Thursday, February 5, 2026 Jennifer Patterson Dondero Every genealogist can aspire to do great genealogy. But how do you find the time for all those “things” you’ve been told you should be doing: planning, logging, note-taking, analyzing, and reporting? There’s one shortcut you need and it’s so easy to get started! Click Here to Sign-up Jennifer Patterson Dondero has been an avid genealogist for over 30 years, and a professional genealogist since 2005. Her specialties include southern research, DNA, and technology for genealogy. She lives with her husband and two children in Georgia, where she enjoys researching, writing fiction and nonfiction, reading mystery novels, and clogging. Click Here to See All of Our 2026 Classes! Visit our blog for great tips & hints exploring your family story! HQRL.com /Classes & Events / Contact

Heritage Quest Research Library | 2102 East Main Ave Suite 105 | Puyallup, WA 98372 US

Here is the information for the first six of our Winter 2026 virtual classes

Happy New Year!

Kenneth V. Peterson

Education Coordinator

Fiske Genealogical Library

https://fiskelibrary.org

Wednesday, January 7

10:00 am to 11:15 am Pacific Time – Fiske Genealogical Library, Seattle (Virtual Class)

Travel Your Tree: Walking in Your Ancestors’ Footsteps

Presented by Lisa Vogele

For links to join the meeting and get class notes, select https://fiskelibrary.org

Explore the world of family history travel beyond the confines of television shows like

Finding Your Roots. Discover how you can personally trace your ancestors’ paths,

whether it’s visiting battlefields where your forebears fought, exploring ancestral

villages, or connecting with distant relatives. Join us to uncover expert tips for

planning your journey and forging meaningful connections along the way.

Wednesday, January 14    

10:00 am to 11:15 am Pacific Time – Fiske Genealogical Library, Seattle (Virtual Class)

How to Leave Your Genealogy

Presented by Lisa S. Gorell

For links to join the meeting and get class notes, select https://fiskelibrary.org

What will happen to all your genealogy research, both in paper form or as digital files, when you pass on? You might have a relative that will continue the research, or you might be able to donate it to a library or an historical society. Now is the time to make a plan to increase the chance that your work is saved for future generations.

Wednesday, January 21    

10:00 am to 11:15 am Pacific Time – Fiske Genealogical Library, Seattle (Virtual Class)

Organizing for Genealogy

Presented by Susan McKee

For links to join the meeting and get class notes, select https://fiskelibrary.org

Successful organization starts with organizing ourselves. Over the course of four sessions we will look at why and how we research, building the foundation of an effective personal organizational system. Questions about who, what, where, and when we research clarify how best to apply our time, energy, and resources. This enables us to create and maintain a system of organization that best supports our needs as we engage in genealogical research.

Wednesday, January 28    

10:00 am to 11:15 am Pacific Time – Fiske Genealogical Library, Seattle (Virtual Class)

AI for Genealogy Research – Best Practices

Presented by Claire Smith

For links to join the meeting and get class notes, select https://fiskelibrary.org

Find out how to use powerful new AI tools to work more effectively on your genealogy research without compromising the quality of your work. Learn how to use AI for cross-document querying, indexing, and analysis, translating / transcribing documents, enhancing images and photos, and more.

Wednesday, February 4    

10:00 am to 11:15 am Pacific Time – Fiske Genealogical Library, Seattle (Virtual Class)

Where Does This Go? Organizing Your Genealogy Gems

Presented by Sara Cochran

For links to join the meeting and get class notes, select https://fiskelibrary.org

Whether you’re just starting to climb the family tree or you’re an experienced researcher, come learn practical tips to organize your genealogy treasures and create an easy-to-maintain system that lasts!

Wednesday, February 11  

10:00 am to 11:15 am Pacific Time – Fiske Genealogical Library, Seattle (Virtual Class)

Browsing & Clustering with MyHeritage DNA Tools

Presented by Beth Swartz

For links to join the meeting and get class notes, select https://fiskelibrary.org

Examine how the DNA Tools in MyHeritage currently work, in preparation for the new features coming in RootsTech 2026.

January 21, 20266:00 p.m. – 7:15 p.m. ET

The live broadcast will be recorded; registrants will receive a link to the video post-event.

