Genealogy 101: Climbing Your Family Tree

Discovering your family’s unique story is like solving a puzzle. However, getting started can sometimes seem daunting. Join us on Tuesday, March 12, 2019 from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. at the Libbie Mill Library to learn more about your family’s history. The program is free and open to the public. This discussion, led by Bessida Cauthorne White, an author and genealogist, will provide tips and strategies for beginning family research. It will include an overview of basic genealogy terms and tools, the use of public and private records, internet sources, oral history, and DNA. Attention will be given to the challenges associated with researching African-American families. Libbie Mill Library is located 2100 Libbie Lake E. St. Richmond, Va. 23230.

Brief Biography of Bessida Cauthorne White

Bessida Cauthorne White (B.S., J.D.) has been a genealogist for nearly 40 years. She is the family historian for nine of her families and manages DNA results for more than thirty family members and friends. She is co-founder and president of Middle Peninsula African-American Genealogical and Historical Society and a founder of the Greater Richmond Chapter of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society. In 2015, she chaired the National Conference of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society. Held in Richmond, this is the only  national gathering of African-American genealogists to have been held in Virginia.

White is the editor of A Reunion of Recipes: The White Family Cookbook (1990), co-editor of Help Yourself! There’s a God’s Mighty Plenty: A Treasury of Recipes from the Cauthorne & Brooks Families (First Edition 2000 and Second Edition 2017), and co-editor of Gather at the Welcome Table: The Angel Visit Baptist Church Sesquicentennial Cookbook. She  has recently undertaken the task of identifying persons who were enslaved at Menokin and their present-day descendants. Menokin, located in Richmond County, Virginia, was the home of Francis Lightfoot Lee,.a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
An activist, retired attorney, and lay historian, she is president of the board of the Rappahannock Industrial Academy Alumni Association and serves on the boards of the Middlesex County Museum & Historical Societyand the Library of Virginia Foundation. White is a member of the Menokin African American Advisory Work Group and serves as church historian and vice-chair of the trustee board at Angel Visit Baptist Church, Dunnsville, Virginia.

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Jumpstart 2019 with Shonda Rhimes’ “Year of Yes” during this exciting literary salon led by best-selling author and writing coach Stacy Hawkins Adams. Stacy will inspire your renewed sense of self. Ms Rhimes’ book will propel you to “Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person!”

In Year of Yes, (2015) the mega-talented creator of “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Scandal” and executive producer of “How to Get Away With Murder” chronicles the powerful impact saying “yes” had on every aspect of her life—and how we can all change our lives with one little word. “YES.”

Leading up to this program,  presented by the BND Institute of Media and Culture, participants are encouraged to buy or borrow the “Year of Yes” to read now and between late January! As you read, you’ll want to keep a journal to note your thoughts and ideas.

Because this program is limited to 20 people, you’ll want to purchase your ticket as soon as possible. Tickets are $25 per person and lunch will be included in the ticket price.

Please contact bonnienewmandavis@gmail.com for additional information.

Location

Homewood Suites Richmond West

4100 Innslake Drive 

Glen Allen, Virginia 23060

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Luncheon Sponsor – MLH Assets Management

About Stacy Hawkins Adams

Stacy Hawkins Adams is an award-winning author and journalist who loves to inform, entertain and inspire readers through the written word.

She has a gift for weaving tales in both the fiction and nonfiction genres, and in both faith-based and secular markets, that help readers thrive and grow confident in their own stories.

Stacy has penned 10 books – nine women’s fiction novels and one nonfiction faith-based devotional book. Her fiction features themes related to personal growth, self-esteem, matters of faith, forgiveness, friendships and family, and some of the books have been featured reading selections in high school and college courses. Her most recent novel, Finding Home, was released in March 2016.  It is the third novel in her Winds of Change series, but is a stand-alone title that does not have to be read in order. Other recent titles include Lead Me Home (recipient of a Publisher’s Weekly starred review); Coming Home (a 2012 Target stores Recommended Read); The Someday List (an Essence magazine bestseller), and Dreams That Won’t Let Go (a 2010 Library of Virginia Literary Award finalist). Her nonfiction book, Who Speaks To Your Heart? gives women practical tips and inspiration on how to connect more deeply with God.