NEW MEETING TIME AND FORMAT!

Our next meeting is Sunday, September 18. Starting this month, we will be meeting in hybrid format, in person and via Zoom. The in-person meeting opens at 1:30pm for socializing. Beginning at 2pm, we will have announcements followed by a presentation.

Our in-person meetings will be held at:
St. Thomas of Canterbury Episcopal Church
5306 E. Arbor Rd. (between Clark and Bellflower)
Long Beach CA 90808

If you can’t make it to the in-person meeting, you can still attend via Zoom. The Zoom meeting will start at 2pm. A link will be mailed to members before the meeting. You can also contact questingheirs@gmail.com for the login information.

Please see our Meetings page for more information.

Our September speaker will be Eleanor Brinsko, her presentation is entitled Farming, Factories & the Frontier: Midwest Genealogy.

About Eleanor Brinsko

Eleanor Brinsko is a professional genealogist and owns Carlon Genealogical Services, LLC, where she researches family history questions for clients and also gives genealogical presentations for libraries, historical societies, and genealogy groups around Wisconsin. She was recently hired by the University of Wisconsin to teach a genealogy course for their iSchool, the school for future librarians. Eleanor has a Bachelor’s of Music Education–K-12 General and Instrumental Music and also holds two Master’s degrees from University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee: a Master’s of Library and Information Science and a Master’s in Music History and Literature, specializing in Minnesota radio history.

Our next meeting is Sunday, August 21. Our speaker will be Joey L. Caccarozzo, her presentation is on Roman Catholic Records. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Joey’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About Joey L. Caccarozzo

Joey L. Caccarozzo is a federal trial attorney by day and speaker and researcher on nights and weekends, with a focus in DNA, Italian, Louisiana, Slovak, and Ukrainian studies. She completed the Advanced Italian Genealogy course at the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh in 2019 and her Italian and Eastern European genealogy certificates through the National Institute of Genealogy Studies in 2020. Joey is the speaker coordinator for the Pima County Genealogy Society and a member of its steering and programming committees.

Our July meeting is at 1pm on Sunday, July 17. Bring a chair, lunch, and beverage and join us for a get-together picnic! We will meet outside at Heartwell Park across from–or close by–the Masonic Lodge parking lot. (Please do not park in their parking lot.) To find us, look for our Questing Heirs sign.

Instead of a presentation, we will have time to visit and share our genealogical findings from the past year.

Cynthia Day-Elliott is kindly donating ice cream bars for our get-together.

In addition, as part of our collaboration with helping publicize Jamboree, the Southern California Genealogical Society has presented Questing Heirs with one Standard Registration to Jamboree 2002. One lucky QHGS member will be chosen at our July meeting to receive it. To participate, you must be a current QHGS member in good standing with dues up-to-date.

We are looking forward to seeing you in person!

Our next meeting is Sunday, January 16. Our speaker will be Christine Cohen, her presentation is entitled Grand Army of the Republic – Researching Your Union Civil War Veterans. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Christine’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About the Presentation

Do you have a Union Civil War Veteran? Did you know that in 1890 there were over 400,000 Veterans who belonged to the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R)? This organization existed from 1866 to 1956. It generated records noting Civil War service, birth, marriage, death, residences, occupations, detailed biographies and even photographs. I will show you where and how to find these hidden gems.

About Christine Cohen

Christine Cohen is a long time member of the Whittier Area Genealogical Society (WAGS), where she has served in many capacities, including President. In addition to WAGS, she is also a member of the El Redondo Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Society of Daughters of Holland Dames and the Association of Professional Genealogists.

Her interest in genealogy began in 1977 with the airing of the TV mini-series “Roots” and she was piqued when she found a typed pedigree chart of her Dutch heritage from the New Netherlands in the 1660’s. Christine is a native Californian, a graduate of UCLA in Political Science and has worked for Vitol Aviation Company since 1993.

Our next meeting is Sunday, December 19. Our speaker will be Dannell “Danni” Altman-Newell, her presentation is entitled Beyond the Draft Card: Researching Your Great War Ancestor. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Danni’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About Danni Altman-Newell

Dannell “Danni” Altman-Newell is a native Kansas Citian. She began her family history research at an early age, courtesy of spending summers watching her maternal grandparents indexing at the local Family History Center. Danni is currently employed as Director of Operations at the National Storytelling Network and serves as an enthusiastic volunteer for the National World War I Museum and Memorial. A graduate of ProGen and proud member of OES, DAR, APG, and the APG Heartland Chapter, Danni specializes in the Great War, Fraternal Organization, and Midwest research. She can be contacted at danni@talkingboxgenealogy.com.

