WVGS Classes/Workshops
WVGS offers a variety of classes from beginner to advanced to help you with your family history. Topics vary from year to year, but include genealogy research methods, record types, online resources, genealogy computer programs, technology aids, genetic genealogy, preserving memories and photos, and more.
Classes are usually held in the WVGS Library but some may be conducted virtually (see listing for each class below for location).
Registration with a credit or debit card using the “Add to Cart” buttons below is preferred. However, you may also register for classes with cash or check at our monthly membership meetings or at any time at the WVGS Library.
If you need to cancel after registering for a class, please send an email to classes@azwvgs.org. Please note that refunds may not be made if at least 24 hours advance notice is not received.
If the class you are interested in is sold out, please send an email to classes@azwvgs.org to be put on a waiting list.
We are always looking for new classes and instructors. If you are interested in teaching a class, please send email to classes@azwvgs.org.
We are offering a free Find Your Patriot Class
The class will give you tools to find an ancestor that was a Patriot in the Revolutionary War.
MYX and Match DNA - December 2023
Want to understand your Mom’s, your Dad’s and your X’s DNA? No, not your ex‐spouse, your X chromosome! We’ll dive into your maternal Mitochondrial (mtDNA), paternal Y‐DNA and the X chromosome in this class. You will need to have tested your mtDNA or YDNA of yourself or another person to get the most out of the class. The class curriculum emphasizes learning from listening, sharing, watching and hands on! You’ll have the chance to play with learning tools and the steps to research your DNA results. Best for those who have taken the DNA Kindergarten class.
Instructor: Bonnie Bossert
Friday, 12:30 - 3:30 p.m., December 15, 2023
In-person at WVGS Library
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 12
WVGS Computer & Website Tutorial - December 2023
This tutorial focuses on how to navigate the WVGS website and access the many resources available at WVGS including• the WVGS library catalog, • our periodical collection, the obituary index, and the surname register, • using the online store to purchase books, make donations, renew membership, or register for classes and the annual seminar, • keeping up with WVGS activities, policies, and publications such as Tidbits, • understanding the icons on the lab computers, and • accessing other genealogy sites including FamilySearch, My Heritage, and American Ancestors
Instructor: Lou McLean
Monday, 10:00 – 11:30 a.m., December 18, 2023
In-person at WVGS Library
This class is limited to 9 students.
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 1
WVGS Computer & Website Tutorial - January 2024
This tutorial focuses on how to navigate the WVGS website and access the many resources available at WVGS including• the WVGS library catalog, • our periodical collection, the obituary index, and the surname register, • using the online store to purchase books, make donations, renew membership, or register for classes and the annual seminar, • keeping up with WVGS activities, policies, and publications such as Tidbits, • understanding the icons on the lab computers, and • accessing other genealogy sites including FamilySearch, My Heritage, and American Ancestors
Instructor: Lou McLean
Monday, 10:00 – 11:30 a.m., January 15, 2024
In-person at WVGS Library (Computer Lab)
This class is limited to 9 students.
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 8
Family History Research in Salt Lake City - January 2024
This class is appropriate for those joining the 2024 WVGS Research Trip to Salt Lake City and anyone considering such a trip in the future. The class will offer the following: * An overview of the Family History Library and its resources so that you know what to expect.
* Information about what items to take.
* Tips on how to set objectives for your research.
* Suggestions about the homework you need to do before the trip.
* How the FamilySearch.org website can help in your trip preparation.
* Tips on how to organize your materials in order to attack the Library and maximize limited research time.
Instructor: Adrienne Haupt
Thursday, 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon, January 18, 2024
In-person at WVGS Library (Multipurpose Room)
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 17
Novice Genealogy - January 2024
A Basic Course for Beginning Family Research, with an introduction to census, vital records, church, probate, land, immigration, naturalization and military records with related papers to be found in each...What to look for and where to find it.
Instructor: Barbara Stenberg
Friday, 1:00 – 3:30 p.m., January 19, 2024
In-person at WVGS Library (Multipurpose Room)
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 19
Analyzing and Citing Sources - January 2024
Got a Brick Wall? It might be because you need to analyze more carefully the sources you already have. Select 2 source documents from your files and join us to explore:• Indexes, abstracts, transcripts, published, and original sources,
• The difference between sources, information, and evidence,
• How to get the most from each document, including clues for where to look next, and
• Why, when, and how to cite sources
Instructor: Connie Sheets
Saturday, 9:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., January 20, 2024
THIS CLASS WILL BE CONDUCTED VIRTUALLY. Registrants will receive the necessary link via e-mail about one week prior to the class.
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 16
DNA Kindergarten - January 2024
For those who are considering testing or have tested at any of the DNA testing
companies and are wondering where to start, this is a beginner’s class that even those who think they’ve figured it out will enjoy. The class curriculum emphasizes learning in different ways: visual, audial, tactile and theoretical. You’ll have the chance to play with learning tools, test your smarts and we might even have nap time! Bring your questions about those teeny pieces of DNA and how they get in your family tree.
Instructor: Bonnie Bossert
Monday, 12:00 - 4:00 p.m., January 29, 2024
In-person at WVGS Library (Multipurpose Room)
Please provide your phone number in the space below so we can contact you if there is a schedule change.
Available Qty: 20