DNA Special Interest Group Meeting on Tuesday June 19th

The DNA Special Interest Group will be meeting on Tuesday June 19 at 7 pm at the:

Oshawa Family History Centre,

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,

632 Rossland Rd North, Oshawa

We will start with basic questions for any newcomers and then move on to Intermediate questions for our seasoned members.

Remember to park behind the church [off Rossland Rd] and go in the south-west door of the building. The Family History Centre will be on the right when you go in. 

Parking is free and all are welcome!

Also, don't forget that there is still time to sign up for our "Day of Learning" this coming Saturday, June 23rd. We are having 2 lectures on DNA given by 2 experts: Sherilyn Bell and Ellen Maki.

9 Days Left Until Durham Region Branch's "Day of Learning"on June 23rd

We would like to reveal that our Door Prize Sponsor is Family Tree Maker and that they have donated a copy of the latest Family Tree Maker Softwareas our Door Prize! We are certainly indebted to them for their generosity.

Due to the vigorous registration last weekend, we have ordered a few extra lunches. These will be available on a first come basis. If you didn’t quite get registered by the food deadline, you still have a chance. Don’t wait!

Durham Region Branch’s Day of Learning will be held on Saturday, June 23, 2018 from 9 am – 3:45 pm at Faith United Church, 1778 Nash Road, Courtice. This year’s theme is: “From DNA Connections to Database Giants”

Registration and coffee is from 9:00 am to 9:30 am and parking is free and plentiful

Speakers and topics include:

Sherilyn Bell about “Ancestry in a Tube: Using DNA to Pick Up the Genealogical Trail” 

Nick Post presenting “The Ins and Outs of FamilySearch, and What’s New”

Ellen Maki talking about “Autosomal DNA: Next Steps”

Nancy Trimble + Panel on “The Genealogy Giants’ Databases” + Panel Discussion

Registration links and more information are at http://durham.ogs.on.ca/workshops/

Cost is only $35.00.

Durham Region Branch's June Meeting features Danielle Manning

Our usual general meeting will be held at the Bobby Orr Room of the Oshawa Civic Centre (99 Thornton Road South) on Tuesday, June 5th at 7:30 p.m.

Danielle Manning, an Outreach Officer at the Archives of Ontario, will give us a "tour" of the Archives via PowerPoint, in her presentation: 

An Introduction to the Archives of Ontario

  
Learn what the archives has to offer genealogists and how to access the records. 


All are welcome and the parking is free.





Mini-Talk - OGS Conference 2018 highlights, from members who attended.

Our meetings are often streamed on YouTube starting at 7:30. Our channel for streaming is http://www.youtube.com/ channel/UCiHiKL0pfzXzG- G9YARS8Sg/live .

The DNA SIG (DNA Special Interest Group), within our branch, has been meeting monthly. The June meeting will be held at the Oshawa Family History Centre (LDS) on Tuesday, June 19th, at 7 p.m. (632 Thornton Rd N, Oshawa, Ontario).

NEW Meeting Location & Day for our DNA Special Interest Group

We have a new HOME  & a new DAY for the DNA Special Interest Group!

As announced at the May 1st general branch meeting, we will be meeting at 7 p.m.:

The Oshawa Family History Centre,

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints,

632 Thornton Road North, Oshawa

(corner of Thornton and Rossland Roads)

We are booked there for the 3rd TUESDAY night of each month for our future meetings, thanks to our ViceChair Nick Post.

We will start with basic questions for any newcomers and then move on to Intermediate questions for our seasoned members.

Remember to park behind the church [off Rossland Rd] and go in the south-west door of the building. The Family History Centre will be on the right when you go in. 

Parking is free and all are welcome!

DNA Quest from MyHeritage DNA - Now Goes Global

I just got an e-mail from MyHeritage announcing that their DNA Quest program for reuniting adoptees with their biological families has now gone global. 

Hi, Nancy

Last month we launched DNA Quest, a new pro bono initiative to help adoptees and their birth families reunite through genetic testing. The initiative, initially launched in the USA only, received an amazing response. More than 10,000 applications were submitted so far to receive free DNA kits, from the quota of 15,000 free DNA kits pledged by MyHeritage, worth more than one million dollars.

Being that the deadline for submissions is the end of April 2018 and there are still about 3 more weeks to go, and in light of the many requests we received from the community to expand DNA Quest worldwide, we decided to increase the scope of the project, from USA-only to global. This means that people are now eligible to participate in DNA Quest regardless of their place of residence and regardless of where the adoption took place.

Please help us spread the word on social media, especially with the news about DNA Quest going global, and include a link to the www.dnaquest.org website to make this dream a reality for families around the world. Read more here.

April Meeting to Feature Jane MacNamara

Life on the Farm: Your Ancestor's Place in Ontario Agriculture

Speaker: Jane MacNamara

We often think of farming as a traditional occupation—something that hasn’t really changed much. But that is not and was never the case. Farmers had to react and adapt to changing conditions like climate, technology, economics, new markets and new competitors. Some farmers did more than adapt. They set out to be the most productive by innovating with new techniques and processes, products, and marketing. Farm journals and business records survive in many archives. Farmers may have had help and encouragement along the way from agricultural associations, community groups, government agencies, or private patrons. Digitization of many of the records of these pro-agriculture organizations has made them a viable source to help us understand the changes that were happening around our farming ancestors—and whether they were leading the way or following the pack. Jane's blog is "Where The Story Takes Me".

See our website for details about streaming our meetings.

WHEN:

April 3, 2018 @ 7:30 pm

WHERE:

Bobby Orr Room, Oshawa Civic Recreation Complex99 Thornton Rd SOshawa, ON L1J 5Y1Canada

Mini-Talk: 

Stephen Wood - "My April Fools - The Hillier Dilemma"

Free to all and free parking is on the east side of the building. Please come and bring a friend!

March Meeting of the DNA Special Interest Group Wednesday Mar 21st

Our March Meeting of the Branch's DNA Special Interest Group will be held on Wednesday, March 21st at 7 pm. It will be held at the Durham Branch Office. See map here.

The new MyHeritage chromosome browser will be demonstrated by Stephen Wood, who will also be chairing the meeting. If time permits, there may also be a video.

All are welcome!