Date
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Speaker/Topic
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February 3, 2019 |
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Russ Maurer, JGSC Trustee
Spoke on
The Latest and Greatest in Litvak Records
the Vilnius Household Registers
Russ Maurer, who coordinates the household register project
for LitvakSIG, recounted the events that led to the introduction of household
registration to Vilnius in 1919. He explained how household registration
worked, information which provides the background necessary to understand
these records and the unique insights they can provide into one's family
over the inter-war years. The presentation was illustrated with specific
examples.
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 |
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January 6, 2019 |
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The business meeting included Installation of
our Officers and Board for 2019 and a drawing of prizes for early payment of dues for 2019, followed by our speaker,
Amy Wachs,
Immediate Past President, Jewish Genealogy Society of Cleveland
OUR EASTERN EUROPEAN ROOTS: WE ARE WHAT OUR ANCESTORS ATE
Amy described what family recipes can tell you about your ancestors’ places
of origin and life in the shtetls of Eastern Europe.
|
 |
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December 2, 2018 |
ANNUAL MEETING - Election of Officers
and
Report on the 2018 IAJGS conference in Warsaw.
The meeting began with Annual Reports by President, Sylvia
Abrams, and Treasurer, Marilyn Baskin, the annual election of
officers and trustees, and a report by Marlene Englander and
Paul Wolf describing our new website.
Following the business meeting, Speakers Marlene Englander,
Sean Martin, Anne Lukas, and Ken Bravo reported on the 38th Conference of the International Association
of Jewish Genealogical Societies which was held in Warsaw,
Poland in August.
The panel shared conference sessions and experiences, and
discussed the upcoming 39th conference, which will be in
downtown Cleveland from July 28 through August 2, 2019.
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November 11, 2018
|
|
Lara Diamond,
President, Jewish Genealogy Society of Maryland
Session 1/DNA 101: How to Use Genetic Testing for Genealogical Research
Recent scientific advances in genetic sequencing
allow consumers to test their own DNA in a quick and non-invasive
process. In this lecture, Lara Diamond explained how you can
leverage such tests to assist in your genealogical research.
She discussed the various sorts of tests available (including
autosomal, yDNA and mtDNA) and explains the types of genealogical
questions each one can help to answer. She also explained how
each company presents results, the strategies for transferring
results from one company to others, and how to use them to assist
in your genealogical research.
Session 2/Sorting Out Distant Cousins From Close Family:
Genetic Testing in Cases of Endogamy
Genetic genealogy is particularly daunting for those
whose forebears come from endogamous populations (such as Ashkenazi
Jews, native Hawaiians and Cajuns, who have married in a closed group
for generations). The work of identifying actual relatives from the
mass of genetic distantly-related family can be frustrating. Drawing
on case studies, this lecture explained how you can have success in such
a situation. For Lara Diamond, this work has led to reunification with
many relatives, including a family branch thought to have been killed
in the Holocaust.
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 |
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October 10, 2018
|
Patricia Edmonson
Curator of Costumes and Textiles
Cleveland History Center of the Western Reserve Historical Society
The Way We Were: What Photos Tell Us
Ms. Edmonson provided valuable tips to understanding
and preserving family photos (1870’s- 1920’s) plus
- Creating a photographic family tree
- Using clues from clothing and hair styles to date images
- How to organize and store archival materials properly
|
 |
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September 20, 2018
|
Introduction to JEWISHGEN.ORG
an interactive workshop for members
Led by Russ Maurer
|
|
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September 5, 2018
|
Mark Jamba, DVM
What Killed Grandma: Dissecting Death
Certificates
Before the introduction of antibiotics and certain vaccines
there were common illnesses that were often life-threatening and could
be found handwritten on death certificates.
Understandably, it would become challenging for family
genealogy researchers to comprehend fully what were common causes of
death in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
Veterinarian Mark Jamba helped demystify historical
medical terminology in his lighthearted presentation, as he explained
the common causes of death dating back more than a century ago with
emphasis on understanding the impact that sickness had on our ancestors
and history. His presentation covered each of the major organ systems
with the necessary scientific terminology broken down into prefix, root
and suffix to further comprehension. Fourteen infectious diseases that
often killed our ancestors were introduced and for each the cause, transmission,
diagnosis and treatment was highlighted.
|
 |
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Sunday
August 5, 2018
|
Judy Cetina
FIELD TRIP to the
Cuyahoga County Archives
3951 Perkins Avenue
Cleveland
We had a guided tour of the Cuyahoga County Archives
now located in the former Halle Brothers warehouse at 3951 Perkins Avenue,
Cleveland.
