Attendees

Proceedings

12:00 - 4:00 pm Plaza Hotel, Lobby
POINT Conference - 2010 Organizing Committee members Jean Denning (#3753) and Richard and Taffy Rath (#1204) had arrived in Salt Lake early and met for dinner on Saturday night to discuss what needed to be done first to get things underway. Long before noon on Sunday, they were at our table in the hotel lobby, putting out each attendee’s name badge and dinner ticket that Jerry Farenga (#1763) had made and filling canvass tote bags from FamilySearch with the magnificent, 120 page spiral-bound syllabus that Ruth Merriman (#4887) had provided, the Jean Denning-designed conference brochure (which let everyone know what was happening, where it was happening and when it was happening every day of the conference) along with some other surprises, while Frank Ferrante (#4076) and Doug Bodkin (#3746) were also standing by to help where needed. By noon, attendees were already arriving to sign in.

4:00 - 8:00 pm Hospitality Room
Everything was moved downstairs to Aspen Rooms 1 and 2, which would be our base of operations for the rest of the week, while Dick and Taffy made a run to Costco to pick up the drinks and snacks we would need. Conference attendees (over 60 altogether) from Connecticut to Hawaii and from Idaho to Louisiana kept arriving to check in, pick up their conference packages, have a snack and get to know one another. For four hours, the conversation was non-stop.

8:00 - 10:30 am
People either dropped by our Hospitality Room for a bite of breakfast or headed straight to the Family History Library next door for a morning of research.

11:00 am - 12:00 noon Museum Auditorium
Ruth Merriman (#4887)
Basic Research

1:00 - 5:00 pm
After a brief break for lunch, for most the research at the library continued, while some visited our Hospitality Room to socialize and enjoy the refreshments.

5:30 - 6:30 pm Plaza Hotel Heritage Room
Stan Lindaas, Heritage Consulting
Organizing Your Material For Success
Mr. Lindaas spoke to us through the courtesy of the Plaza Hotel as a thank you for the 40+ rooms booked by conference attendees.

8:00 - 10:30 am
Hospitality Room for a bite of breakfast or Family History Library for research.

11:00 am - 12:00 noon Museum Auditorium
Ruth Merriman (#4887)
Understanding Latin Records

12:00 - 5:00 pm (or later)
For most, the research continued throughout the day until they were exhausted or the library closed.

8:00 - 10:30 am
Hospitality Room for a bite of breakfast or Family History Library for research.

11:00 am - 12:00 noon Museum Auditorium
Keith Rose
Italian Gazetteers, Maps and On-Site Research

12:00 - 5:00 pm (or later)
For most, the research continued throughout the day until they were exhausted or the library closed.

8:00 - 10:30 am
Hospitality Room for a bite of breakfast or Family History Library for research.

11:00 am - 12:00 noon Museum Auditorium
Ruth Merriman (#4887)
Reading Italian Church and Civil Records

2:00 - 4:00 pm Hospitality Room
Meeting of POINTers In Person Leaders and Representatives
A total of 21 people (including six chapter leaders) representing 12 chapters (1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 11, 13 [currently inactive], 15, 16, 20, 24 and 27) discussed chapter activities and the next POINT Conference.

8:00 - 10:30 am
Hospitality Room for a bite of breakfast or the Family History Library for research.

11:00 am - 12:00 noon Museum Auditorium
Ruth Merriman (#4887)
Research on the Internet

12:00 - 5:00 pm
The research continued for the final day (except for those who were staying longer, as many were.)

6:30 - 9:30 pm Aspen Room

By 6 pm, conference attendees and guests had begun to arrive and fill the room with conversation. Despite some initial concerns by the committee, there was more food than the 80+ could possibly have eaten and everyone agreed it was a very, very good Italian meal, perfectly served.

Tom Militello (#1) began the after-dinner activities by asking everyone to remember Bill and Lin Brinkman (#1388) in their prayers. They had arrived in Salt Lake earlier in the day, and Lin’s first conference activity was to attend the PIP meeting. Early in the meeting, she received a phone call and abruptly left. We learned after the meeting that there was a very serious family emergency and that they had already left town.

Tom then thanked those who had been in the library all week assisting anyone who needed help with their research: Suzanne (Russo) Adams (#4211), Doug Bodkin (#3746), Paola Manfredi (#4281), Keith Rose and Leita Spoto (#3175).
This was the first POINT Conference produced entirely via e-mail and Tom introduced and thanked the members of the organizing committee who had done such a magnificent job in putting it together (Jean Denning, Jerry Farenga, Frank Ferrante and Taffy Rath) and then introduced those who will be joining them to form the POINT Conference - 2012 Organizing Committee: Grazia Bittner (#4949), Doug Bodkin (#3746), Mary Ann Ciabattari (#4503), Mike Madeo (#2263), Ann Moro (#5289) and Caterine Premont (#2074).

Finally, Tom introduced Ruth Merriman as POINT’s Favorite Daughter and thanked her for allowing POINT to attach our conference to her series of talks and for everything that she had done for us. The room spontaneously rose and gave her a standing ovation.
Ruth then introduced our guest speaker.