$15

10% Member Discount

Register Now

As we mark the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution, the celebrated historian Rick Atkinson will explore the people, passions, and battles that ignited and sustained the war. In conversation with Ryan J. Woods, he will also share insight on the process of researching and writing histories, including The Fate of the Day, the latest book in his Revolution Trilogy.  

“There is no better writer of narrative history than the Pulitzer Prize–winning Atkinson.” —The New York Times (Editors’ Choice)

Join us to hear from the celebrated American historian Rick Atkinson about his his career writing histories over three decades and his latest book, The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780. Atkinson’s previous prize-winning works brought to life our nation during World War II (the Liberation Trilogy) and in other 20th-century conflicts. Now, in this 250th anniversary year, he explores the American Revolution. This second installment in the Revolution Trilogy dramatizes the war’s middle years, during which, in Pennsylvania, George Washington pleads with Congress to deliver the money, men, and materiel; in Paris, Benjamin Franklin woos the French; and, across the English Channel, King George III finds that war waged an ocean away is ruinously expensive. Atkinson shares the details of epic battles fought at Brandywine, Saratoga, Monmouth, and Charleston, and a winter of misery at Valley Forge. Atkinson’s brilliant account of the lethal conflict between the Americans and the British offers deeply researched and spectacularly dramatic history.  Don’t miss hearing from this acclaimed historian featured in Ken Burns’ documentary “The American Revolution.”

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Rick Atkinson is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of seven previous works of history, including The Long Gray Line, the Liberation Trilogy (An Army at Dawn, The Day of Battle, and The Guns at Last Light), and The British Are Coming, the first volume of the Revolution Trilogy. He has won numerous awards, including Pulitzer Prizes for history and journalism. He was awarded American Ancestors’ Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.

Ryan J. Woods is President and CEO of American Ancestors. An educator and historian, he has his dedicated professional life to developing experiences that educate, inspire, and connect people through the exploration of history, heritage, and culture. Ryan has recruited more than 1 billion searchable records to AmericanAncestors.org and, most recently, overseen the launch of the 10 Million Names Project and our new national headquarters and visitor center including the Family Heritage Experience at 97 Newbury Street in Boston. Among many leadership roles, he serves as a commissioner for the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolution in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Explore the Exceptional Genealogy Classes at HQRL! Join us online via Zoom or in person at HQRL and connect with fellow genealogy enthusiasts who share your curiosity and drive—together, we can explore the fascinating world of family history! Classes Coming Up in January 2026! Using City (and Other) Directories in Your Research Thursday, January 8, 2026 Janice Sellers Directories were not only for cities. Many counties and rural areas had directories, as did locations in other countries. You can also find professional directories, social directories, and more. Learn what they contain and how they can be used to flesh out your family’s lives and track them through time.  Click Here to Sign-up Janice M. Sellers is a professional genealogist and international speaker whose grandparents told her she is related to actor Peter Sellers and to John of Gaunt, son of a king and father of a king. Unfortunately, they were wrong, but that’s why she has been researching her family for 50 years and now helps others finds the right pieces to fit their genealogical puzzles. She specializes in Jewish, Black, dual citizenship, and newspaper research. She has done research and appeared on camera for the television series The Dead Files. A New Strategy for Brick Walls Thursday, January 22, 2026 Kim Richardson Ever feel like you are engulfed by a pile of research? Do you ever think, “If I could just get organized, I could solve this mystery?” If so, this presentation is for you! This session explains why complex genealogy problems feel overwhelming and how to overcome it through a new way of organizing. Click Here to Sign-up Kim Richardson enjoys serving the genealogy community by coaching and enabling others to do their own research successfully. She assists other genealogists to accomplish their goals and helps clients solve genealogy mysteries. Kim created the Brick Wall Buster Cards to show others her secret to solving tough genealogy problems. She regularly writes for various genealogy society magazines and wrote the “Mississippi Research Guide” for Family Tree Magazine and researches for Finding Your Roots and Who Do You Think You Are? Click Here to See All of Our 2026 Classes!HQRL.com / Classes & Events / Contact

Use this link to join the meeting.

Ancestry is currently rolling out a full-text search feature on their site. Some users have been given access to it while it appears that most users are still waiting for access.

Similar to the full-text search on FamilySearch, this feature will allow users to search unindexed documents on their site. For those who have access now, the feature can be found under the “search” drop-down in the main menu. Keep an eye out for future announcements from Ancestry about this new feature.