2026 Abbotsford Family History Day - FREE

Workshop Descriptions

• Family Storytelling 101: Write & Share Your Short Family Stories

  Learn how to find the stories within your family history and transform them into engaging narratives your family will want to read and remember.

  Explore simple storytelling techniques, ways to add context and detail, and tools—including AI—that can help you brainstorm, organize, and refine your writing while preserving your unique voice.

  Whether you are writing about ancestors, family traditions, or your own memories, this session will help you begin creating stories that connect generations.

  Presenter: Karen Inkster Vance, MA

  Karen Inkster Vance, MA, is an educator, author, and family storyteller who has spent over thirty years researching, documenting, and sharing family histories. She is the author of Voices from the Past: Stories of North Roe (2023), a social history of the Shetland Islands village where her great-grandfather was born.

  Karen uses historical context, photographs, and oral histories to uncover the human stories behind the records. Through her writing and presentations, she helps family historians transform research into meaningful narratives that connect generations. She resides in Surrey, BC, Canada.

  For more information about Karen and her current projects, visit www.KarenInksterVance.com.

   

• Researching Beyond the 'Big 3' Free and Non-Membership Sites

  Many of us looking for ancestors turn to the large commonly used genealogical sites, but there are many other resources that you don’t have to pay for. Sharon will review and demonstrate some of her favorites, including Library and Archives Canada, provincial archives, public libraries, local archives, WikiTree, and searching for web pages from various countries. Bring your experiences and questions and discover features that you may have overlooked.

  Presenter: Sharon Syrette

  Sharon Syrette has a lifelong interest in genealogy, history, storytelling, and community building. She is an engaging facilitator and dedicates hundreds of hours to research, record and connect people to their heritage. She developed and continues as volunteer leader of Family Ties: Connecting Our Generations, an Aboriginal Genealogy Association project and hosts Tracking Indigenous Roots, for the BC Genealogy Society. She is a writing guide for informal Memoir Writing groups at libraries and on-line.

  She proudly helped preserve the Church of the Holy Cross, a national historic site at Skookum [Skatin FN] and was featured on a History TV documentary “Saving Places”. She was co-chair of Heritage Places branch, Mission District Historical Society in 2010.

  She has authored, co-authored and edited a number of published works, including Memories: 100 years at Hatzic Elementary School.

   

• Searching Ontario & Maritimes Records Using AI

  This workshop will introduce practical ways to use AI to search, interpret, and analyze genealogical records in Ontario and the Maritimes. Learn how AI can help uncover information in county histories and other historical sources, identify useful details, and suggest avenues for further investigation. We will also discuss the importance of verifying AI-generated information.

  Presenter: Terry Rogers

  Terry Rogers has been a genealogical researcher, instructor and enthusiast for over 50 years. Together with his wife Margaret he has conducted primary research in most of the Canadian Provinces and is knowledgeable in researching many other parts of the world. He has been a volunteer at the FamilySearch Centres in Toronto and Surrey for more than 25 years. He has taught seminars on The Maritimes, Ontario and Quebec and US-Canada migration as well as courses on using the internet for research.

   

• FamilySearch Research Wiki: A Research Goldmine

  Get ready to discover one of FamilySearch’s most underrated treasures! During this interactive session, you’ll use our FamilySearch Centre computers to learn how the FamilySearch Research Wiki works, what it can do for your research, and how to make the most of its best features. Participants are encouraged to bring personal research questions to apply to the Wiki's resources.

  Presenter: Elaine Jolicoeur

  Is a Family History consultant at the Abbotsford FamilySearch Centre. She has studied computer information systems, worked as a programmer and as tech support. When she started researching family history in 1999 the FamilySearch website was up and running. Her enthusiasm for family history research grew and she attended Brigham Young University’s Annual Genealogy and Family History Conference in 2001. Keeping the momentum going, she took online courses with the International Institute of Genealogical Studies, then known as the National Institute of Genealogical studies, and completed a Canadian Genealogy certificate and continues to take courses. After retiring she served a service mission with FamilySearch Wiki from March 2021 to May 2025. She appreciates the magic of technological advances such as the ability to view Rootstech sessions online. Her blog is: https://elainejblog.wordpress.com.

