J. Mark Lowe describes himself as “born to be curious” He is a professional genealogist, author, and lecturer who specializes in original records and manuscripts throughout the South. Mark enjoys opportunities to share what he has learned over the years through YouTube, webinars, and institutes.

He serves as the Course Coordinator for ‘Research in the South’ at IGHR (Georgia), SLIG (Utah), and TIGR (Texas), does webinars for Legacy Family Tree Webinars and has worked on several genealogical television series including Follow Your Past, African American Lives 2, Who Do You Think You Are? and UnXplained Events, and podcasts, including Twice Removed and Blast From My Past.

Mark has published in the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly (APGQ), National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ), FGS’ FORUM, The Longhunter (So. Ky. Genealogical Society), Middle Tennessee Genealogical Society Quarterly, North Carolina Genealogical Society Quarterly, and other society publications. He is a Past President of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG) and Past President of the Southern Kentucky Genealogical Society Mark is a Fellow of the Utah Genealogical Society and was awarded the Graham T. Smallwood award and Lifetime Membership award by the Association of Professional Genealogists.

Gay H. Baynes

Gay H Baynes is a professional genealogist who teaches, presents, and researches for individuals. She holds the Boston University Genealogical Research Certificate and has completed the ProGen Study Group. Gay served six years on the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Genealogical Society. She is a previous Membership Chair of her local DAR chapter.

She assembles lineage society applications, coaches genealogists who wish to enhance their skills, and presents in libraries, genealogical societies, (NCGS), senior communities, and teaches online in “Gifts From Our Ancestors,” her course for beginners at Dogwood Genealogy.

Gay will be teaching Family Mysteries: Can Genealogy Shed Light? (Beginner Day) and Celebrate Your Ancestor in a Lineage Society (Bonus recording).

Michele Doyle

Michele is a professional genealogist with an MSLS and is a former research librarian for Old Salem Museum and Gardens, Inc.. She has volunteered with FamilySearch and FamilySearch Centers for over 20 years.

Researching her own family for over 30 years, she has learned that researching family connections, preserving family stories, and creating family legacies are at the heart of family history. She is the Executive Director of the North Carolina Genealogical Society.

Michele will be teaching Using FamilySearch Full Text Search (Workshop).

Kate Penney Howard

Kate Penney Howard is a genetic genealogist and speaker specializing in endogamy and breaking down challenging research barriers with DNA. Known for her compassionate approach, Kate helps clients uncover ancestral mysteries while providing them with more complete family medical histories and a stronger sense of identity. Her presentations captivate audiences by seamlessly blending historical context, technical guidance, and well-placed humor that keeps listeners engaged throughout

Kate discovered her passion for teaching during her cancer journey, finding fulfillment in sharing knowledge with fellow genealogists. She approaches her work with integrity, deliberately addressing historical injustices and dispelling common myths.

Kate will be teaching Filling in Those Pesky Blanks: Solving Maternal Surname Mysteries with DNA (Lecture) and Using Your DNA Test with Your Genealogy (Workshop).

Steve Little

Steve Little, AI Program Director for the National Genealogical Society, founder of AI Genealogy Insights, and co-host of The Family History AI Show, is a leader in integrating AI and genealogy. With graduate training in computational linguistics and natural language processing and a previous career building information systems for libraries and archives, his current work focuses on endogamy, pedigree collapse, and exploring AI’s applications—and limits—in genealogy.

Steve will be teaching Practical AI for Genealogy Projects: From Images to Archives (Lecture).

Ayo Heinegg Magwood

Ayo Heinegg Magwood is a genealogist who has worked closely with her father, Paul Heinegg—a widely recognized expert in African American genealogy—for several years. She co-authors many of his client reports on both enslaved and free African American families. Together, they co-wrote the forthcoming journal article “Tracing an African American Family Lineage from the 17th to the 20th Century: The Kee Family of Northampton County, NC” for The Genealogist. They also co-authored two blog posts for the FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA) blog: “Researching the Ancestry of Formerly Enslaved African American Families. Part 1: Up to the 1870 Brick Wall” and “Part 2: Beyond the 1870 Brick Wall“.

