Karen Spiegel Franklin is director of Family Research at the Leo Baeck Institute in New York City, and currently chairs the Memorial Museums Committee of the International Council of Museums.
She has served as president of IAJGS, co-chair of the Board of Governors of JewishGen, and chair of the Council of American Jewish Museums.
Karen is a member of the Advisory Board of the European Shoah Legacy Institute as a member of the Judaica and Jewish Cultural Property Committee. She is Vice President of the Obermayer German Jewish History Awards.
“The Obermayer German Jewish History Awards: A Resource for German Jewish Genealogists” (Tues-134), 9:00-10:15 A.M.
A new publication/research tool for German Jewish genealogists will soon be available: The Obermayer Awards (full title tba). The awards were established in 2000 to recognize individuals in Germany who have raised awareness of a once-vibrant Jewish history and culture in their communities. Their activities include cemetery and synagogue restoration, and publication of local histories.
In 2016 a book documenting activities of more than 50 of the awardees will be published. Searchable and available online at the Awards site and on the German Jewish Special Interest Group webpage (GerSIG), it will be of tremendous help to genealogists not only by providing information about newly-available and unpublished collections, and references to web sites and publications, but also by providing contacts to historians throughout Germany.
In this session, Karen will discuss the Obermayer Awards and their history, impact and significance, and how to access these resources. She will also provide information about how to nominate for the 2017 awards.
“DNA Leads an Adopted Daughter to her Birth Mother: Kelly’s Story” (Thurs-115), 10:30-11:45 A.M.
Kelly Moore was raised in Albany, New York. A Catholic child, she was told at an early age that she was adopted. In her mid-twenties, she started the search for her birth parents. A simple Family Tree DNA test yielded surprising results – she had many Jewish matches, and one extremely close match to Jon Stedman.
Kelly got in touch with Karen Franklin, the contact on Family Tree DNA. Jon had died five years earlier, and Karen and upgraded the DNA test results. Karen was able to provide Jon’s research tracing their German Jewish family history back to the mid-18th Century.
In this lecture, Karen and Kelly will describe the DNA analysis and matching methodology, which will be of interest to all genealogists interested in DNA issues, and share the story of Kelly’s reunion with her birth parents. [co-presented with Kelly Moore]
Topics: DNA research and genetics, Ethical considerations in genealogy