Tag Meetings are led by Janice Moerschel

TAG June Meeting Notes

• We watched the video: "5 Reasons you're not finding your Ancestors: by Crista Cowan; Link: Her five reasons:
• 1) relying too much on family stories, 2) taking info from un-sourced trees,
• 3) searching for records that don't exist,
• 4) getting stuck in a search rut
• ,5) not looking at an ancestor's entire life. Among the many tips: focus on what you know rather than what you don't, evaluate family stories, verify sources,use original records, collaborate with others, use "Networks" (a Pro Tools feature), use the Ancestry card catalog for tailored searches, check for new records on the website - millions are added every day.
• Add all the children to families.

Another video by Crista Cowan that I recommend watching is "Search tips and tricks." This is a
Zoom class she did on on June 11. I registered in advance to watch at the "Education" center at
the Ancestry website. This video is not yet posted there - maybe in a few days?
https://www.ancestry.com/c/discover/education And maybe it will be on YouTube soon - not
sure. If I get a YouTube link, I'll send it along at a later day. This video builds on the searching
techniques discussed from today's video.

Members shared memories of their fathers. Dianne shared a photo of her father's childhood
home, a farm in Whitman County, and discussed its history and her family's connection to it.

Kelley shared a tribute to her father's life, highlighting his military service during World War II
and his artistic talent, which led to him creating propaganda posters while stationed at Fort
Leavenworth. She discussed his work as a commercial artist on fashion advertisements, work as
a docent at the Southwest Museum in Pasadena and creating exhibits and a children's coloring
book about Native American art. He was honored by the city of Los Angeles for his cultural
contributions and continued his artistic work by teaching drawing classes and practicing the
science of mind. The tribute included photos of his artwork, his work with horses and dogs, and
his love of nature, concluding with a birthday wish for her father, Jack. Excellent, Kelley!

Marge described her father's carpentry and fishing abilities, and Janice sharing her father's
proficiency in shorthand and - somewhat - piano. May mentioned her father's ambidexterity, and
Janice discussed her maternal side of her family's history of carpentry.

Suggestions from Marge for our September 11 meeting: 1) Where were you on September 11th?
or, 2) Try one of the examples that Crista Cowan presented today that you hadn't used before.
Tell the group how it worked (success?). Thanks Marge! And if anyone has other suggestions,
please email them to me: moerschelj@gmail.com.

TAG had 16 participants today: Albert Calderon, Ardis Storms, Barbara Gumm, Carol
Hsu, Chris Murphy, Dan and May Cotton, Dianne Bongarts, Janice Moerschel, Karen
Lehfeldt (Clarkston, WA), Kelley Taylor, Marge Mero, Patricia Robison, Ruth Halligan,
Sandi Gaffney, and Susan Harms.