Ayo will be teaching Tracing Enslaved Families: Using Court and Estate Records (Lecture).

David M. McCorkle

David M. McCorkle is a land records expert with research experience in a wide variety of other records used by genealogists, and has recently been working with Artificial Intelligence tools to assist with genealogical research.  He has presented to national, state, and local genealogical and historical organizations, and is co-owner of GenWebinars.

He is the creator of the free website nclandgrants.com which contains records for all 200,000+ North Carolina land grants along with 1.2 million images of original records.  David is President and founder of NC Historical Records Online, a 501(c)(3) which provides free online access to original NC records.  He is President of the North Carolina Genealogical Society, and is on the board of several other genealogy non-profits.

David is a native of North Carolina with deep roots on many lines dating back to the 1700s, primarily in the Mecklenburg County area.  He wrote his first computer program in 1973.

David will be teaching Finding and Understanding North Carolina Court Records (Lecture) and Finding Your North Carolina Ancestors (Beginner Day).

Margaret M. McMahon, Ph.D.

As an experienced educator, researcher, and author with a Ph.D. in Computer Science and Engineering, and a ProGen 46 graduate, Margaret bring a strong academic and technical foundation to her work in genealogy. Her expertise provides background for presenting topics including artificial intelligence, military history research, education, and technology.

Her speaking journey began in classrooms teaching undergraduate, graduate and professional students, and continued with presentations at national and international technical conferences. Since 2007, she has delivered over 145 lectures at genealogical societies around the US, at local and regional conferences, and for RootsTech Connect. She researches, lectures, and writes about genealogy and military history and has authored several books including Researching U.S. WWI Military Members. She serves as the Unofficial Historian for the 51st Pioneer Infantry Regiment (WWI). For more information about her books, lectures, and blog, please visit: https://aweekofgenealogy.com.

Margaret will be teaching Ancestors, AI and Prompt Engineering (Lecture) and Crash Course on Researching Ancestors in the US Military (Lecture) .

Cheri Hudson Passey

Cheri Hudson Passey is a professional genealogist, instructor, writer, speaker, and owner of Carolina Girl Genealogy, LLC. She hosts the YouTube genealogy chat show GenFriends and is a genealogical researcher subcontracted by Eagle Investigative Services, Inc., for the US Army Past Conflict Repatriations Branch.

She is involved in many genealogy societies and organizations and is on the National Genealogical Society board. Cheri writes the blog “Carolina Girl Genealogy,” sharing her genealogy tips, methodologies, family stories, and research adventures.

Cheri will be teaching Elements for Sound Research: A Guide to Applying the Genealogical Proof Standard (Lecture), Beginning Your Genealogy Journey: 8 Steps to Getting Started (Beginner Day), and Someone to Watch Over Me: Guardianship Records (Bonus recording).

Diane L. Richard

Diane L. Richard, MEng & MBA, is a professional genealogist and the owner of Mosaic Research and Project Management. With over 35 years of experience, she’s a renowned speaker, author, and editor. Diane has written over 600 articles and edited numerous publications. Since 2016, she has been the editor of the NCGS Journal. She regularly speaks in person and virtually.

She’s a specialist in researching southern ancestors, the formerly enslaved, female ancestors, and more. She also focuses on online resources – sharing platforms underutilized by genealogists — which are all genealogically leverageable. Her inner teacher ensures she always includes tips, tricks, and strategies to benefit your research in her talks and articles. Diane co-founded GenWebinars, NC Historical Records Online, and Tar Heel Discoveries, and has appeared on Who Do You Think You Are?

Diane will be teaching Tar Heel School Days: Research Your Ancestors as Kids (Lecture), Finding Your North Carolina Ancestors (Beginner Day), and Divorce in the “Old North State” – Family Dynamics, FAN Club, and More! (Bonus recording) .

Elizabeth A. Saunders

Elizabeth “Beth” Saunders has worked for more than 12 years in the Quaker Archives at Guilford College, where she has helped many family researchers learn how to find their Quaker roots. The Quaker Archives is the primary repository for American Quaker records in the Southeast, with records dating back to 1680.

