Are precious details about the lives of your female ancestors hidden in old family photographs?  Most of us have bins or boxes of treasured memories just waiting to be uncovered and shared.  Photo of my aunt, Sister Mary Camilla Alzo  As a long-time genealogist, I have been researching the maternal lines in my family tree for more than 30 years. I wrote my book, Three Slovak Women as a tribute to my maternal grandmother and mother. Along the way I accumulated quite the collection of photographs, documents, and memorabilia. Since 2019, I have been on a mission to sort, s ..read more

 In March 2010, I launched a series of 31 blogging prompts for celebrating and honoring the "fearless females" in our family trees. Many bloggers participated and I was asked if I planned on running them again. I'm happy to say that this series is still going strong and is back for a 12th year. Fearless Females Badge courtesy of Denise Levenick with edits by Lisa A. Alzo So, to mark National Women's History Month (beginning Tuesday, March 1), I'm listing the 31 prompts below.  Also, you can download the free badge above to use on your blog to indicate your parti ..read more

Just another New Year's Eve, or so the song goes. Time to bid farewell to 2021! To be honest, the past year was a blur for me. I kept busy with various writing and editing projects, webinars, and virtual conferences. I also finished NaNoWriMo. I did not prepare a full tally of number of presentations, articles, etc., but I prefer to focus on quality, not quantity, and I can honestly say my work this year was both interesting and fulfilling.  Like so many others, I experienced loss. Two beloved relatives died as a result of COVID-19.  Both lovely women, gone way too soon!  On ..read more

If  improving your genealogy and/or writing skills is on your list of educational goals for the coming year, then check out the Black Friday Sale at Research Write Connect! Whether you are a beginner who wants to explore family history, understand DNA testing and specific record sets, or an experienced researcher hoping to write your family history, or memoir, then take advantage of our Black Friday Sale and save 50% on all classes and 1:1 Coaching services at Research, Write, Connect through Tuesday, 30 November 2021!  (Note: Offer is not valid on past purchase ..read more

Fall is my favorite time of year and it looks like it will be one of the busiest in terms of online seminars and webinars.  Here is a quick list of my upcoming virtual appearances. September 18th - Jacksonville Genealogical Society (Webinar) "No Easy Button: Using Immersion Genealogy to Understand Your Ancestors - 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time. [WEBINAR COMPLETED] 21st - Santa Clara County Historical and Genealogical Society (Webinar) "Telling the Stories of Your Female Immigrant Ancestors - 6:30 - 8:30 pm Pacific Time. Click here for more information. 25th - Host for webin ..read more

Registration is now open for a special webinar "Slovak Soul: The spiritual journey of the small nation with the big heart" which will be presented by Renata Calfa on Saturday, 25 September 2021, 11:00 a.m. EDT/ 10:00 a.m. CDT / 8:00 a.m. PDT. Webinar Details Presentation Title: "Slovak Soul: The spiritual journey of the small nation with the big heart"  Hosted by Lisa Alzo and presented by Renata Calfa Date: Saturday, 25 September 2021 Time: 11:00 a.m. EDT/ 10:00 a.m. CDT / 8:00 a.m. PDT. Due to webinar length, the presentation is pre-recorded. Q&A will be live. Price: $9 ..read more

Today The Accidental Genealogist turns 15! Fifteen years is a fairly long time to spend on an activity and I have enjoyed using this platform to share my experiences as a genealogist and writer.  When I shared my first post "Welcome to My Blog" on June 28, 2006, I really did not know what to expect. I wondered if anyone would read what I shared and certainly did not anticipate I would still be blogging all these years later. My second blog post (2 July 2006) detailed why I decided to name my blog “The Accidental Genealogist.” I wrote: “Here I’ll share my thoughts, experiences, p ..read more

[This post was written by my cousin, Renata C. in loving memory of her mum, Emilia who recently passed away.] [Renata C. and Emilia ] My Dear Mum Emilia, whom everyone called Milka, She was a bubbly, funny, strong, kind, an amazing cook, a fantastic hostess, a great singer, with endless compassion for everyone. Gosh, I miss you Mum… My mum’s life wasn’t an easy one. Her father abandoned the family when she was just three years old. Grandma never remarried, and had to look after two girls all alone. Moving into a town, having only few acquaintances here and there, sisters relied on e ..read more

In March 2010, I launched a series of 31 blogging prompts for celebrating and honoring the "fearless females" in our family trees. Many bloggers participated and I was asked if I planned on running them again. I'm happy to say that this series is still going strong and is back for another year (the 11th). Fearless Females Badge courtesy of Denise Levenick with edits by Lisa A. Alzo So, to mark National Women's History Month (beginning Monday, March 1), I'm listing the 31 prompts below.  Also, you can download the free badge above to use on your blog to indicate your participati ..read more

 I realize I am stating the obvious when I say I am so happy that this is the final day of 2020!  What a year it has been. Like everyone else, I saw life as I knew it change due to COVID-19. After March 6th I ceased all of my travel as in-person conferences/events were canceled. Hunkering down at home, I had to make new plans for replacing lost income and adjust to things I had not done before, such as ordering groceries online and switching to mostly virtual meetings and appointments.  In previous end-of-the-year blog posts, I would reflect on my personal or pr ..read more