Genealogy Speaker Series

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Thursday, September 11th, 2014
7:30 PM to 9:15 PM

Genealogy Speaker Series hosted by the Victoria Genealogical Society.

We have two speakers on September 11th. The first is Monica Sheridan and followed by Helen Edwards. Doors open at 7 and presentations start at 7:30pm. Free parking. Free for members and by donation by non members. Books for sale, refreshments, genealogy experts to talk to, etc. Presenter's summaries and bios follow:

Monica Sheridan: Shortly after his death in 2006, Monica Sheridan came upon old photographs and documents that identified the birth family of her father, who was adopted as a young boy. Further investigation revealed some shocking discoveries about a grandmother she never knew.Through a combination of genealogical research, footwork, road trips, countless phone calls, emails and letters, as well as old school detective work, she has uncovered the tragic story of her grandmother's life and death, and created a bond with a family she never knew. Monica Sheridan has been involved in family research since a sixth grade school project set the task of interviewing her grandparents. This sparked a life long interest that was rekindled upon discovering information on her father's birth family. Since then, she has been truly hooked. She earned her B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Victoria, and lives in Victoria where she works for the provincial government. She is currently working on a book about her grandmother's story, and hopes to give many more talks about the adventure of finding her


Helen Edwards is a writer and researcher. She is a 2001 graduate (B.A. with distinction) of the University of Victoria. Since then, she has worked on heritage projects for government and private clients, independently and in collaboration with others.
Helen has volunteered in the heritage field for many years. She is a past president of the Canadian Association of Heritage Professionals and is a member of the Heritage Canada The National Trust�s Board of Governors. She was instrumental in the establishment of the BC chapter of CAHP. Helen has attended several conferences, presenting numerous papers, and has helped organize international conferences for the Society of Architectural Historians. She is an accomplished public speaker, comfortable with elected officials and the public. Helen is a prolific writer. Her articles have appeared in magazines including Heritage Canada�s magazine, Heritage BC, Moss Rocks Review, and the Rockland Neighbourhood Association newsletter. She was recently accepted as a member of the Professional Writers Association of Canada.
Helen is passionate about heritage preservation, devoting the 30 years to the cause. She is a natural leader, rising to the presidency of most boards that she has served on. Her contribution to the local heritage scene was acknowledged in 2005 when the Victoria YM/YWCA named her a Woman of Distinction. For the last fifteen years she has been researching her family history and began working for clients in that field. She is now a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists.