Fellowship of Brethren Genealogists
Organized: 1966 Sponsored by the Historical Committee - Church of the Brethren
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Fellowship of Brethren Genealogists Organized: 1966 Sponsored by the Historical Committee - Church of the Brethren |
Annual Meeting
The annual meeting of the Fellowship of Brethren Genealogists is open to all who wish to attend. The meeting is held during the Church of the Brethren's Annual Conference. It starts with a short business session and every even year, an election for a Vice-President, who will then succeed the President. The remainder of the scheduled meeting time is given to a presentation on a genealogical subject by a guest speaker. Here are the 2015 Minutes.
The next meeting will be 4:00 to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday 28 June 2017 at the DeVos Convention Center in Grand Rapids MI. The program will be "A Renewed Vision for Brethren Roots," a powerpoint presentation by the journal's newly appointed editor, D. B. (Dave) Eller, reflecting on the mission, challenges, and opportunities for publishing genealogical and historical material related to the Brethren movement. Announcements of the meeting are posted on the Brethren list, announced on the Fellowship's Facebook page, and noted in the Quarterly Journal. Information about the Annual Conference, with which the Fellowship's meeting is associated, can be found at the Church of the Brethren's official site, Brethren.Org.
Informal meetings among Fellowship members and interested church and family historians take place at the Fellowship's exhibit booth throughout the week in the Annual Conference exhibit hall. Following is a selective Review of some recent annual meetings followed by a Dates and Location List of the Fellowship's annual meetings and those scheduled in the near future.
Selective Review of Annual Meetings
2013 FOBG Meeting
The 2013 annual business meeting of the Fellowship of Brethren Genealogists was called to order at noon Monday 01 July 2013 in Room 202 of the Charlotte Convention Center in Charlotte, North Carolina. Tom Crago chaired the meeting, reading the Minutes of last year's meeting, giving a very complete Treasurer's Report, and positive report on membership increases. Gerald Rhoades was elected Vice President and the position of Treasurer remains open. A discussion of the First Brethren Families Project (FBFP) explained procedures, costs, the Verification Committee, and its reorganization.
Tom presented his view of the past and future for the Fellowship in his address, "Re-Focusing the FOBG for the Future." A period of questions and answers completed the program before adjournment.
Video of the meeting is again posted on the Fellowship's Facebook page.
The Fellowship had a display at a booth in the Exhibit Hall in the Charlotte Convention Center with back issues of the Newsletter and Journal. Also, brochures from the Historical Committee, the Brethren Heritage Center, and the South Central Indiana District Historical Committee, advertisements for a European Tour, and the Nigerian published biography of Rev. Filibus Kumba Gwama, all of which were being freely distributed.
The new Membership Directory was distributed to FOBG members attending conference. (Copies were to be mailed to other members after conference). Also available was the CD Bundle, a scan of the first twelve years of the FOBG Newsletter on two compact disks, and which includes the printed two part Surname Index 1969-1980. The first two issues of Brethren Roots already published this year were available for new members.
Work was done in the exhibit booth by members of the Verification Committee on recent applications for the First Brethren Families Project (FBFP).
2012 FOBG Meeting
The Fellowship's 2012 meeting was held at 4:00 Saturday afternoon July 7th, in Room 126 of America's Center in St. Louis MO. The meeting was opened by the FOBG President, Becky Young, who chaired the meeting. The business session discussed the membership and the treasurer's report. Ron and Bert McAdams are retiring as membership services coordinator and treasurer. They explained their responsibilities for anyone wanting to volunteer to fill these positions. Tom Crago will become membership secretary and treasurer. The position of vice-president remains open. Other subjects mentioned were the Brethren Digital Archives, the Membership Directory, storage of back issues, and tax-exempt status for the FOBG.
Tom Crago had two presentations. He explained the proposal of a 'First Families' initiative, in which the Fellowship would recognize those members who could trace their heritage back to First Century Brethren, 1708-1807, Second Century Brethren, 1808-1907, or Third Century Brethren, 1908-2007. His second presentation was a clear, understandable, and interesting explanation of "Genealogy and Genetics," how DNA can be used in genealogical research. Using his own surname as the example, he showed how the traditional approach to family history research can be supplemented by genetic testing. Video of the meeting is again posted on the Fellowship's Facebook page.
The Fellowship maintained a booth in the Exhibit Hall in the St. Louis convention center displaying back issues of the Newsletter and Journal and brochures from the Historical Committee.
The Fellowship's booth in the Exhibit Hall in Grand Rapids attracted new members who subscribed to the quarterly journal and provided a convenience to current members to renew their memberships. Back issues of the periodical were available for perusal and photocopying of pages of particular interest was done.
An informative thirty-two minute video, Widow Pence's Farm, was available for viewing at the booth
2011 FOBG Meeting
![[The 2010 Annual Meeting]](images/2010meeting360.jpg)
![[The 2010 Annual Meeting]](images/2010exhibit360.jpg)
The Fellowship's 2011 meeting was held at 3:00 Saturday afternoon July 2nd, in Grand Vallley Overlook E of DeVos Place in Grand Rapids MI. The meeting was opened by Ron McAdams, who chaired the meeting. Emmert Bittinger, our invited speaker, was unable to attend because of health reasons, but sent a twenty-seven minute video of his presentation.
