Welcome all SGS Volunteers

Seattle Genealogical Society is a member-driven, volunteer-run organization. We cannot succeed without the support of our members and the talents and dedication of our volunteers. Benefits of volunteering include camaraderie with fellow genealogists, sharing genealogical tips, enhancing your current skills, or discovering skills you never knew you had! But mostly meeting and working with other genealogists.

Below is a partial list of the tasks our dedicated volunteers do on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis:

Leadership – serve on a committee or as a Board Member
Facilitate hybrid (onsite + virtual) meetings
Write articles for the eNews! or Journal; keep our website & Facebook page current
Host a special interest group (SIG) (Anyone want to start a group focused on Canadian research? Eastern European records? Genealogy for Kids?)
Community outreach
Plan and present educational programs, including our Second Saturday series
Maintenance, facilities, technology
Plan events, including our twice-yearly seminars
Library Desk Volunteers - keep our library open and running, greet visitors and provide library tours
Library inventory, cataloging, indexing, and archival work
Bookkeeping, auditing, grant-writing, fundraising
Books sales

Help Wanted!

Looking for ways to connect with other SGS members? Here's your chance.

SGS Board of Directors - We are recruiting candidates for the board of directors.

There is an immediate need for people to fill the positions of Director of Technology and Director of Volunteers.
The current Director of Membership has exceeded their term limit and is interested in stepping down if a replacement can be found.

There's no better way to contribute to our community and meet other SGS members than serving on the board.

Seminar Chair - SGS produces two day-long seminars each year. Since the pandemic sent us into quarantine, the seminars have been virtual events on Zoom, but we look forward to the day when we can offer one in-person and one virtual seminar each year. This requires a chairperson to communicate with the speaker selection committee, contact and contract with presenters, coordinate seminar volunteers, promote the event, and host the seminar. This may sound like a lot, but SGS has many dedicated, experienced volunteers to assist. Seminar income is a critical part of our budget, and seminar chair is a vital (and respected) (and appreciated) position.

Our Journal editor has stepped down. This person works with the Director of Publications to publish the Journal of the Seattle Genealogical Society twice each year.

Our eNews! editor is stepping down in May. This person works with the Director of Publications to publish the newsletter twice a month.

Seminar Planning - The Seminar Committee is seeking new members for our Speaker Selection Team. This is a low-level commitment conducted entirely by email. We would love to have you volunteer with us! Even if you don't have the time to commit to the team, we welcome your suggestions for future speakers or topics. Please email seminar@seagensoc.org between now and Wednesday, April 14th.

Research Volunteers - If you like researching genealogical questions and would like a break from your own family, perhaps you have some time to assist with SGS research requests or one-on-one consults. When you help others, you're also helping yourself.

Grant Writer

If you have experience writing grant requests, this may be just the opportunity for you.

100th Anniversary of SGS in 2023

It is not too early to begin planning now. What events and programs do you envision to commemorate our 100th anniversary? What role do you want to play? Watch our events calendar for announcements of planning meetings. Check this link to submit ideas and/or work on producing the best centennial celebration ever. https://forms.gle/rFyp3WuJxQAJCiNr9

Please contact volunteers@seagensoc.org with questions or suggestions regarding these or any SGS volunteer activities.

More Volunteer Opportunities

Want to give back to the genealogy community in other ways? ConferenceKeeper.org lists myriad ways to volunteer, including indexing and transcribing, offering "look ups" in books you own, or helping others obtain copies of documents, pictures of tombstones, etc., that cannot be obtained easily by those who do not live in the Pacific Northwest. Check out https://conferencekeeper.org/volunteer/.

Don't forget - Record your Volunteer Hours

As a non-profit, volunteers are required to record hours worked for each project, event or ongoing assignment. Maintaining accurate records of volunteer hours, not only helps us plan for the future, but is also necessary for our grant-writing and fund-raising efforts. If you volunteer at the SGS library, remember to sign in to record your hours. If you work offsite on a project, please send your monthly hours to Volunteers@seagensoc.org.

Thank you to all our members for your support and to our volunteers!

Volunteer(s) of the Quarter

Each quarter, the Seattle Genealogical Society recognizes one volunteer or a group of volunteers as Volunteer of the Quarter. If you want to nominate a volunteer, send a message to Volunteers@seagensoc.org. Honored volunteers are featured in eNews!. Past and present recipients include--

Winter 2023 - Jess Ramey

Fall 2022 - Jim Ryan

Summer 2022 - Karen Rathe

Spring 2022 - Allegra Anderson, Melanie Moser, Woods Fairbanks, and Ellen Peterson

Winter 2022 - Rob Sexton

Fall 2021 - Cary Bright and Craig Gowens

Summer 2021 - The Library and Archives Committees--Sue Jensen, Ann Wright, Dona Bubelis, Charlotte Wixon, Linda Fitzgerald, Jess Ramey, and Ellen Peterson, led by our current Library Director.

Spring 2021 - Sue Schack Jensen

Winter 2021 - Jennifer Wells

Fall 2020 - Julia Marconi

Summer 2020 - Herb McDaniel

Spring 2020 - Cecellia Rogers

Winter 2020 - Flood recovery team – Kathi M., Linda Fitzgerald, and Annie Wright

Fall 2019 - Kim Waggie

Summer 2019 - Web Team - David Rimmer, Ann Wright, Christine Schomaker, Julia Marcone, Heidi Mair and Janice Lovelace

Want to Volunteer?

The benefits of volunteering include camaraderie with fellow genealogists, sharing genealogical tips, enhancing your current skills, or discovering skills you never knew you had!

If you are interested in volunteering for any of the opportunities listed on this page, please contact our Director of Volunteers at volunteers@seagensoc.org to set up a time to talk. We'll find a way to align your interests with our opportunities.