The Northwest Suburban Genealogy Society has a number of active Special Interest Groups (SIGs) that serve to support Members with interests in special genealogical topics, as listed below. These groups generally meet on a monthly or quarterly schedule and have a planned program of interest to the SIG members. There are opportunities for discussion, questions, and sharing of information.
Volunteer Opportunities! We would love to form several more SIGs, but we need to recruit a leader for each group.
If you are interested in joining one of the SIGs below or want to form a new SIG, click on the link below.
Here are our current SIGs:

American Colonies SIG
SIG Group Leaders: Mary Hoyer & Robert Allen
Email Address: AmColSig@nwsgenealogy.org
Meeting Information: First Meeting will be Monday, September 28th at 7:00 PM Click on the forum link below for more information
Forum Page: American Colonies Forum
Mission Statement: To share information regarding our colonial ancestors and to learn about the history of each of the colonies and good genealogical resources.
European SIG
SIG Group Leader: Jacqueline Schattner
Email Address: EuroSig@nwsgenealogy.org
Meeting Information: Tuesdays at 2:00 PM on Sept 29 and Nov 17
Forum Page: European Forum

Mission Statement: This group will explore available resources for various continental European countries. Each meeting will concentrate on one or two countries, announced in advance. Participants will discover others researching ancestors in the same country and be able to ask questions. We’ll also ask participants to share their favorite websites, books or other information for the countries they are most familiar with. Enjoy time together, discovering new ways to research your European ancestors.
Here are some helpful links:
- https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Main_Page
- https://www.cyndislist.com/us/
- https://www.ancestry.com/search/ (Use the Europe map at the bottom of the page to find the country.)

Irish SIG
SIG Group Leader: Lynda Roddy Ozzauto & Bill McGovern
Email Address: IrishSig@nwsgenealogy.org
Meeting Information: Tuesdays from 10a-12p on Sept 15 (New Date), Nov 10, Jan 12, Mar10 and May 11
Forum Page: Irish Forum
Mission Statement: Researching Irish ancestry and the multitude of records that are available. At the initial meeting, we’ll decide as a group on the topics for each session and discuss speakers, etc. We will also devote time to Brick Wall questions at our meetings.
Here are some helpful links:
MyHeritage SIG
SIG Group Leader: Ken Seifert
Email Address: MyHeritageSig@nwsgenealogy.org
Meeting Information: Friday, October 16th, 2:00 PM
Forum Page: MyHeritage Forum

Mission Statement: The Northwest Suburban Genealogy Society “MyHeritage SIG” was organized to assist members and guests to explore ways to use the online MyHeritage genealogy platform with web, mobile and software products as a resource for their personal genealogy research.
Membership is open to anyone with a paid MyHeritage membership, a free MyHeritage membership or anyone who wants to explore the option of using MyHeritage as a research option.
This special interest group is founded on the “members helping members” principles. SIG members are encouraged to ask questions about MyHeritage services, help other members to utilize the services and share their research experiences using MyHeritage. Ongoing discussion topics will be selected based on questions and needs of the group.
Here are some helpful links:
- MyHeritage.com
- blog.myheritage.com
- education.myheritage.com/
- www.facebook.com/groups/myheritageusersgroup
- MyHeritage Family Tree Builder Genealogy Program

Roots Magic SIG
SIG Group Leader: Jenny Warner
Email Address: RootsMagicSig@nwsgenealogy.org
Meeting Information: Friday October 16th 3:00 PM
Forum Page: Roots Magic Forum
Mission Statement: This group will explore all things about Roots Magic, we will discuss and share knowledge of the software. We discuss issues people are having and help them solve the problems. We will also keep up with the news about Roots Magic. Users of all levels are welcome.
Here are some helpful links: