Blog
Lives in Context
The Problem Every Genealogist Faces
You’ve built an impressive family tree. Birth certificates ✓ Death records ✓ Census entries ✓ Marriage licenses ✓
But here’s the frustrating truth: despite all those facts, your ancestors still feel like strangers.
John was born in 1885, married Sarah in 1908, worked as a carpenter, and died in 1952.
Who was John, really? What challenges did he face? What dreams kept him awake at night? Why did his family make the choices they did?
If you’re tired of lifeless family trees and ready to discover the vibrant human stories hiding in your research, this course is for you!
Who Should Attend
- Hobbyist genealogists frustrated with lifeless family trees
- BCG applicants who are preparing compelling narratives that demonstrate analytical skills and historical understanding
- Professional researchers seeking richer client deliverables
- Anyone who wants their ancestors to feel like real people, not just names and dates
The Transformation You’ll Experience
Before: “My great-grandfather was a farmer.”
After: “My great-grandfather grew tobacco in Depression-era Kentucky, lost his farm to bank foreclosure in 1934, moved his family to Detroit for auto plant work, and sent money home to help his neighbors survive the economic collapse.”
Ready to transform your genealogy from skeleton facts into vibrant family stories?
Meet Your Course Coordinator
Judy G. Russell, CG®, CGL℠, FUGA, The Legal Genealogist®, holds a law degree from Rutgers and worked as a federal prosecutor for over 20 years. She received the 2017 National Genealogical Society Quarterly Award of Excellence and specializes in the intersection of law and genealogy, criminal records, and uncovering the human stories hidden in legal documents and everyday records.
Meet Your Expert Instructors
LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson, JD, LLM, CG®, CGL®, FASG, has served as a BCG trustee since 2016 and was BCG President in 2019-2022. She is a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists (limited to fifty lifetime members) and coordinates the African American Track at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy. She specializes in enslaved African American research and serves as registrar general of the Sons and Daughters of the United States Middle Passage lineage society.
Linda Harms Okazaki is a fourth-generation Californian and charter member of the Nikkei Genealogical Society who specializes in Japanese American genealogy and internment camp research. She is the past president of the California Genealogical Society and current president of the Northern California Chapter of APG. Her research documenting her husband’s family in internment camps and Japan led to publishing “Paper Sons and Picture Brides” in NGS Magazine and her bimonthly column “Finding Your Nikkei Roots” in the Nichi Bei News.
Ready to Begin Your Journey?
This course will transform how you approach family history research, moving beyond basic facts to create compelling narratives that honor the full complexity and humanity of your ancestors’ lives. This isn’t just another genealogy course—it’s your pathway to becoming a family historian who can make the past come alive.