Member Spotlight- Jacqi Stevens!

Our first SJGS  member to be featured is Jacqi Stevens, who joined our organization last October. She is listed as a follower on this blog site, with links to her excellent, entertaining blog on genealogy, “A Family Tapestry”.

Last fall, Jacqi became acquainted with Sheri Fenley.  They found out they had much in common, both being San Joaquin County writers of genealogy blogs. Jacqui became involved in the  San Joaquin County Obituary Indexing Project, a collaboration of volunteers from organizations including  our SJGS and the Historical Society. The digital images are now on the Familysearch.org site, thanks to all the work these volunteers put in.

Jacqi enjoys researching her own and her husband’s ancestry, as well as being a writer. She is also involved in a consulting business with her husband and daughter. In the past, Jacqui worked in government and social services, public administration, and as well as home schooling.

Reviewing her blog will help you understand her discoveries and thoughtful observations about her family history.. While her mother’s line has been well researched, with European heritage traced back to the 1500’s, her challenge now is researching her father’s line (from Poland) and her husband’s maternal line (Irish). While she has made great strides, she has also hit some brick walls that she hopes to resolve.

Last summer, Jacqi and her husband journeyed to Chicago and met with relatives who shared old photos, and memorabilia of the family. Included with the material was an old certification of a Irish baptism from three generations back,, which surprised her since she had seen that information before from a different source. A while back, Jacqi had been contacted by an ABC sportscaster, concerning  possible common heritage and he shared a letter from an Irish priest to certify that same baptism!  His family’s roots were from Ireland and his branch of the family had settled in Canada, where he was born.

Jacqi would love to share ideas on genealogical research in Chicago, Ireland ,Canada (Ontario and Western Provinces), Poland)  with other members of our organization. She also is planning to write a memoir about her father-in-law, who was in the Navy in WWII, and looks forward to doing more genealogical indexing and preservation work.

Call To Action -

The Federation of Genealogical Societies posted the following information on its blog regarding the need for all genealogists to take action now to fight Congressional attempts to close access to the Social Security Death Index (SSDI):

The Records Preservation and Access Committee has created a Call to Action Kit to support the Stop ID Theft NOW initiative.

Access the kit at http://www.fgs.org/rpac/sddi-call-to-action-kit/.

If you have questions concerning the Social Security Death Index and its possible loss as a resource for the genealogical community, please check all the resources available in the kit including:

• Educational videos and FAQ sheets.

• Information on the Stop Identity Theft NOW! petition via the We The People website.

• Form letters that you can use to contact Congress and let them know you do not support removal of the Social Security Death Index.

• And ways to spread the word to other members of the genealogical community.

Member Spotlights-getting to know each other!

.
As a relatively new SJGS member,as well as a board member, I see an interest and desire among  members for more interaction and  to become better acquainted with each other. I feel that most members would love to share what they have found in their genealogical research, to be helped or offer help in genealogical research , and to more easily discuss and suggest what activities they would like to see this organization provide.

First of all, I commend Sheri Fenley for proposing and setting up this blog, which creates the ability to have great member inter-communication. Let's all support this blog, contribute, read, and thus make a more dynamic, interactive SJGS.

To further this goal, I am inviting all members of our San Joaquin Genealogical Society to be interviewed for a "Member Spotlight" posted on this blog. (Possible topics: tell a little about yourselves, about your  genealogical research and goals, any interesting family history stories, ideas and discoveries, you might want to share, what you need help on, etc). Our membership ranges from beginners who are just starting to research,  to experts, who have extensive genealogical information on their ancestors. (I, personally, would  especially would love to start with interviews of newer members/ beginners, to find out how our society members can help them.with their goals! )

 Volunteers for interviews are welcome,, or if you would like to recommend another member to be interviewed, please let me know. I am sure all of you have some interesting ideas, information,and stories to share.
If you would like to e-mail me some information for a Member Spotlight, that would be great!  I will send you a draft of the write-up before posting it, for your approval.
My e-mail address is  garycalhoon@comcast.net.
I would appreciate any comments, suggestions on this. Thanks!

Lori Calhoon

Welcome To The San Joaquin Genealogical Society Blog!

Welcome to the brand-new blog of the San Joaquin Genealogical Society located in Stockton, San Joaquin County, California.   The purpose of this blog is to communicate information more timely and efficiently and to encourage and promote interaction with you - the membership.

Up at the top of the page are a number of tabs, including FAQ About Blogs.  Make yourself at home - click on each one of the tabs for more information about the society.

In the weeks and months ahead, we plan to share information about our meetings, events, and other exciting projects. We hope you will become a regular visitor!   If you have any questions or suggestions, please leave a comment below.