   

• Beginning Scottish Research

   This will focus on starting your genealogical research in Scotland.

  • The types of records available – Old Parish Registers, Civil Registration, Census, Wills, and more.

  • Typical information contained on the records and how this information can be used to trace your Scottish ancestors.

  • Where these records can be found for research, including indexes, transcriptions, and original images.

  • Internet sources such as ScotlandsPeople, Ancestry, Find my Past, and FamilySearch.

  • Emphasis on the digitized material available on FamilySearch website.

  Presenter: George Caldwell

  George was born in Bellshill Scotland, immigrating to Canada in the mid 1950’s as a young lad, thus does not have the accent of a typical Scotsman. He has been researching his Scottish roots for the past 25 years. He is a member of the British Columbia Genealogical Society.

   

• AI: Deciphering the Hype

  Daily, we are bombarded with information about Artificial Intelligence (AI), but what is it and how does it work? What are some of the different implementations of AI? How is it different from doing a web search? How is AI being used by family history sites (Ancestry, FamilySearch, MyHeritage, and Findmypast)? Can you use chatbots like Chat GPT or Gemini for research? Is it useful for genealogy or is it just the new toy? What should we be concerned about? How do we use it ethically? Join Andrea Lister as she explores this topic.

  Presenter: Andrea Lister 

  Andrea Lister is a historian, researcher, speaker, editor, and writer and principal of Absolutely Literate, focussed on researching and sharing community history. She spent ten years as the Communications Manager of a national software and services provider for independent securities and mutual fund dealers. Andrea has a BA in History from the University of British Columbia and Technical Communications certificate and an Editing Certificate from Simon Fraser University. She is the winner of the 2025 Susan A. Hill Writing Award from the Genealogical Association of Nova Scotia. 

   

• Getting Started Discovering Your Family History

  Whether you're just beginning or don't know where to start, this class will help you take your first steps in discovering your family history. Learn how to use what you already know about your parents and grandparents to begin building your family tree and connect with the free FamilySearch global family tree. You'll also discover simple ways to gather and preserve priceless family stories, photographs, and memories before they are forgotten. No previous experience is needed.

  Presenter: Sharon Martin

  Sharon Martin enjoys preserving family memories and finding simple, practical ways to connect with the generations who came before us. She especially enjoys helping others see that family history doesn't have to be complicated or overwhelming and that we can often get started with the information we already have. She currently serves as a Stake Temple and Family History Consultant in the Abbotsford Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

   

• Brick Walls ... Really?

  Are you up against a wall, or lost in a deep, dark forest of family lore? Consider the possibility that the research problems you encounter can be solved by improving your family history research skills and experience. This class will help you gain stronger skills and sharper strategies to help you find a path forward.

  Presenter: Brenda L. Smith

  Brenda L. Smith is a family history consultant who specializes in research methodology. Her background includes community library and newspaper editing, and businesses such as selling books and teaching research skills. She is a founding member of the Maple Ridge Family History Group, has served as BC Historical Federation Education Chair, and has chaired the Maple Ridge Heritage Commission.

   

• "Read All Over" – Research Your Family In Newspapers

  Journalism is sometimes called the first draft of history. Dive into the world of historic newsprint. Explore where to find them, who makes them, what information is on the pages, what is the value of the information? Consider the ways that your family story can be enriched by these multi-facetted resources.

  Presenter: Brenda L. Smith

  Brenda L. Smith is a family history consultant who specializes in research methodology. Her background includes community library and newspaper editing, and businesses such as selling books and teaching research skills. She is a founding member of the Maple Ridge Family History Group, has served as BC Historical Federation Education Chair, and has chaired the Maple Ridge Heritage Commission. 

   

• After They Landed: Bring Your Family Story to Life With Timelines

  Explore how this powerful tool can help structure your research and highlight key moments to convert your findings into the narratives your family will love hearing.

  Presenter: Brenda L. Smith

  Brenda L. Smith is a family history consultant who specializes in research methodology. Her background includes community library and newspaper editing, and businesses such as selling books and teaching research skills. She is a founding member of the Maple Ridge Family History Group, has served as BC Historical Federation Education Chair, and has chaired the Maple Ridge Heritage Commission.