Our next meeting is Sunday, November 21. Our speaker will be Sara Cochran, her presentation is entitled From a Box in the Closet to a Treasured Family Heirloom: Organizing and Digitizing Your Family Photos. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Sara’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About Sara Cochran

Every person that starts researching their family history does so for a different reason. For some, they feel disconnected from themselves or seek understanding about modern issues from the past. For others, the genealogy “bug” bites when a family member asks them for some help with research. For me, it was a desire to learn about the people I came from, all these marvelous looking people in my Grandma’s photo albums.

The Egyptians believed they were immortal if they were remembered. By seeking out our ancestors, we give them immortality. Someday, perhaps, someone will do the same for us! I’m just a little passionate about family history. A good friend helped me paint this on my wall and my long-suffering husband hung all the pictures.

I have returned a few “long-lost” family members to their spot on the family tree. Through research, I was able to discover what happened to a Great-Grandfather and one of his daughters on one side of the family, and a 2nd-Great Grand Aunt and 2nd-Great Grand Uncle on the other side. I’m not done with them yet, there are still puzzles to solve from the in-between years. But I can mark the places where they lie and there is some closure for the living family that has wondered what happened all these years. Each of them appears on this tree.

Sunday, October 17, 2021

Our next meeting is Sunday, October 17. Our speaker will be Christine Cohen, her presentation is entitled www.DAR.org. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Christine’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About Christine Cohen

Christine Cohen is a long time member of the Whittier Area Genealogical Society (WAGS), where she has served in many capacities, including President. In addition to WAGS, she is also a member of the El Redondo Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the Society of Daughters of Holland Dames and the Association of Professional Genealogists.

Her interest in genealogy began in 1977 with the airing of the TV mini-series “Roots” and she was piqued when she found a typed pedigree chart of her Dutch heritage from the New Netherlands in the 1660’s. Christine is a native Californian, a graduate of UCLA in Political Science and has worked for Vitol Aviation Company since 1993.

Sunday, September 19, 2021

Our next meeting is Sunday, September 15. Our speaker will be Ronald V. Gilmore, his presentation is entitled Irish Griffith’s Valuations. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Ron’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About Ronald V. Gilmore

With a strong technical background (a degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master’s degree in Mathematics), Ron pursued a career as a management consultant in IT with major assignments in Canada, USA and Europe. Retiring in 2010, Ron and Wendy bought a golf community home in Sun City Shadow Hills in Indio, CA.

With generous amounts of spare time now available, Ron turned to genealogy for family investigations in Ireland, UK, France/Germany and Canada. Ron has presented to a variety of genealogical societies including the Sun City Shadow Hills Genealogy Club, the Palm Desert Genealogy Club, the Moreno Valley GS and the Hemet-San Jacinto GS on his favorite topic: Ireland.

Sunday, August 15, 2021

Our next meeting is Sunday, August 15. Our speaker will be Hal Horrocks; his presentation is entitled Drilling Down for Better Searches. The Zoom session will begin at 12:30 for social time, and Hal’s presentation will begin at 1:00.

About Hal Horrocks

A native of Long Beach and a 50-year Orange County resident currently living in Costa Mesa, Hal Horrocks is a professional genealogist, teacher, author, and lecturer and has been doing family research for over 25 years.

He is a member of several professional genealogical associations and is the immediate past president of the Orange County California Genealogical Society (OCCGS) headquartered at the Huntington Beach Central Library.

Hal is a graduate of CSULB. He has been lecturing to genealogical and other societies for the last 15 years on a range of subjects that include why people get involved in genealogy to conducting research in early England.

Sunday, July 18, 2021

Bring a chair, lunch and beverage and join us for a picnic at Heartwell Park! Look for the Questing Heirs sign in the area across from–or nearby–the Masonic Lodge. (Please do not park in their parking lot.)

We won’t have a speaker but will have time to visit and share our genealogical findings this past year.

We look forward to seeing everyone again in person!