On January 12th, Memoir Writing Meets Genealogy in River Forest

Memoir writing is on the rise, not only among luminaries whose reflections are dotting the best-seller lists but everyday people who recognize they have a distinctive and important story to share.

Likewise, fascination with genealogy — the study of one’s own family lineage — has gone mainstream, building on the foundation laid by industry titan Ancestry.com and buoyed by relative newcomers such as 23AndMe.com.

Eager to help the community’s seniors tap into the joy that comes from blending these two emerging trends, River Forest Township’s leadership has developed a three-part series that culminates on Sunday, January 12th.

From 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at River Forest Public Library, 735 Lathrop Ave., genealogist Charlie Thomas will lead “Narrative Genealogy: Where Memoir Writing Meets Genealogy.” The program is open to all, whether from River Forest Township or elsewhere. Also, organizers emphasize that it is not necessary to have attended the earlier sessions to benefit from this one.

“Everyone has a story to tell,” said River Forest Township Supervisor Carla Sloan. “We want to share this valuable information with our seniors so they can creatively pass their unique family stories on to future generations.”

At the January event, Thomas will show attendees, in “real time,” how to navigate the treasure trove of electronic sites, for both history (like newspaper archives) and genealogy. He will illustrate how much that extra research can inform and add to a standard memoir writing effort.

Building on earlier lessons taught by memoir writing instructor Cathaleen Roach, Thomas will take a “sample family memory” to share about the many web sites available to flesh out that memory’s historical detail and context.

A retired attorney, Thomas has developed expertise in the genealogy field through his personal experience. After the death of a grandparent in the late 1980s, Thomas became the custodian of many multi-generational family effects. Since then, he has delved deeper into his own ancestral history and begun leading workshops to help others do the same.

Thomas created the workshop to reduce the stress and to put the fun back into researching family history, which can sometimes become overwhelming. Thomas likened the process of research to “opening a fire hydrant—how do I drink from it?”

“You can get so lost in the research that you can quickly forget what generation you’re in as you research,” he added. “There are so many great resources, so it’s important to learn how to navigate it all.”

Family reunions can often spark research—or even come as a result of genealogical digging, noted River Forest Township Clerk Abby Schmelling, who also has led Township sessions helping others navigate their family histories. “These reunions open doors,” she said. “We want to help people avoid the regret of `If I had only known to ask my grandparents.’ That’s what we hear a lot.”

The idea for combining genealogy and memoir writing in a workshop series came about as senior community members expressed great interest in both endeavors, with each pursuit informing and illuminating the other.

“I have not seen a marriage of the historical and genealogy training that Charlie provides with the memoir work we have done,” noted Roach, who also serves as the River Forest Township senior outreach coordinator. “We are excited to link the cultural zeitgeist for exploring our roots with the strong enthusiasm that exists for memoir writing.”

Some of the most popular Township Senior programming has consisted of genealogy and memoir workshops, said Roach. In November, for the second program in the series, she led a memoir workshop that followed up on a September program by Barbara Hoffbeck Scoblic, author of Lost Without the River: A Memoir.

“Each time I’ve taught this workshop, people express delight and joy,” said Roach. “We dig out forgotten memories and flesh them out with wonderful sensory detail. I think people love this work so much because it is part of their search for identity.”

To learn more about programs or services provided by River Forest Township, please call 708-366-2029 or visit www.RiverForestTownship.org. On Facebook: www.facebook.com/RiverForestTownship; on Twitter: www.twitter.com/RFTownship.

The River Forest Public Library is online at www.rflib.org, and can be reached at 708-366-5205.

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RiverForestPublicLibrary