Press Release
Salt Lake
Institute of Genealogy
Salt Lake
City, Utah
6 August
2019
For
Immediate Release
SLIG
Scholarship Winners Announced
The Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy is
pleased to announce that five attendees have been awarded scholarships for
upcoming courses in the Fall of 2019 and January 2020.
Laura
G. Prescott Scholarship Winners
Eileen Ó Dúill and Julie Parillo were selected
as the first recipients of the Laura G. Prescott SLIG Scholarship. Tuition to
their course of choice at the 2020 Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG) or
the 2020 SLIG Academy, plus hotel accommodations, will be paid out of
scholarship funds generously donated by the genealogical community. Though
designed to be awarded to one candidate annually, the scholarship is being
doubled to celebrate its inaugural year.
The scholarship honors Laura G. Prescott, a
genealogy professional who enriched the field with her talents as a teacher,
writer, researcher, mentor, society leader and volunteer, and as director of
Ancestry Academy—Ancestry’s collection of instructional webinars presented by
leading genealogical educators. Laura was also especially known for her bright
smile, positive attitude, and encouraging nature.
Scholarship winners are chosen by committee
with Laura’s attributes in mind. Their short essay applications include
information about what they hope to gain from attending SLIG, why they deserve
the scholarship (not necessarily financial reasons), and how they intend to use
what they learn. Those chosen embody Laura’s passion for and service to the
genealogical community and thus will further her legacy.
Eileen Ó Dúill is known to many in the genealogy
field, as she has been a professional Irish genealogist since 1990,
specializing in legal and probate research. She is a founding member of the
Irish Probate Genealogy Partners. As a member of the Association of
Professional Genealogists, Eileen served on the APG board as the International
Trustee for Britain and Ireland from 2007 to 2012 and received the APG
Professional Achievement Award in 2016. She has lectured nationally and
internationally and presented the Ancestry Academy webinar on Beginning Irish
Research. Eileen has faced personal adversity with positivity and displays a
passion to return as an active member of the genealogical community.
Julie Parillo is secretary for the
Rockdale-Newton County Genealogical Society in Georgia and volunteers at the
Henry/Clayton County Genealogical Society’s Brown House. She is a member of the
Georgia Genealogical Society, the National Genealogical Society, and the
Association of Professional Genealogists, and says she frequents as many
seminars and watches as many webinars as possible to expand her knowledge.
Julie’s passion for genealogy is clear when she says, “Genealogy not only
offers me a glimpse into the lives of past ancestors, but will connect me to
generations of the future. My goal is to enrich my part of the genealogical
world as effectively as possible.”
First-Time
Institute Attendees Winner
Julie Johns Defrancesco, resident of Bozeman,
Montana was selected as the winner for the SLIG Scholarship for First-Time
Institute Attendees for 2020.
The competition was strong and many candidates
submitted worthy applications. The committee determined that Ms. Defrancesco's
application effectively conveyed her desire for a more in-depth learning
experience at an intermediate (or above) level.
Julie was born the fifth of five children in
La Verne, California to a family with rich Italian, Swiss, French and Irish
heritage. Three of her grandparents immigrated to this country between
1906-1929. The fourth grandparents’ line extends to this country’s earliest
European settlers.
Her love for genealogical research began at
the age of 17 on a trip to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City in
1978. From that time to this, Julie has taken advantage of every opportunity to
learn about family history. Her desire to discover more about her family line
has inspired a hunger to learn everything there is to know about genealogical
research. She has attended local LDS conferences, interviewed family members,
participated in BYU Home Study Courses in Genealogy, and attended countless
conferences and online courses. She is an annual participant in RootsTech.
Her desire to learn more about her ancestry
inspired Julie to make pilgrimages to Europe and the British Isles in search of
more and better information and to become acquainted with the land, culture and
the people that figure so prominently in her heritage.
Julie loves sharing her discoveries with her
large family of 5 siblings, 22 nieces and nephews, 38 great nieces and nephews,
and an ever growing list of newly discovered relatives! “It is so gratifying to
see them soak up the information I share at reunions and family gatherings and
ask questions about their ancestors.” Twenty-five years ago in an effort to
better share her research and unite her extended family, Julie began a
quarterly newsletter called “A Common Thread”.
Today, “A Common Thread” has become a
well-received family ancestry blog to which she posts weekly. “I’ve learned so
much and reconnected with family members, each of whom has added a few more
strands to our family tapestry. I have such a love of family…those living, and
those past. But, there is more to learn and more to discover.”
Julie has a strong desire to broaden her
knowledge and skills, and by so doing extend her family line and help others to
do so; rarely does a guest leave her home without discussing their family
history, and in some instances receiving a brief tutorial to help them get
started in their research!
Julie currently lives in the Gallatin
Mountains near Bozeman, Montana with Steve, her husband of thirty-six years,
their German Shepherd Lucia, and frequent guests. These guests include not only
family and friends, but deer, elk, bear, moose and even mountain lions. The
quiet, peaceful solitude of this alpine setting is ideal for long hours of
computer research and reflection on generations past.
Jimmy
B. Parker Scholarship Winner for 2020
Melody Daisson, resident of Payson, Utah, was
awarded the UGA Jimmy B. Parker Scholarship for SLIG 2020.
Named in honor of Jimmy B. Parker, whose
legacy of service to the genealogical community covered more than 50 years,
this scholarship is awarded to an individual who has "demonstrated
commitment to genealogical excellence and community involvement."
The competition was strong and many candidates
submitted worthy applications. The committee determined that Ms. Daisson's
application exemplified the culture of giving back to the community as
demonstrated by Jimmy B.Parker.
Melody Daisson is an Accredited Genealogist in
the Southeast Region of the United States. Melody graduated from Brigham Young
University with a degree in family history and has 25 years of research
experience She works as a professional genealogist at Family Locket. Melody is
also on the online remote faculty at Brigham Young University Idaho and teaches
FHGEN 112: Family History Research—Part 2: Analysis of Research Evidence. She
wrote the Southern Research and African-American course modules for a U.S.
Specialty Region Course at Brigham Young University-Idaho. Melody serves on the
ICAPGen Study Group Committee as the curriculum designer and peer review lead
for the Level 1 study group. Melody's genealogical passions are Southern
Research and genealogical writing.
Intermediate
Foundations Scholarship Winner for Fall 2019
Carly Morgan, resident of Murray, Utah was
selected for the the SLIG Intermediate Foundations Scholarship for Fall 2019.
New this year, this scholarship reaches out to
those who haven’t yet attended an institute that need to strengthen their
research knowledge and skills at an intermediate level in order to prepare to
attend future institutes.
The competition was strong and many candidates
submitted worthy applications. The committee determined that Ms. Morgan's
application exemplified the need to move her skills to an intermediate level.
Carly has engaged in genealogical research for
the last ten years and writes about genealogy at Historicish.com. Her personal
family research is focused on the Polish community in Chicago, the Chinese
community in San Francisco, and her colonial roots in Pennsylvania and
Massachusetts. She is pursuing further education in genealogy to continue
writing with a particular focus on family storytelling and digital genealogy.
Contact
Nicole Dyer
Publicity Assistant
520-314-7586
