Year's finale at FSGS conference

The last official gathering of the Chapter this year will be at the Florida State Genealogical Society (FSGS) conference in Orlando on 9-10 November.

We will hold our annual meeting, run our Ancestor Road Show consultation service, host a vendor booth, and champion four members who are conference speakers. Chapter Secretary Ann Mohr Osisek is president of FSGS and Chapter member C. Ann Staley, CG is the "retiring" conference chair. This is the biggest learning and networking Florida genealogical event of the year


The FSGS 31st Annual Genealogy Conference will be held at the Sheraton Orlando Downtown Hotel on beautiful Lake Ivanhoe (see links for details). Featured speakers are nationally-recognized experts Thomas H. Shawker, MD, who will speak on DNA in genealogy, and Patricia O'Brien Shawker, CG, who will talk on NARA records. Seven other speakers will present, including four Chapter members:

• Osisek: "Out of the Census Into the Bookstacks: Using Library Resources Including State Archives" and "'Local Logic' -- Using Local and County Histories"

• Alvie L. Davidson, CG: "Little Known Sources in the 20th Century" and "FLORIDA - The Original South"

• Jack Butler: "Read All About It! Finding Kin in Early Newspapers" and "Finding Kin in the Territorial Records"

• Donna M. Moughty: "Jumping the Pond: Finding the Origins of Your Immigrant Ancestor" and "Come Out, Come Out Wherever You Are! Hide and Seek on the Internet"

The Florida Chapter's annual meeting will be held at noon, Friday, 9 November. The agenda includes introductions, a short business meeting, and a few words from outgoing president Jean Kelley, CG. Visitors are welcome to attend. Pre-ordered lunches will be delivered to the meeting room. Details on the location of the meeting and ordering lunches will be posted/announced later.

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Helping solve "brickwall" problems

For the second year, Chapter members will help FSGS conference attendees solve their "brickwall" or other tough research problems.

The event, Ancestors Road Show, was very popular last year, serving 53 attendees. Ken Macomber, CG, Road Show chair and Chapter vice president, says he could use more volunteers.

Consultants will assist three people an hour, each for 15 minutes. Macomber says the time was expanded to 15 minutes this year to allow for deeper consultations. Registration for the event will be Friday, Nov. 9 from 1:15-5 p.m. The consultations will be Saturday, Nov. 10 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The Chapter will also host a vendor booth at the conference. Contact Chair Alvie L. Davidson, CG, if you would like to help staff the booth.

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Election closes Oct. 31

Our officers standout from the crowd

Chapter members are now voting for a new president and vice president for the Chapter for 2008-2009. Ballots, mailed to all members, must be returned by Oct. 31 to Linda Perdue, elections co-chair with Jean Foster Kelley, CG.

Members running unopposed are Alvie L. Davidson, CG, Lakeland, for president; Jack Butler, Woodville, for vice president; and incumbent Amy Larner Giroux, CG, CGL, Orlando, for treasurer. A new Chapter representative to the parent organization will be appointed for the remaining year on the term of Davidson. Ann Mohr Osisek, Maitland, will complete her two-year term as secretary in 2008.

Biographical statements provided by the candidates follow:

President: Alvie L. Davidson, CG, Lakeland, Florida

Alvie L. Davidson, CG, retired from Naval Intelligence in the U.S. Naval Reserve after 22 years of service. Since then he has been a Florida state licensed private investigator, specializing in missing persons and genealogical applications of investigations. Alvie is a Certified Genealogist by the Board for Certification of Genealogists, Washington, DC. He is an alumni of the National Institute on Genealogical Research, Washington, DC (1998 & 2007); and the Institute of Genealogy & Historical Research, Samford University, Birmingham, Alabama (1999 and 2000). He is the founder (1981) and President Emeritus of the Imperial Polk Genealogical Society, Lakeland, Florida. Alvie currently serves as Chairman of the Polk County (FL) Historical Commission. Alvie is currently on the teaching alumni of Samford University’s IGHR classes each year. Alvie is author of “Florida Land - Records of the Tallahassee and Newnansville Federal Land Office 1826-1892” (Heritage Books, Bowie, MD 1988) and has published articles in The Genealogical Helper. He has lived most of his adult life in Central Florida, currently residing at 4825 North Galloway Road, Lakeland, Florida. Additional information can be found at http://www.floridadetective.net/. Alvie is currently serving his third elected term on the Board of Directors of the Association of Professional Genealogists.

