, 2013 — Join the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando (JGSGO) in celebration of International Jewish Genealogy Month, for a program featuring our own digital genealogy expert, Tom Hirsch, “Finding Your Family on the Web”.

The Internet is probably the best tool ever for genealogy.  It allows you to access billions of webpages all over the globe by using your home computer.  The Internet can help you find lots of material that you could not find otherwise.  Tom Hirsch, will use his 20 years of genealogy experience, and his journalistic skills to show you how you can find relatives that you did not know existed and how to use the enormous connectivity of the worldwide web to share your family tree and link you to other people researching the same ancestors.

Tom will show you a variety of websites, demonstrate some genealogy databases, capture official records, search for information, use translation tools, and find educational materials to help you be a better genealogist, and to work more effectively and efficiently. In addition to demonstrating numerous websites for you to use in your family history work, Tom will provide important information on how to protect your computer and the critical information that you have spent so much time and effort to find.

At the meeting, you will receive a list of some of the most useful websites for your research.  After seeing Tom's presentation, you can immediately use these tools to advance your work. Tour the Internet with Tom as he shares his knowledge of the worldwide web and computers to help you capture and share your family history. 
                                         
                             

Tom Hirsch is a veteran in the broadcast industry and News Assignment Editor at WESH, Channel 2. Tom is also VP Membership of the JGSGO and an avid genealogist with 20 years of research experience. Tom quickly learned that his investigative news gathering abilities and skill in doing great stories for radio and TV found another important use in compiling his family history. Tom has collected much of his genealogy by using the vast resources on the Internet. Tom is the author of “Tom’s List” – a compilation of more than 300 links to useful websites to aid in Jewish genealogy research. For more information on how to obtain “Tom’s List”, contact jgsgo.membership@gmail.com .

DATE: Tuesday, October 8, 2013
TIME: 7:00pm - 9:00pm
ADMISSION: Open to the public. $5.00 for non-members. Free for members.
LOCATION: Jewish Community Center of Greater Orlando – Roth JCC – Maitland Campus, Senior Lounge, 851 N. Maitland Ave., Maitland, FL 32751.

About the Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando
The Jewish Genealogical Society of Greater Orlando (JGSGO) is a not for profit organization dedicated to sharing genealogical information, techniques and research tools with anyone interested in Jewish genealogy and family history. Anyone may join JGSGO. Annual dues are $25 for an individual and $30 for a family. For more information visit our blog at www.jgsgo.blogspot.com , “like” us at www.facebook.com/jgsgreaterorlando  or call us at 407-494-4230.

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Contact Information: 
Marlis Humphrey 
JGSGO VP Programs & Publicity