VGA Webinar: “Your DNA Raw Data & WYCDWI” - Sun, 5 Jul 2020

In just over a week, on Tuesday July 14, 2020 at 8:00 pm EDT, I’ll be giving a live online talk for the Virtual Genealogical Association @VirtualGenAssoc

The description of my talk is:

Presenter Louis Kessler explains those mysterious files that we download from DNA testing companies, helps us to understand what’s in them, and shows us the ways we can make use of them. He will also discuss whether Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS) tests are worthwhile for genealogists.

I hope you come and join me for this.

To register for my presentation, you’ll need to be a member of the Virtual Genealogical Association. Annual Dues are only $20 USD, and that gives you free registration for a year to any of their regular webinars as well as handouts and other benefits. Upcoming webinars include:

• Tuesday, July 14 at 8 pm EDT - Louis Kessler presents
  “Your DNA Raw Data & What You Can Do With It”
• Sunday, July 26 at 1 pm EDT - Sara Gredler presents
  “Successfully Searching the Old Fulton New York Postcards Website”
• Saturday, August 1, 2020 EDT - Jessica Trotter presents
  “Occupational Records: Finding Work-Related Paper Trails”
• Friday, August 7, 2020 at 8:00 pm EDT - Ute Brandenburg presents
  “Research in East and West Prussia“
• Tuesday, August 18, 2020 at 8:00 pm EDT - Caroline Guntur presents
  “Introduction to Swedish Genealogy”
• Sunday, August 23, 2020 at 1 pm EDT - Julie Goucher presents
  “Researching Displaced People”
• Saturday, Sept 5, 2020 at 11:00 am EDT - Sara Campbell presents
  “Using Historic Maps of New England and Beyond”
• Tuesday, Sept 15, 2020 at 8:00 pm EDT - Tammy Tipler-Priolo presents
  “Simple Steps to Writing Your Ancestors’ Biographies”
• Sunday, Sept 20, 2020 at 1:00 pm EDT - Tamara Hallo presents
  “How to Get the Most Out of FamilySearch.org”
• Friday, Sept 25, 2020 at 8:00 pm EDT - Annette Lyttle presents
  “Finding & Using Digitized Manuscript Collections for Genealogical Research”
• Saturday, Oct 3, 2020 at 11:00 am EDT - Patricia Coleman presents
  “Beginning with DNA Painter: Chromosome Mapping”
• Sunday, Oct 11, 2020 at 1:00 pm EDT - Kristin Brooks Barcomb presents
  “Understanding & Correlating U.S. World War I Records & Resources”
• Tuesday, Oct 20, 2020 at 8:00 pm EDT - Christine Johns Cohen presents
  “Lineage & Hereditary Societies: Why, Where, When, What & How?”
• Sunday, November 22, 2020 at 1:00 pm EST - Judy Nimer Muhn presents
  “Researching French-Canadians in North America”
• Tuesday, November 24, 2020 at 8:00 pm EST - Marian B. Wood presents
  “Curate Your Genealogy Collection – Before Joining Your Ancestors!”
• Tuesday, Dec 1, 2020 at 8:00 pm EST - Diane L. Richard presents
  “The Organizational Power of Timelines”
• Friday, Dec 4, 2020 at 8:00 pm EST - Nancy Loe presents
  “Using Macs and iPads for Genealogy”
• Sunday, Dec 13, 2020 at 1:00 pm EST - Jean Wilcox Hibben presents
  “Family History Can Heal Family Present”

Notice they vary the day of the week and the time of the day to accommodate people all over the world with different schedules.

If you are unable to attend a talk live that you wanted to, members have access to recordings of the last six months of webinars. Some of the past webinars that you can still access if you join now include:

• Pam Vestal presented
  “20 Practical Strategies to Find What You Need & Use What You Find”
• Mary Cubba Hojnacki presented
  ”Beginning Italian Research”
• Alec Ferretti presented
  ”Strategies To Analyze Endogamous DNA”
• Renate Yarborough Sanders presented
  ”Researching Formerly Enslaved Ancestors: It Takes a Village”
• Megan Heyl presented
  ”Road Trip Tips: Don’t Forget To…”
• Lisa A. Alzo presented
  ”Finding Your Femme Fatales: Exploring the Dark Side of Female Ancestors”
• Lisa Lisson presented
  ”How To Be A Frugal Genealogist”
• Michelle Tucker Chubenko presented
  ”Using the Resources of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum”
• Cheri Hudson Passey presented
  ”Evidence: Direct, Indirect or Negative? It Depends!”
• Kate Eakman presented
  ”William A. James’ 30 May 1944 Death Certificate”

While you’re at it, clear off your calendars from Nov 13 to 15 for the VGA’s annual Virtual Conference. Many great speakers and topics. There is a $59 fee for members and $79 for non-members. If the Conference interests you, then why not join the VGA right now for $20 and enjoy a year of upcoming webinars and 6 months of past webinars for free!

I’ve been a member of the Virtual Genealogical Association since it started in April 2018. They are always on the lookout for interesting speakers with interesting topics. If you would like to propose a talk, they are now accepting submissions for 2021 webinars and the 2021 Virtual Conference. Deadline for submission is August 30, 2020.