10 ways genealogy societies can help celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary

In three years, Canadians will celebrate our country’s 150th anniversary. Now would be a good time for genealogy societies to start thinking about how we can contribute to our community’s celebrations.

What can we do to make a contribution to our community? How can we demonstrate the genealogy societies make an important contribution to our community? Are there projects we could complete that would contribute to our country’s collective heritage and history?

We should try to set up a meeting with our local MPs, MNAs, MPPs, MLAs, and mayors to let them know we would like to help them mark the anniversary. Ask them how we can support their efforts. Offer suggestions. If they say it is too soon to discuss, ask if it would be appropriate to contact them in six months. Follow up with a letter, listing some ideas of how we can contribute. At the very least, we will have opened the door to future communication. Think about it. When they hold their first or next meeting about the 150th, they may remember those folks from the local genealogy society who said they are willing to help.

To help stimulate the thinking process, here are some activities genealogy societies can organize.

1. Set up a program at a local school and develop kid-friendly genealogy material to encourage young people to learn about early pioneers or the first generation in their family who immigrated to Canada.
2. Work with a local school to create a project to research and write biographies about people who made a difference in the community during the past 150 years.
3. Work with and encourage local schools to set up an oral history project where students will interview 150 seniors about their memories of the community.
4. Develop a youth genealogy section on your website. Example: Lee County GS.
5. Write about and publish in print or online the history of your community and some of the people who lived there during the past 150 years.
6. Produce an information booklet about how to conduct family research in your community.
7. Plan a “Canada 150” event and invite the community to visit your library.
8. Join local historical societies to create an event to celebrate the country’s anniversary and to encourage people to learn about their family history and the community’s history.
9. Encourage people to join the “150 Club” to raise money to buy books for the Canadian history section of your library.
10. Create a “Canada 150” section on your website, listing resources in your library, articles in your newsletter, 150 Canadian genealogy resources, past and present community leaders, and a how-to section on Canadian genealogy.

150th anniversary of the Fenian Raids in 2016.

The Key Milestones that have defined our country may help generate other ideas that are linked to important moments in our history.

A Canada 150 online questionnaire included open-ended questions, listed below, that citizens were asked to answer this past winter. These questions could help jumpstart a society’s brainstorming session.

1. How would you like to celebrate the 150^th anniversary of Confederation in 2017?
2. How would you like your community to celebrate?
3. In honour of the 150^th anniversary of Confederation, what could you or your community do for future generations?
4. Do you think our 150^th anniversary should have a theme? What do you think it should be?
5. Which of Canada’s accomplishments over the last 150 years make you most proud to be Canadian?
6. Which Canadians have inspired you the most over the last 150 years?

How will your genealogy society contribute to Canada’s 150th anniversary?