ROOTS & BRANCHES

Just about a year ago, I took a contract position as interim executive director for Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania.

I was both excited and a bit terrified at the prospect. I was humbled by the common interpretation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s rejoinder that “There are no second acts in American life,” which GSP was for me since I had been executive director there from 1999 to 2003.

I’ll end any suspense right here about how that’s going: I am truly “living the dream.” Because although a lot of people use that phrase tongue in cheek, for me it’s become the truth (And let me clarify another something that people have occasionally raised with me: When am I going to lose the “interim” status? The short answer is “never” … I asked for this status because I’m 62 and do not intend to be a long-term solution for the society’s staffing needs).

But in the meantime, over the last 12 months—and with a huge amount of help from the GSP officers, board members and volunteers who were already in place when I arrived—we’ve had a number of successes:

• Membership in the society is up nearly 50 percent and a number of new benefits have been initiated.
• Free “Third Thursday” webinars, many of which featured nationally known speakers, have drawn hundreds of attendees nearly every month.
• Two virtual weekend seminars were held, including a record-breaking appearance by the Ulster Historical Foundation duo of Fintan Mullan and Gillian Hunt, which drew nearly 200 paid registrants.
• The society’s e-newsletter has garnered significant attention, month in and month out, by having an excellent “open rate.”
• The library of the society has been upgraded with additional resources and also a warmer feel, along with concierge service for out-of-towners visiting.
• The society has worked to cooperate with and complement the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, which hired a director of genealogical services and programs earlier this year.
• The society has returned to having a presence at major genealogical conferences, both virtual and in-person.
• More board members have been recruited—with an emphasis on more geographic, racial, and ethnic diversity—and were melded together at a retreat in July. Virtually all of the society’s committees have been reactivated.

Despite the sincere “living the dream” status from these accomplishments, it’s not that I do not face challenges.

It’s not that there’s ever too much money to go around for all the hopes and dreams, especially in a year roiled by inflation and a rollercoaster stock market.

But we’re excited to be on deadline to finish a Pennsylvania Genealogical Almanac by the end of the year and are looking to have an eight-day virtual conference called Pennsylvania’s Genealogy Event (PaGE) from Aug. 5–12, 2023.

GSP’s website URL is https://genpa.org and is located at 2100 Byberry Road, Suite 111, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19116.