Paul Nauta
Manager of Public Affairs for FamilySearch
Expecting The Unexpected

Following Paul’s inspiring and entertaining presentation, Tom closed the evening by urging everyone to return in 2012.

Memories

Linda Costa - Bryan (#4544) had arranged to meet her cousin, Carmela LaCorte, at the conference. They had not met since Linda was a baby (see Linda’s story elsewhere in this issue). Carmela brought two of her nieces with her, Marianne Kelly and Donna Forker. During a conversation in our Hospitality Room, Donna and Tom Militello (#1) discovered that they have a number of surnames in common and that both have ties to Buffalo, NY, and Silver Creek, NY. They were unable to confirm a connection during the week.

Tom Militello and his third cousin, Pat De Stefano (#4604), had not seen each other in nearly fifty years, but both remembered the meeting. Pat gave Tom a small picture [left] showing Tom (at about age 10) with his sister at about age five. Everyone thought Tom was adorable (in the picture) but some wondered what had happened in the intervening 60-some years.

Ann Moro (#5289) became a POINTer by joining POINT during the conference. Welcome to POINT, Ann.

Comments

Ruth Merriman (#4887)
I would like to thank all who attended the conference for being such a great audience. They laughed at every joke and participated at every session. POINTers are awesome people.

Margaret Laxson (#4308)
I was so impressed with all the arrangements at the conference. I will definitely be attending the next one in 2012.

Pat De Stefano (#4604)
I very much enjoyed my first POINT conference and the obvious advantages of an all-Italian event. Not only were the speakers excellent, but the 130-page syllabus came as a very pleasant surprise. Tom, it was great seeing and chatting with you again (after only 50 years or so). It was a pleasure to meet Phyllis for the first time and to talk with your son, Dominic, and his wife, Shelley, at the banquet. I am looking forward to seeing everyone again at the POINT Conference - 2012.

Joy (Enna) Croft
My husband and I attended the POINT Conference - 2010 dinner and the talks on Saturday. We enjoyed everything. It was an amazing conference. At the dinner, we sat with a group of women from Pittsburgh who were delightfully friendly. They reminded me of my aunts that I had visited years ago in Kansas City, MO. What fun! You are doing a magnificent service for families with Italian ancestry. I will be sending my POINT Membership Application and look forward to continuing my research with help from other POINTers.
Welcome to POINT, Joy.

Sandie Nagy (#4731)
I want to thank all those who made the POINT Conference - 2010 in Salt Lake City such a wonderful experience. Ruth Merriman (#4887) did a FANTASTIC job on the syllabus she put together. It is such a wonderful point of reference when doing research. Thanks also for having Paul Nauta as our banquet speaker. He was a wealth of information and referred me to Giovanni Criscione, who finally broke down the brick wall I was up against in finding my great uncle’s first wife. I learned so much and now I can go further with my grandparents’ family from Italy and Switzerland. I cannot wait to see how you are going to top this at POINT Conference - 2012. Thank you again.

Thank you all for those very nice comments. The POINT Conference - 2012 Organizing Committee realizes that the bar was set very high this year, but we are committed to raising it in 2012. See you then.

Linda Costa - Bryan (#4544)

I had some questions about our Sicilian genealogy, so who better to call on than my Dad, the master of enlightenment?

He could not answer my questions, but suggested that I call his cousin, Tom. Tom's wife, Jean, said that neither one of them had answers for me, either, but suggested I get in touch with Tom's sister, Carmela LaCorte, who was the keeper of all knowledge. She would be sure to have the answers that I needed.

Carmela is the nicest cousin anyone could have. We instantly hit it off and began discussing our Sicilian heritage. She was able to help me and we traded information.

I happened to mention POINT and the upcoming POINT Conference - 2010 in Salt Lake City. She thought it sounded like it would be both fun and informative, so I invited her to meet me there. The last time we had met, I was maybe three-years-old and have no recollection of the day. We arranged to meet at the Plaza Hotel.

In the meantime, two of Carmela's nieces, Donna Forker and Marianne Kelly, asked her if they could join in on the fun, too. Donna and Marianne were pleasant additions to our little party. I don't have a clue how they are related to me, but they are family.

Between the talks, hours and hours of research in the library assisted by the knowledgeable help of other POINTers, a very pleasant Hospitality Room home base and the fantastic banquet, we all had a terrific time.

We became closer and more educated. We were able to trade family information, encourage each other and share cards at the copy machines.

At the end of each day, we would discuss what we had found and offer suggestions on possible leads to follow.

The AhHa! moments, when the lights went on, were exciting.

Actually, the others had much better luck than I did. They attributed it to the fact that I was searching back further than they were, so I had more difficult information to look for. Thank goodness for their encouragement.

We are already making plans to meet again at POINT Conference - 2012.

I plan on going to Sicily next year and will take pictures of home communes and distant cugini to share.

It is interesting how a love of genealogy and Sicily could bring together four people of various ages from different parts of the country and unite them as famiglia.

I want to thank everyone who participated and also those who had a part in the planning of our conference.

I was able to learn so much from the speakers and am just amazed at their range of knowledge and how well they were able to pass that on to us.

Everyone was so friendly and willing to share whatever information or tricks they had up their sleeves. I feel like I have added family and friends. Thank you one and all.