Vice President: Jack Butler, Woodville, Florida

Jack Butler is a former college instructor who is now a professional genealogist, lecturer, and writer. He is a member of APG, FSGS, ISFHWE, NGS, and NEHGS. He is a board member of his local Tallahassee Genealogical Society and is editor of its quarterly magazine. A frequent contributor to The Florida Genealogist, Jack is preparing his portfolio to submit to the Board for Certification of Genealogists.

Treasurer: Amy Larner Giroux, CG, CGL

Amy Larner Giroux, CG, CGL, is a professional genealogical researcher, lecturer and writer, specializing in New York City and the Lower Hudson Valley. She is an award-winning author with articles published in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Record, the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly and other publications. Amy is a Trustee for BCG, faculty member of the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research, and treasurer of the Florida Chapter of APG. She is webmaster for BCG, APG, and the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History.

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President's Column: My last…Already!

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Jean's two-year term as Chapter president comes to an end Dec. 31, 2007. On behalf of all Chapter members, thank you for your admirable service. She kept us organized and informed and initiated the KGROW project on identity theft and genealogy (see related article).]

Our chapter is gearing up for the second annual Ancestor Road Show. Last year was the premier, and it was very well received. We helped over 50 conference attendees discuss their “brick wall” problems with a professional. To make this year’s Road Show equally successful, we need more members to volunteer as consultants. Please contact Ken (ken.macomber@comcast.net) to volunteer.

In August I sent out emails asking for chapter members’ opinions on the new green logo design the national group was proposing. At the Board meeting in August, Ann Staley reported the response was resoundingly negative to the green design. Currently the issue is still under review, with no new information .

Our annual meeting will be Friday, November 9 at the FSGS conference in Orlando. Details are still pending. Watch the mailing list for updates.

Lastly, the chapter is holding elections for president, vice-president and treasurer through Oct. 31. I wish much success to the new board, a very accomplished group of professionals.

This will be my last President’s column. Thank you to all Chapter members for your support and help over the past two years. Best wishes to the new board.

Sincerely,

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What's in it for me?

Our Chapter can help you...

achieve,
prosper, and
grow in family history


Imagine yourself working as a professional genealogist... researching your own family or taking on clients for pay... getting paid for what you love to do... networking with colleagues... achieving your dreams!

Now, with the support of the Florida Chapter of APG, you can:

• Grow and become more successful in genealogy researching, lecturing, writing or a related field


• Advance your professional standing


• Learn and develop skills


• Achieve personal satisfaction


• Get more job referrals and leads.

Chapter members enjoy:

• Local and statewide meetings and programs


• A quarterly online newsletter, The Sun


• Online and printed membership directories


• An e-mail list for news and networking.

Florida has some of the outstanding genealogists in the nation -- and they are members of the Florida Chapter. Envision yourself learning and sharing ideas with the masters....

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Dues are a bargain

Chapter Treasurer Amy Larner Giroux, CG, CGL, and Membership Chair Debbe A. Hagner, AG, are now collecting dues for 2008.

Member renewals are just $10. New members pay $20 for the first year only. Members who attend the FSGS conference in November started a tradition in 2005. They brought a check to pay the next year's dues. Be sure to bring one if you'll be at the conference in Orlando on Nov. 9-10 and give it to either Amy or Debbe. Don’t miss out associating with colleagues in the Sunshine State. Make out your check (payable to Florida Chapter of APG) right now.

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Genealogy groups applaud our position paper on identity theft

A Chapter-sponsored position paper (see THE SUN, JULY 2007) to gather support to keep genealogical records open is getting favorable comments from genealogical organizations that have informally reviewed it.

The paper, prepared by Keep Genealogical Records Open Workgroup (KGROW), has been reviewed by the major genealogical organizations. Based on suggestions, KGROW will revise the document and ask the organizations to formally support it.

Founding members of KGROW are Co-Chairs, Jean Foster Kelley, CG, Tampa, Florida, Richard F. Robinson, CG, Boynton Beach, Florida; and Information Officer Alvie L. Davison, CG, Lakeland, Florida; Melinde Lutz Sanborn, FASG, Derry, New Hampshire; and Frederick E. Moss, JD, LL.M., Plano, Texas.

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