The group is offering community members a chance to delve into their ancestry with free family history research sessions.
The sessions will be held throughout August on Mondays and Fridays from 11am to 3pm at the old Telegraph Station at 60 Chanter St, Moama.
Group president Judy McCleary believes that people can find so much about their ancestors if they know where to look.
“Those who have taken part in sessions in previous years have enjoyed it so much, many joined as members of the group,” she said.
“There’s so many things you can find online such as newspaper articles, marriages, divorces and even military papers. You can find the voices of your ancestors in (those documents) because they sent each other letters and postcards and kept diaries and so on,” Mrs McCleary said.
“Most times when we have done these sessions, people want to become members of the group and we get really good feedback from people.”
For beginners, the group will provide one-on-one tutoring using charts and written guidelines which don’t require any level of computer literacy.
Those with more confidence in their research skills can opt to work with the group's researchers or browse the library, which includes written and digital resources like local birth, death and marriage records, as well as old newspapers.
Beyond that, the group also has access to resources statewide, nationwide and internationally that may be used.
After embarking on her own family history journey almost 20 years ago, Mrs McCleary believes that it is a worthwhile experience.
“I personally didn’t think about it until I stopped working in 2005 and I thought, I have to put down what I know about my past and my ancestors,” she said.
“The search was really good because it is like pursuing a part of your identity, it’s fantastic and really worthwhile.”
For more information on the sessions, please contact Judy McCleary on 0408 335 186.
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