Upcoming General Meetings

     

Holiday Social Gathering
Share Your Genealogical Finds of the Year
Thursday, December 10th @ 7pm
Panera Bread
6000 Northwest Highway
Crystal Lake, IL

Smart Practices for Source Citations
Presented by Larry Olsen
Saturday, January 9th, 2010
10am @ Woodstock Public Library
414 W. Judd Street
Woodstock, IL

My Search for the European Records of My Ancestors
Presented by Steve Szabados
Saturday, February 13th, 2010
10am @ Woodstock Public Library
414 W. Judd Street
Woodstock, IL

From the Auld (Old) Sod to the New Prairie:
Songs of Irish Immigration in Illinois
Performed by Lee Murdock
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
7:00 @ Woodstock Public Library
414 W. Judd Street
Woodstock, IL

They Came on This Ship
Presented by Jeffrey Bockman
Thursday, April 8th, 2010
7:00 @ Woodstock Public Library
414 W. Judd Street
Woodstock, IL

General Meeting Returns to Second Thursday @ Woodstock Public Library

For the past year, the society has been holding general meetings on the Second Sunday of each month at the McHenry Public Library. We made this move primarily so that we would have a venue equipped with the Internet for our speakers and guests. Since MPL was unable to accommodate us at our regularly scheduled time on Thursday evenings, the board agreed to meet on the second Sunday of each month on a trial basis for one year.

The wireless internet access provided by the library has been a great success, allowing us to host successful programs such as Chicagoancestors.org with Ginger Frere and Finding Your Ancestors Online with Nancy Shepherdson. However, we have found the Sunday meeting time unsuitable for a variety of reasons. Our last scheduled Sunday meeting will be August 9th @1:30 at the McHenry Public Library.

After careful consideration, the board has decided to return to meeting on the second Thursday of each month. We will, however, continue the practice of meeting during daytime hours during the harshest winter months of January and February. During this time, we will meet on Saturday mornings at 10am. Since the McHenry Public Library is unable to accommodate us on Thursday nights, we are fortunate to have found a new home at the Woodstock Public Library. The Woodstock Public Library offers both free wireless internet access and equipment for our speakers. The Woodstock Public Library is located at 414 W Judd Street in Woodstock.

In addition, the board has decided to follow the example of many other societies and not schedule general meetings during the summer months. The low attendance resulting from summer vacations and other activities factored into this decision, as well as the limited availability of our new meeting space. We do hope to plan informal get-togethers, as well as offer opportunities to meet with each other for research help. Watch the newsletter for details.

If you have an idea for a speaker or program topic, please contact Kristen Smith at