Travel Through Time with the NGS—and GGRWHC!
National Genealogical Society Convention in Grand Rapids
For four exciting days in May, the Western Michigan Genealogical Society will act as hosts for the annual Family History Conference, the first one to be held in Michigan. The conference brings experts from all over the U.S. and beyond, tracking the past with 175 sessions designed to advance your knowledge about techniques and resources for digging deeper into the past.

Wednesday - Saturday, May 2 - 5, 2018
Three opportunities for GR residents
Society Night (Free and open to the public)
Exhibit Hall (Free and open to the public)
Sessions ( Register for all or part of the conference)
Details below, including GGRWHC's session
Society Night
Free and open to the public
Wednesday, 2 May 2018, 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Center Concourse (on the second floor between DeVos Place and the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel)

Society Night is a great way to meet and visit with experts from varied historical and genealogical organizations from across Michigan and elsewhere who will not have booths in the Exhibit Hall. Representatives will answer questions about records and resources,and explain the benefits of membership. Some will have publications available for purchase.
The Greater Grand Rapids Women’s History Council will showcase its organization at the innovative Society Night exposition, joining over thirty societies like Detroit’s Fred Hart Williams Genealogical Society, specializing in African American genealogy, and the Society of Mayflower Descendants in Michigan.
Exhibit Hall
Free and open to the public
DeVos Place Convention Center, Exhibit Hall C

Games, talks, giveaways, special events, book signings, press events, and more will make for an exciting environment for investigating cutting-edge goods and services. Even tutorials provided within exhibitor spaces will be free and open to the public over the more than 30 hours of exhibit time offered over four days.

Wednesday, 2 May: 9:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. / Thursday, 3 May: 9:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Friday, 4 May: 9:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m. / Saturday, 5 May: 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.

See the list of exhibitors in the Program beginning on page 51
GGRWHC’s Session
Bringing Your Female Ancestors to Life with Archival Resources
Saturday, 5 May, 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
By highlighting women’s history holdings at the Grand Rapids Public Library and presenting GGRWHC as a model for collecting women’s history, our NGS session will try to persuade NGS genealogists to help uncover American women’s history still out there in hiding and to build historical resources that could in turn enable more sophisticated genealogical searching!

In particular, we will show off the GRPL’s brand-new, fully searchable database featuring Grand Rapids women’s 23,000 World War I registration cards, part of the most comprehensive census of American women ever made--and the least known.

For fuller description see the blog entry
Thank you
to many friends of women's history who have contributed in 2018
to the GGRWHC so we can continue to "uncover, preserve, and celebrate the rich history of women in our community."
If you have not yet renewed your support of GGRWHC for 2018 or joined as a brand-new supporter, click below!
GGRWHC |   www.ggrwhc.org   | 616-574-7307
Hats off to the historical women who've shaped West Michigan!
Please take a moment to forward this message to others you know who may be interested in women's history. If you've received this message as a forward, consider joining our mailing list in order to receive future updates about programming.

Thank you for your interest in preserving and celebrating the history of the many phenomenal women who've helped to shape West Michigan!  If you aren't already a supporter of the Greater Grand Rapids Women's History Council, consider investing in our work as a volunteer or with an annual donation .  Visit our  website  for more information and the ability to donate online.