A member of the Religious Society of Friends, Beth has researched her own Quaker lineage back to the 1600s in the United Kingdom and Ireland, as well as in the colonial Carolinas. An award-winning former journalist, she has authored two books: Archdale Friends Meeting: Genealogical Abstracts from the Monthly Meeting Minutes, 1924-1949 and The Search for Thomas Maness. As a member of the former North Carolina Yearly Meeting publications board, she has edited or proofread several meeting histories and historical Quaker biographies. She teaches about photo preservation, family archives, and heritage scrapbooking on her YouTube channel, “Save the Pictures! with Beth Saunders.”

Beth will be teaching Quaker Genealogy (Lecture).

Jon Smith

Jon Smith, PMP serves as the Secretary and Education Chair for the North Carolina Genealogical Society; the Education Chair for the Sussex County (DE) Genealogical Society and for the Howard County (MD) Genealogical Society; the President of the Family Historians On-Line; and as the Genealogist of the North Carolina Cline Family Association. He serves as an Instructor of Genealogy for Howard County Community College in Maryland.

All 16 parts of his family reached the Hickory, NC area by 1790, and stayed, so he frequently finds cousins in the area, and conducts personal research in a group with 8 others, since everyone relates to everyone else in many ways.

Jon attended Florida State University for his Master’s degree, where he focused on Artificial Intelligence, and UNC-Greensboro for his undergraduate degree.  His focus areas in genealogy revolve around DNA, especially endogamy, Artificial Intelligence, and developing analytical tools for tree research and analysis.

Jon will be teaching Creating North Carolina Local and Regional Locality Guides using ChatGPT and Spreadsheets (Workshop).

Larry W. Thomas

Larry is a retired US Army Captain with 23 years in the field of Aviation, Transportation & Logistics. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Aviation Maintenance Management, an FAA airplane mechanic license, and earned an MBA in Management Information Systems from Southern Polytechnic State University while working for the US Army Reserves as a Program Manager, earning his certification as a Project Management Professional from the Project Management Institute in 2013.

Larry began his Genealogy Research over 30 years ago with his own Thomas Family, Georgia residents since the 1750s.   He then added the rest of his and his late wife’s families before beginning to research for clients in 2008, operating  www.AtlantaGenealogy.com.

A graduate of ProGen 38, Larry has assisted with the TV Show Finding Your Roots. He is a member of numerous Genealogical and Historical Societies, VP of the Board of the Georgia Genealogical Society, is the current president of the Genealogical Speakers Guild, and is past president of the Cobb County Genealogy Society.   He is becoming a popular genealogy presenter, bringing some fun to learning how to research. 

Larry will be teaching How not to do genealogy – A Look at Common Mistakes Many Make in Conducting Their Research (Beginner Day).

Pam Vestal

Pam Vestal is a professional genealogist and national speaker who got hooked on genealogy when her daughter grew curious about her wacky paternal ancestors. Years later, after a 20-year writing career, she decided to turn her focus to her longtime love of genealogy and became a professional. Since then, her articles have appeared in the National Genealogical Society Magazine and The Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly, and her lectures take her from coast to coast.

Pam specializes in conducting genealogical research and then transforming that information into illustrated stories that even non-genealogists can enjoy. 

Pam will be teaching What in the World Does That Say? Overcoming Difficult Handwriting (Workshop).

Ari Wilkins, FTxSGS

Ari Wilkins, FTxSGS is a genealogist, lecturer and instructor who has been actively researching family history for over 25 years. Ms. Wilkins is a graduate of Louisiana State University. She speaks on a variety of genealogical subjects and specializes in African American research and Southern research.

As a lecturer, Ms. Wilkins has spoken nationally at the National Genealogical Society, the Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research, the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh, RootsTech, and a multitude of state and local societies.  She has also led the African American course for the Texas Institute of Genealogical Research for the past three years.

Ari is active in the genealogical community. Previously, she served as a board member of the Dallas Genealogical Society and the Texas State Genealogical Society. She has been active with the National Genealogical Society and served on numerous committees. 

Ari will be teaching Tracing the Enslaved in Newspapers (Lecture) and Sources for Researching Rural Ancestors (Lecture).