Columbia County Genealogy Conference: Connecting the Dots: Speaker Biographies

• A J Aiséirithe is a reference librarian and collections specialist in the History and Genealogy Section, Researcher and Reference Services Division, of the Library of Congress. She holds a Ph.D. in American History and grew up in New York’s Hudson Valley.  (Saturday Track 2: Sessions 1 & 2)
• Candice Buchanan is a reference librarian at the Library of Congress, specializing in Local History and Genealogy. Prior to joining the Library, she worked as a genealogist and archivist for Memory Medallion, Inc., Genealogists.com, and the Orphans’ Court at the Greene County, Pennsylvania Courthouse.  (Saturday Track 2: Sessions 1 & 2)
• Ahmed Johnson has been at the Library of Congress for nearly 30 years. In 2004, he began working in the Local History and Genealogy Reading Room as a reference librarian and became the African American genealogy specialist. He has lectured at national, state, and local conferences promoting the collections and services available in the Local History and Genealogy Reading Room. He is a native Washingtonian.  (Saturday Track 2: Sessions 1 & 2)
• Susana Guerra Privett, a Data Dissemination Specialist from the Census Bureau will present. She is outreach customer service for Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska and assisting in New Mexico for the Denver Region. Susana is a self-appointed family historian trying to find her paternal grandparents.  (Saturday Track 1: Sessions 1-5)
• Laurel Smith, past president of the Genealogical Forum of Oregon and instructor of the popular GFO Beginners’ Boot Camp, has been teaching beginning genealogy for almost a decade.  Laurel has helped hundreds of beginning genealogists get their family history research off to a good start and avoid making many of the common mistakes.  (Friday Sessions 1-5)
• Pam Vestal is a professional genealogist and speaker who turned her focus to her longtime love of genealogy after a 20-year writing career. Her articles have appeared in the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly and the FGS's Forum magazine.  Pam specializes in conducting genealogical research and then turning that information into illustrated stories that non-genealogists can enjoy.  (Saturday Track 2: Sessions 3, 4, & 5)

Session descriptions