The Archives encourages the use and scholarly research
of all County records and makes staff assistance available for that
purpose.
This was an opportunity for members and guests to learn
about the holdings and resources available to the general public as
well as research policies and procedures.
Time was available for questions and responses from
archivist Judy Cetina and members of her staff.
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July 11, 2018
|
Harry Brown
Partner - Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP
Creating an Ethical Will
There is an old Jewish custom whereby a parent
writes not one, but two wills. The first is a conventional or
disposition will to pass on material possessions. The second,
equally or even more important, is an ethical will. The ethical
will states the values in which the parents want the children
to subscribe. Attorney Harry Brown shared examples of ethical
wills and how they are prepared in contemplation of death to
create something of meaning that will live on after we are gone,
providing a sense of completion for our lives.
|
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June 21, 2018
|
Introduction to ANCESTRY.COM
an interactive workshop for members
Led by Murray Davis
|
June 6, 2018
|
Betsie Norris
Founder and Executive Director of the Adoption Network Cleveland
and Mark Elliott
Accessing Adoption Records
Betsie Norris spoke about current laws regarding
adoption records in Ohio and other states, including the movement
to open previously closed birth records to adult adoptees. In
addition, she also addressed how DNA testing can help reunite
adult adoptees with their birth families. Mark Elliott, who
was adopted at the age of 2-1/2 from Bellefaire, shared his
journey to a successful reunion with his biological family members.
|
 |
May 2, 2018
|
Sunny Morton
Comparing the Genealogy Giants
Ancestry.com, FamilySearch.org, Findmypast.com and MyHeritage.com
These genealogy giants all provide international
audiences with tools and records for researching family trees
online. But which should you use? We learned why we should be
familiar with all four sites; subscription and free access options;
and how they compare for historical record content (including
records for Jewish research), family trees and DNA tools, and
we were told about insider tips on each site’s best features—and
cautions or challenges for working with each.
|
 |
April 11, 2018
|
Sylvia Abrams, President, Jewish Genealogy Society of Cleveland,
Ken Bravo, President, International Association of
Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS), and
Chuck Lissauer, Past President, Jewish Genealogy Society of
Cleveland
LOCAL EXPERTS SHARE PERSONAL BREAKTHROUGHS AND “AHA MOMENTS”
The speakers shared valuable techniques that
led them to experience “aha moments” in researching their own
ancestors, and revealed insights from years of examining marriage
records, census documents and school yearbooks to enhance family
research. Each cited specific examples of breakthroughs they
had made and invited questions from the audience on how to get
the most value out of their investigative research. Tips from
“how to” video clips on census records, marriage documents and
school yearbooks were also featured courtesy of the Jewish Genealogy
Society of Long Island, New York.
Sylvia Abrams discussed marriage record information
that can further family research. Ken Bravo provided tips on
making the most of federal census reports. Chuck Lissauer spoke
about examining school yearbooks as a source of useful information
for genealogists.
|
March 4, 2018
|
Matthew Skvasik
Innovation Programming Specialist
Cuyahoga County Public Library
The Memory Lab at the South Euclid-Lyndhurst Library Branch
An Asset for Genealogy Research
Matthew Skvasik explained the equipment, capabilities
and software that can be used for free in the library’s lab
to digitize and preserve family photographs, artifacts and other
items.
|
 |
February 4, 2018
|
Mitchell Balk
President, Mt. Sinai Health Care Foundation
Whither Jewish Hospitals - the Mt. Sinai Legacy
Mitchell Balk discussed the history of Jewish-sponsored
hospitals in the United States, with a focus on Cleveland’s
Mt. Sinai Medical Center, In his presentation, he explained
how the medical institution has had a lasting impact on the
community through the grantmaking Foundation formed from its
sale in 1996 and the people who fondly remember the history
of the hospital.
|
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January 7, 2018
|
Ken Bravo, and Richard Spector
Installation of Officers
and
Learn how to “Break down Brick Walls”
A panel of experts, past presidents of the Jewish
Genealogy Society of Cleveland, gave advice on how to break
through a brick wall while researching your family tree. They
shared research strategies and examples of how they have found
missing ancestors.
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For lists of earlier programs and speakers,
click on the ARCHIVE tab on the menu bar at the top of the page.
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