Sunday, May 19th at 11AM
Holocaust Memorial Center

With local genealogist Diane Oslund

Researching in Detroit and Wayne County (MI) can be difficult, time consuming and overwhelming. This presentation gives tips on what can be done before you make the trip, where to go or if you need to go there at all. Find suggestions on what’s the best way to find what you seek.

Diane is a professional genealogist and speaker who began researching her own family lines many moons ago and professionally for more then 15 years. She is a past president and newsletter editor for the Ford Genealogy Club.

Diane has published the The Cryderman Family of North America. Diane provided much of the research for the privately published history of the Roberson family in Michigan. Diane & Karen Krugman transcribed and published Ford Family Cemetery which includes the final resting place of the auto manufacturer Henry Ford. She has also assisted the Lenawee County Family Researchers in transcribing cemeteries in that county.

Tuesday, April 9th at 8pm
Berman Center for the Performing Arts
West Bloomfield Jewish Community Center

JGSMI is proud to co-sponsor this film at the
15th Annual Lenore Marwil Jewish Film Festival!

What begins with the emptying out of a flat develops into a riveting adventure, involving unexpected national interests, a friendship that crosses enemy lines, and deeply repressed family emotions.

Arnon Goldfinger uncovers more than an apartment full of belongings when he begins to clean out his late grandmother’s flat in Tel Aviv. What unfolds is a history full of profoundly surprising stories and relationships.

“The Flat” is a documentary about a single family but also a community, secrets and the seemingly incomprehensible choices people make.

• Winner Best Editing, Documentary Feature Tribeca Rim Festival
• Winner Best Documentary Bavarian Film Awards
• Winner Best Documentary Awards of the Israeli Rim Academy

Following the film, please join us for a discussion with invited professors from Oakland University.

All Attendees: $10.00

We regret to inform you that for various personal reasons, Gil Marks is unable to make it to the United States in time for our annual meeting. Irwin Cohen, aka Mr. Baseball, has graciously agreed to take his place. If you are dissatisfied in any way and would like a refund, please contact Adina Lipsitz at president@jgsmi.org. Thank you for your understanding.

Sunday, June 16, 2013, 11:00 AM
Adat Shalom Synagogue – The Glass Room
$35 per person
RSVP required by Sunday, June 9

This is a glatt kosher event supervised by the Council of Orthodox Rabbis of Greater Detroit.

Little Known Facts of Jewish History – with Irwin Cohen

Irwin Cohen will entertain and delight as he reveals little-known facts of Jewish history, from his latest book, Jewish History in the time of Baseballs Jews: Life on Both Sides of the Ocean:

• The politician who went on to be president kept secret the hundreds of Jews he smuggled into the United States
• The mayor of New York’s brother-in-law and nephew were murdered by the Nazis
• The Jewish player who targeted Hitler’s top atomic scientist
• Sammy Cohen changed his name and had a 10-year career as a player
• The Jewish player who suffered a heart attack during a game and died shortly after
• The pitcher who was scheduled to make his first major league start, but was called home to sit shiva
• Which players became synagogue presidents

Mr. Cohen will have copies of his book on hand for purchase.

Proposed Slate

President: Adina Lipsitz
VP, Programming: Alexandra Goldberg
VP, Membership (Acting): Diane Freilich
VP, Publicity: David Goldis
Recording Secretary: Esther Allweiss Ingber
Corresponding Scretary: Diane Freilich
Treasurer: Irwin S. Alpern

Irwin Cohen is a nationally recognized baseball historian and lectures frequently on Detroit history, Detroit baseball, and the Jews of Detroit. He has authored several history books, including Echoes of Detroit: A 300-Year History. He worked as a photojournalist for national baseball publications, which led to interviewing numerous celebrity superstars including Hank Greenberg. Cohen also worked in the front office of the Detroit Tigers and earned a 1984 World Series ring. He is a member of the Jewish Historical Society of Michigan, which recently presented him with its 2013 Leonard N. Simons History Award, as well as the Society for American Baseball Research.

