And Suddenly, It's Over

After months of anticipation and a whirlwind weekend, suddenly....it's over. The annual conference of the Ontario Genealogical Society, or as it was known this year #OGSBARRIE2015 took place this past weekend.

The OGS conference is the largest in Canada and brings together like-minded individuals to learn, network and share. While the reported attendance seemed smaller than in past years, the busy-ness suggested otherwise. Unlike past years, the marketplace seemed to have a steady stream of customers, the talks were all well attended and for the first time, there were some pop-up talks, known as Fast Tracks. These were short presentations that were set up in the marketplace and which generally were a big draw. The location of these was ideal in that it meant more people were willing to make the trek to the marketplace, and that, in turn, brought more business to the marketplace, which was a plus for the vendors. 

It was wonderful to connect with people that I only know by name on Facebook - the other members of the various genealogy groups I subscribe to and who show up in my news feed on a regular basis. Thank you to those of you who made the effort to come over and say hello! 

And it was incredible to meet up with my colleagues, many again who I only know from social media or that I only get to see a couple of times a year. 

Mark Olsen, Thomas McEntee, Christine Woodcock, Lorine Massey, Dave Obee, Janet Iles, Kathryn Lake Hogan
Colby and Ryder
photo credit: Hubs Massey; Mark Olsen

What a fantastic hobby/obsession this is! I now have new genie connections, renewed genie connections and a whole new energy for the coming months. 

Plans are already underway for Conference 2016 - being hosted by the Toronto Branch. The theme is On the Cutting Edge and announcements have already been made that Judy Russell and CeCe Moore will be speaking. Conference 2016 is already shaping up to be every bit as fantastic as #OGSBARRIE2015. 

OGS Barrie 2015 Banquet

On Saturday night, the OGS conference hosted a banquet which was sponsored by FamilySearch. It was great to see everyone all dressed up and having the chance to just enjoy connecting. 

The meal was fantastic, with a choice of either salmon or beef. The kids who were serving were so much fun to watch. They were high energy, engaging and efficient. 

The after dinner speaker was Dr Maurice Gleeson. He entertained us with lots of laughs in his talk about Genealogy 2020. It was fascinating to think of some of the concepts he shared in terms of where he thinks the world of genealogy will be in five years time. 

After the banquet people had the chance to hang out with friends old and new and to really relax and enjoy the company. 

OGS Barrie 2015

The annual conference for the Ontario Genealogical Society is being held in Barrie this year. More specifically at Georgian College in Barrie.

One of the issues about using colleges for conferences is the distance involved in getting from point A to point B, especially for people who have mobility issues. And Georgian is no different. Residence is, in my humble opinion, fantastic. Like a hotel room but with a kitchen. The walk to the administrative building is a good 7-10 minutes depending on energy levels and mobility. And the Marketplace is in a building in between. The walk back and forth is neither uphill nor down, so that is certainly a bonus. The Marketplace is situated next to the campus pub, an even bigger bonus, and truly a great little place for the genies to get together and renew friendships built both online and from a distance. And the residence is situated next to the hospital, which might be incidental to most, but to a Canadian, a hospital generally means a Tims. Aahh... bliss

The conference had pre-conference workshops yesterday with some very high calibre presenters. The Keynote Speaker was Kirsty Gray, and following the keynote the was a reception and social time. In the pub. 

Today was a fairly early start with breakfast on offer at 7. By 7:10 the coffee had run out and only about 2% of the attendees had made it down to breakfast - oh yes, the hospital! Off to Tims it was. 

Coffee over and energy levels starting to rise, it was time to toddle off to the Admin building for the Panel discussions. The panel consisted of Dick Doherty, Kirsty Gray, Dave Obee and Maurice Gleeson. The moderator was Thomas McEntee who did a fantastic job. The questions were thought-provoking and the answers brilliant. It really was a great, great start to the day.

Next up was the OGS annual general meeting followed by lunch, which allowed for loads of time in the marketplace. I was assisting Kirsty who was selling FTDNA kits and must say we were HOPPING. Although two hours had passed, I felt like I had just sat down. Next it was time to attend workshops where I was introducing and thanking speakers. 

This is always a humbling experience because we get to hear from some of the best of the best and it is always amazing by how much knowledge that they have and are willing to share. 

Back to Marketplace, over to residence to blog and change and now it is time for the banquet, and more time to connect and re-connect.