My bags are half packed in anticipation of leaving in about three hours to drive to Eugene, Oregon, the location of the 2014 Summer Genealogy Fest sponsored by both the Genealogical Council of Oregon and the Oregon APG group. These bi-annual conferences are a wonderful opportunity for genealogists on the west coast to connect and share in some wonderful learning opportunities.
My schedule is already well planned. On Friday we will meet as a group of twenty-five to learn from Tom Jones, an internationally respected presenter. For that reason we are arriving a day early so we can be fully rested for a day of intense instruction. Having done a study group based on his book Mastering Genealogy Proof, it should be interesting to have some direct conversations about his methodologies.
On Saturday my plan is to attend his first two classes. In between those classes there will be opportunities for Ask an Expert, and one of those spots for helping will be for me. It is always interesting to explore others research projects and/or brick walls. Lunch will be a time to connect with friends and associates. After lunch is my teaching time and the class will be on using ancestry.com.
During this time is another presentation by Tom Jones that it would have been impossible to attend, but fortunately the good folks at LegacyFamilyTree are recording Tom's class. For those of you unable to attend the conference this can be viewed free of charge from the Legacy website. They offer many great presentations throughout the year and they are usually free for the first showing and then sometimes for a while after.
The third hour my plan is to attend the class of my good friend JoAnne Haugen on using familysearch.org. This will be one of her last classes for a while as she will soon be leaving to serve a mission with her husband. Wherever they go they are sure to be well received for they are hard workers.
In between sessions there is a vendor area that is sure to draw my attention. There is always something new to add to my collection. My deep gratitude goes to those individuals who stepped up this year to be in charge of the conference, the vendor area and the door prizes. These last two were my responsibility for the previous three conferences and it will be great to attend and not have those concerns to deal with.
So, if you are coming to the conference it would be great to connect while there. At this point my plan is to wear a dress with a light sweater. That ought to set me apart. Now it is time to get back to packing my bags so that we can hit the road when my friend arrives. We have one person to pick up along the way and then we hit I-5 south for another new adventure in our lives. Hope to see you there!
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