Sunday, March 3, 2013 at 11 AM
at the Holocaust Memorial Center

Three JGSMI members will discuss their recent projects and success stories with attendees. There will be time for Q&A.

Michelle Gettleson
Michelle will speak on three topics: 1) her brick wall problem regarding her paternal grandfather’s immigration to Canada and then to the United States in 1906; 2) an extended family tree for her paternal grandmother’s side of the family; and 3) her frequent visits to the Salt Lake Family History Library.

Adina Lipsitz
Adina will discuss the KehilaLinks site and Facebook group she and co-coordinator Joshua Perlman have set up for the Belarussian town of Stolin. It will not be a technical talk, but instead will center around connections that have been made with other Stoliners, including Chassidim.

Stephanie Newman
Stephanie will discuss two topics: 1) How to order records from the National Archives and Records Administration, and 2) Ancestry.com’s family tree feature and the difference between private and public trees.

Members: Free
Guests: $5.00

Sunday, January 13, 2013 at 11 AM
Holocaust Memorial Center
With special guest Elise Friedman

Mystified by genealogical DNA testing? Confused by the many test options? Join us for an info-packed presentation where you’ll learn about the three core genealogical DNA tests offered by Family Tree DNA, the basic genetics behind them, how to determine which test is best for you, what the results look like, and how to use those results to identify genealogical connections.

This event will be conducted via webinar. Refreshments will be served.

Elise Friedman is a professional genealogist, specializing in Jewish genealogy, genetic genealogy, and technology. She has given lectures and workshops at a variety of venues, from local genealogy and community meetings to international Jewish genealogy conferences. She has researched her own family history for more than 10 years, and has roots in Belarus, Russia, Poland and Ukraine (formerly Galicia).

Ms. Friedman is very active in the field of genetic genealogy, where she works as a consultant for Family Tree DNA, volunteers as JewishGen’s DNA Projects Coordinator, serves as volunteer administrator for several DNA projects, and co-authored a genetic genealogy case study that was published in the AVOTAYNU and FORUM genealogy journals.

Ms. Friedman is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists, Genealogical Speakers Guild and the International Society of Genetic Genealogy. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from The Pennsylvania State University, and is a former Information Technology professional.

Tuesday, December 18, 2012 from 6-8 PM
Burton Historical Collection
Detroit Public Library
5201 Woodward Avenue, Detroit, MI 48202

Photo © SNWEB.ORG Photography, LLC

Created on the foundation of Clarence M. Burton’s private library, the Burton Historical Collection (BHC) incorporates original documents, genealogical materials, a Rare Book Collection, the Ernie Harwell Sports Collection, and a sizable image collection. Read more about the Collection and its holdings here.

Mark Bowden from the Burton will give us a brief orientation and tour at 6 PM, and we can stay until closing time, about 7:45 PM.

• Car pooling:
  Meet at the Plaza Deli at 5:15 PM
  Northwestern and 12 Mile
• Not car pooling:
  Drive down on your own
  Meet at the Burton Collection at 6 PM
  DPL parking: free in the employee parking lot after 6 PM (the gates may be up earlier, around 5:30 PM);

The tour is free for members of either JGSMI or JHSMI; $5 for non-members.

Contact: Jim Grey (work 248-540-9070; home 248-553-4999; cell 248-739-9070; email gentrex@aol.com or GreyCo@aol.com)

Sunday, November 4, 2012 at 11 AM, at the Holocaust Memorial Center

With special guest Ceil Wendt Jensen

Straight from the Motor City, the lecture “Working the Line” covers the recruitment, training, and employment records as well as archives maintained by automakers and unions. What was life like for an assembly line worker at the plants during the auto makers’ heyday and what types of records were generated? Hand in hand with plant life was the formation and negotiations of the unions such as the UAW, AFL-CIO. This lecture covers records and publications relevant to autoworkers and their unions.