Larry Heisey discussed the status of the project of the Brethren Digital Archives and the need for immediate help by volunteers to proofread the searchable digital imaging of all Brethren periodicals from 1851 to 2000. Brochures about this project can be obtained from the Brethren Heritage Center, 428 N Wolf Creek St, Suite H1, Brookville, OH 45309 or by writing using their e-mail address of: bda@brethrendigitalarchives.org and checking their website at: www.brethrendigitalarchives.org.
A five part video of the meeting is posted on the Fellowship's Facebook page. [One fun part is added to include an answer to a question.]
The Fellowship's booth in the Exhibit Hall in Grand Rapids attracted new members who subscribed to the quarterly journal and provided a convenience to current members to renew their memberships. Back issues of the periodical were available for perusal and photocopying of pages of particular interest was done. An informative thirty-two minute video, Widow Pence's Farm, was available for viewing at the booth.
2010 FOBG Meeting
The Fellowship's 2010 meeting was held at 3:30 Monday afternoon July 5th, in Room 331 of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh PA. The well-attended meeting was introduced to our new journal editor, Bonita Rogers, by Ron McAdams, who chaired the meeting. Merle Rummel, the invited speaker showed an indepth Power Point presentation on the early Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana churches, not only identifing them but tracing the associated families' migration into the area and also their movement out of the churches. He included the theological context and ecclesiastical history of the covered periods by discussing the universalist, pietist and anabaptist beliefs of key individuals. Links to the online version will be provided to the cob-net.org site after Merle sends his presentation materials and are posted by Ron Gordon.
An overly clipped Video of most of Merle Rummel's presentation is posted on the Fellowship's Facebook page.
The Fellowship had a booth in the Exhibit Hall at Pittsburgh. It attracted new members and was a convenience to current members to renew their memberships. Free copies of a nicely bound family history, HYLTON GENEALOGY From Castle to Cottage Hilton Hylton Hilton by Hazel S. Moore and a supplement compiled by Wanda Hylton Almgren were available at the table.
2008 FOBG Meeting
This year's meeting was held on Saturday the 12th of July 2008 at 1:00 p.m. in the Dominion Room of the Marriott Hotel in Richmond Virginia.
Informal meetings among Fellowship members and interested church and family historians took place at the Fellowship's exhibit booth throughout the week in the Annual Conference exhibit hall from Saturday 12 July 2008 through Tuesday evening 15 July 2008.
2007 FOBG Meeting
The annual meeting for 2007 was scheduled for 1:00 to 3:00pm Saturday 30 June 2007 in the Cleveland Convention Center. Twenty interested individuals were in attendance. Ron McAdams introduced our new President Becky Young Hoatland, who then chaired the meeting. Bert McAdams gave the financial report which was accepted. Thomas Liby was elected Vice-President. After the business meeting A. Wayne Webb presented an article on Burial Records of Elder Joseph Myer, discussed his proposed Brethren Newspaper Initiative to solicit funds to digitize old periodicals, and offered for sale his republication of the History of the Church of the Brethren Southern Ohio District. Numerous small group conversations filled the remainder of the time.
[No photo was taken of the 2007 business meeting.]
The Fellowship did not have an exhibit booth at the Cleveland Conference due to financial reasons.
List of Annual Meetings
25 June 1965 Ocean Grove NJ 24 June 1966 Louisville KY 22 June 1967 Eugene OR 28 June 1968 Ocean Grove NJ 27 June 1969 Louisville KY 26 June 1970 Lincoln NE 25 June 1971 St Petersburg FL 30 June 1972 Cincinnati OH 27 June 1973 Fresno CA 26 June 1974 Roanoke VA 26 June 1975 Dayton OH 01 July 1976 Wichita KS 25 June 1977 Richmond VA 21 June 1979 Indianapolis IN 05 July 1980 Seattle WA 25 June 1981 Indianapolis IN 21 July 1982 Wichita KS 29 June 1983 Baltimore MD 28 June 1984 Carbondale IL 04 July 1985 Phoenix AZ 27 June 1986 Norfolk VA 02 July 1987 Cincinnati OH 29 June 1988 St Louis MO 09 July 1989 Orlando FL 06 July 1990 Milwaukee WI 04 July 1991 Portland OR 02 July 1992 Richmond VA 24 June 1993 Indianapolis IN 20 June 1994 Wichita KS 29 June 1995 Charlotte NC 04 July 1996 Cincinnati OH 04 July 1997 Long Beach CA 03 July 1998 Orlando FL 02 July 1999 Milwaukee WI 17 July 2000 Kansas City MO 30 June 2001 Baltimore MD 29 June 2002 Louisville KY 05 July 2003 Boise ID 03 July 2004 Charleston WV 02 July 2005 Peoria IL 01 July 2006 Des Moines IA 30 June 2007 Cleveland OH 12 July 2008 Richmond VA 04 July 2009 San Diego CA 03 July 2010 Pittsburgh, PA 02 July 2011 Grand Rapids MI 07 July 2012 St. Louis MO 29 June 2013 Charlotte NC 28 June 2014 Columbus OH 11 July 2015 Tampa FL 02 July 2016 Greensboro NC
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