First Post - First IGHR

IGHR registration day has arrived! After winning the Birdie Monk Holsclaw Scholarship, I have been looking forward to IGHR! I chose the Intermediate Research track. Why not Advanced, and why not DNA? Well, it was a strategic decision. I felt that most applicants would be asking for the Advanced DNA track because it sells out each year, so I wanted to ask for another track. I do not do much immigrant research because my lines came before most of the records existed (or they were beamed down). The intermediate track has an immigration section, so I chose the Intermediate over Advanced track.

Yesterday was a full day of the Family Search expo. I picked up several tips and reinforced my reluctance to put my tree there. I just cannot buy into the 'one tree' concept. There are no good tools for correcting errors. The site owners seem to think everyone should 'cooperate' and play nice together. Tell that to my cousin who 'knows' Michael's father was Abraham, yet has no proof - while I can prove he probably was NOT!

We had an excellent lunch in the Savannah Room, so any qualms about good food served during the conference went away.

There are several companies selling books, but I only found one book that is coming home. It was $5 more expensive than on Amazon, but after taxes, I figure I did OK. I'll review it later. My biggest disappointment is that there is no T-Shirt booth! I was really hoping to buy some cute Genealogy T-Shirts!

Registration is this afternoon, with a reception following. The ProGen meetup is at 1830. I was the organizer this year. I had 26 people RSVP. I am looking forward to meeting my fellow ProGen Alumni! I sent Blaine Bettinger a personal invitation, he agreed to try to attend!

In addition to the class sessions there are evening sessions most of the week. I also volunteered to collect meal tickets and session tickets three times during the week.

The BCG Portfolios will be available for review three evenings during IGHR. This was my other reason for attending. I want to see an actual portfolio with comments. I finish Progen in September but plan to make the decision to pursue certification or not after reviewing the portfolios. The success rate of applicants is only 40%, so this is not a decision to be made lightly. It's an expensive bet on myself.

It promises to be a very busy week! #IGHR