To register for an event or for more information, click the link for any event. All times are Pacific Time.
Questions? Email [email protected]
To register for an event or for more information, click the link for any event. All times are Pacific Time.
Questions? Email [email protected]
I’m writing this on Sunday, November 23, 2025, as I send my 19-year-old son off to the store on his own to gather the ingredients for his Special Holiday Dip. He grabs my car keys and heads out the door and I’m so thankful that he’s growing up and is such an amazing human. As my thankfulness turns to worry over him driving a mile and a half to the store on his own, I decided to instead think about all the things I’m grateful for this year. And one of those is all of you. Thank you for trusting me this year with the CGS blog. Thank you for reading. Thank you for all the thank yous! Sometimes doing more of something you love (writing) makes you actually do EVEN more of it, and that has been true this year. I’ve filled 12 notebooks of writing so far– some genealogy, some not. Last year, there were 3. With the 133 blog posts I’ve written this year, I’ve increased my own writing by 400%. So thank you all. Very much.
Now to make this more genealogy related, this year as you make your special dish for Thanksgiving (or pick out the napkins, if that is your role), tell a story about that tradition. My son’s story is that one year when he was 6 his mom (me!) was sharing special recipes for Christmas with family and he wanted to be included for his Special Dip he’d made for each holiday. We wrote up the recipe together and took some pictures and put it into the cookbook pamphlet we created.
Will’s Special Dip
Take one whole thing of sour cream. Add soup mix. Mix it up. Let it soak. Sprinkle stuff on it to make it pretty. Then you have a good delicious meal with some chips.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Helpful Links
Events: https://www.californiaancestors.org/events-and-education/
Special Interest Groups: https://www.californiaancestors.org/special-interest-groups-for-members/
Calendar view: https://www.californiaancestors.org/cgs_calendar/
Tips & Talk: Oakland FamilySearch Center Family History Classes: https://www.familysearch.org/en/centers/oakland_california/classes
Texas State Genealogical Society (TxSGS) Writing Award Winner!
Congratulations to ECGS member, Lisa S. Gorrell, on her award winning blog, , honored with this year’s TxSGS Writing Awards. Lisa is a certified genealogist living in California, and we are so grateful that she discovered her Texas roots. Through detailed research and engaging storytelling, Lisa provides readers insightful research methodology while preserving the legacy of her ancestors. Her site includes a search function, but some surnames about which she has written are: Buford, Coor, Davey, Gleeson, Gorrell, Hork, Hutson, Johnston, Jones, Lancaster, Loveless, Lundquist, Morris, Nilsen, Rushing, Selman, Sievert, Sullivan, Tierney, & Wollenweber. Please check out her blog. Lisa says “Every day is a good day if there is genealogy in it.” Great job, Lisa!
Helpful Links
Events: https://www.californiaancestors.org/events-and-education/
Special Interest Groups: https://www.californiaancestors.org/special-interest-groups-for-members/
Calendar view: https://www.californiaancestors.org/cgs_calendar/
Tips & Talk: Oakland FamilySearch Center Family History Classes: https://www.familysearch.org/en/centers/oakland_california/classes
NOV
2025
