IAJGS Lifetime Achievement Award 2019: Karen Franklin
The IAJGS Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Karen Franklin. Karen is the Renaissance woman of Jewish genealogy, having advanced the genealogical enterprise in countless ways over more than thirty years, in both professional and volunteer roles.
Her volunteer work has been wide-ranging, far reaching, and significant: President of the IAJGS; Founder and Co-coordinator of German SIG; Member of the Executive Council of the JGS of New York; Co-Chair of the Board of Governors of JewishGen (where she continues to serve as a volunteer). She is Co-Founder and President of the Jury of the Obermayer German Jewish History Award, an award presented each year in the Berlin Parliament to recognize individuals and organizations in Germany that have raised awareness of the Jewish culture that once thrived their communities. She also pursues work as a volunteer with the Israel Museum and the Nuremberg Staatsbibliotek, among other institutions, on behalf of art and book restitution, and lectures widely on a broad range of genealogical subjects at conferences and society meetings.
In her professional life, Karen currently serves as Director of Family Research at the Leo Baeck Institute. She was previously Director of the Judaica Museum in Riverdale, and Guest Curator and Exhibit Researcher for the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. She has served as Chair of the Council of American Jewish Museums and of the Memorial Museums Committee of the International Council of Museums; the latter organization awarded her its Service Citation for her work in Holocaust era property restitution.
Karen’s tireless efforts and remarkable achievements on behalf of the world of Jewish genealogy deserve the recognition bestowed by the IAJGS Lifetime Achievement Award.
IAJGS Volunteer of the Year 2019: Judi Gyori Missel
The Volunteer of the Year Award was presented to Judi Gyori Missel with gratitude for her extraordinary service over many years. Judy is, in a word, the person who makes our Annual Conferences work.
Serving as technical coordinator, for many years she has enabled the Conference plan to realize its goals through producing a schedule that prevents program conflicts. She spends many months every year working on Conference preparation. She not only facilitates the Conference program, but also the mobile app setup, registration, signage, and the Conference website. She works with the Family Finder and Daily Planner format and production. The Conference planners change each year, but Judy is the constant presence who orients the planners around the computer programs that allow them to realize their objectives. She also serves as liaison with our professional conference organizers. This year, Judi has taken on yet another task, serving as a member of the IAJGS ad hoc committee to review the Conference manual.
Judi’s invaluable contribution to the success of our Conferences is largely behind the scenes, but deserves to be recognized and honored. It is our pleasure to present Judi the award as IAJGS Volunteer of the Year.
IAJGS Outstanding Project Award 2019: Phillip Trauring for B&F: Jewish Genealogy and More
The Outstanding Project Award was presented to B&F (Blood and Frogs): Jewish Genealogy and More. B&F is a website created and administered by Philip Trauring. Starting out as a blog, it has grown into an outstanding resource for Jewish genealogists.
The highlight of the website is the B&F Compendium of Jewish Genealogy, providing links to more than 25,000 sources in more than 200 countries and territories. The information on each country or region includes maps and links to records and documents, including, cemetery information, newspapers, and books, dealing with genealogy and history. In addition to links to the better-known websites such as JewishGen and JRI Poland, there are links to lesser known sites such as the European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative and the Historical Jewish Press, with particularly extensive resources on Poland. New material is constantly uploaded. In addition, readers are given the opportunity via the site to submit questions to Philip.
In sum, researchers visiting B&F can find in one website a gateway, organized by country and region, to all online information relevant to Jewish genealogy. Philip Trauring’s achievement is well deserving of the award for IAJGS Outstanding Project in 2019.
IAJGS Outstanding Publication Award 2019: Dorot, the journal of the Jewish Genealogical Society, Inc. (New York)
The Outstanding Publication Award was presented to the Jewish Genealogical Society, Inc. (New York) for its journal Dorot. JGS was also honored with this award ten years ago, a tribute to Dorot’s longstanding record of presenting creative and informative content to researchers of Jewish family history. Dorot is published quarterly, both electronically and in hard copy; all past issues are available on the JGS website.
Under the direction of editor Sarina Roffe, JGS Executive Council member Lauren Orenstein, and JGS President Steve Stein, each issue offers timely and varied information of importance to Jewish genealogists working in New York City and around the world. It is both a newsletter—presenting reports of recent and upcoming events, announcements of newly available genealogical resources worldwide, and interviews with genealogical experts—and a journal—publishing articles by genealogists, archivists, and historians who report in depth on resources, research techniques, and individual family histories.
The IAJGS recognizes this record of achievement with the IAJGS award for Outstanding Publication.
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