Wednesday, February 8
Program: United States Naturalization Records: the Why, the What and the Where
Mark Jacobson

Featured speaker at the February 8 meeting is Mark Jacobson, President of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Palm Beach County, who will discuss “United States Naturalization Records: the Why, the What and the Where.” Following a brief business meeting at 1 pm, Mr. Jacobson will address why family historians should be looking for these naturalization records, what they will find in these records, and where they can find them.

Wednesday, March 14
Program: Getting the Most out of JewishGen - for all levels
Phyllis Kramer

JewishGen's mission is to preserve our history for future generations. It provides an electronic framework which allows online researchers to gather, document and preserve this heritage. All the information is easily accessible, in database form, available worldwide at no charge. The presentation will address the databases...and how to easily access them.

A practicing genealogist, with primary interest in Eastern European Jewish research, Phyllis wears many hats. She serves on the JGSPBCI board of directors where she regularly conducts our beginners workshops and our Brick Wall session. At JewishGen, Phyllis is a member of the Advisory Board; and, as Vice President of Education for JewishGen, she has created an online education program for over 1,400 students. Until her retirement, she served as a business consultant for IBM.

Wednesday, April 11
Program: Two Path to Florida - How Genealogy Helped United a Family and Tell its Story
Harry Stuart

Harry Stuart was born and raised in Australia, the son of Holocaust refugees from Vienna. Harry will relate the dramatic story of his family's and his second cousin's journeys out of Europe. Harry's immediate family survived the Holocaust by escaping to Australia, while his cousin, Max Pelton, grew up in the Krakow ghetto, was sheltered by a Righteous Gentile, and through an amazing series of events, found his way to New York, to be reunited with his father. Internet-based genealogical research was instrumental in the cousins finding each other. Using a document- and photo-rich presentation, Harry will reference the methods used to create his elaborate family tree, which now dates back to the mid-1700s -- and it all started with a few names his father gave him in 1980.

Wednesday, May 9
Program: "Share Our Successes"