Ceil Wendt Jensen, Certified Genealogist and Polonia Americana Research Institute Director, presents practical examples and suggestions on how to use records, databases, and archives to start or advance your genealogy research. She dispels the myth that records were destroyed during the World Wars and that language barriers make European research difficult. A lavishly illustrated workbook, Sto Lat: A Modern Guide for Polish Genealogy, offers a plan for researching at least one hundred years of family records, and is a compilation of techniques developed over thirty years of research and teaching. These are tried and true techniques used for clients and with patrons at the Bloomfield Hills Family History Center. Both traditional and digital research techniques are presented. Common research questions are answered and suggestions are offered to help novice and advanced researchers find ancestors in North America and Poland.

Friday, November 16, 2012 at 10am, Jewish Book Fair, West Bloomfield JCC

JGSMI is proud to co-sponsor the author, Dr. Harry Ostrer, at the annual JCC Jewish Book Fair

Who are the Jews? A race? A people? Both Jews and gentiles have tried to pinpoint a collective Jewish identity through physical anthropology and genetics.

Medical geneticist Harry Ostrer explores the history of these efforts. Bringing together threads from Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and India, this unique work situates Jews in the grand scheme of genetic analysis.

Dr. Harry Ostrer is a professor of Pathology and Genetics at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and director of Genetic and Genomic Testing at Montefiore Medical Center. He previously served as director of Human Genetics at New York University School of Medicine.

Sunday, December 2, 2012 at 11 AM, at the Holocaust Memorial Center

100 Voices: A Journey Home is a compelling and moving musical documentary that uniquely tells the history of Jewish culture in Poland. It highlights the current resurgence of Jewish culture through the personal reflections and musical selections of a group of cantors and acclaimed composer Charles Fox (“Killing Me Softly”, “I Got A Name” and many more) who made an important historical mission to the birthplace of Cantorial music. The documentary will give generations the opportunity to learn about and re-embrace the Jewish culture that produced one of the most artistic and educated societies that once flourished in Europe. Above all, the film celebrates the resilience and the power of Jewish life, while telling the story of two peoples who shared intertwined cultures.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNX2v8qvZv8

Running time 91 minutes

Sunday, February 3, 2013, at 11 AM at the Holocaust Memorial Center

Ellen Cassedy set off into the Jewish heartland of Lithuania to study Yiddish and connect with her Jewish forebears. But on the brink of her trip, her uncle revealed something she’d never suspected, and what had begun as a personal quest expanded into a larger exploration. Probing the terrain of memory and moral dilemmas, Ms. Cassedy shares the fascinating story of how a genealogical journey to the Old World changed her view of the past, changed her view of the future, and changed her. She takes us to the archives and kitchen tables where her family history revealed its confounding secrets, to the Vilnius Yiddish Institute, to complex commemorative sites, and to encounters with the leaders of Jewish education efforts in Lithuania today, giving us an close-up view of how a post-Holocaust nation explores its own “Jewish family history.” Jewish Book World calls her book “brilliantly balanced, totally engaging, and constantly penetrating.”

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtVBSP-jfDo

Ellen Cassedy, the author of We Are Here: Memories of the Lithuanian Holocaust (Univ. of Nebraska Press), has explored both her own family history and Lithuania’s complex 20th Century history for ten years. She is a former columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News whose articles, essays, and translations have appeared in Hadassah, The Jewish Forward, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, and other publications. She has just been awarded the 2012 Translation Prize by the National Yiddish Book Center, with her colleague Yermiyahu Ahron Taub. Ms. Cassedy delivered the luncheon lecture to the Litvak SIG at the IAJGS conference in Washington, D.C., and has spoken or will speak to Jewish Genealogy Societies in New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., San Diego, Portland, and Cleveland, and to congregations, universities, and Jewish and Lithuanian community gatherings throughout the country. She lives in the Washington, D.C. area.