SLOCGS Member Ginger Goodell Named Walter Lee Sheppard, Jr. Prize Recipient

Congratulations to SLOCGS member Ginger Goodell! Ginger joined the society in 2005 and has served as the Assistant Programs Chairman ever since. She is a facilitator for the Genealogical Writing Special Interest Groups, and a member of the "Implementing Professional Standards" group. SLOCGS is so proud of Ginger!

Elizabeth Shown Mills (left) with Ginger Goodell

Ginger Goodell of San Luis Obispo, California, has been named the 2012 recipient of the Walter Lee Sheppard Jr. Prize, bestowed annually upon genealogists who demonstrate sound practices and exceptional potential. Candidates for the award are drawn from the Advanced Research Methodology and Evidence Analysis track at Samford University's Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research. The stipend awarded to each recipient covers the preliminary and final application fees for pursuing certification by the Board for Certification of Genealogists.

Past recipients of the prize include Judy Russell, CG, of Avenel, New Jersey; David Ouimette, AG, CG, of Highland Utah; Phil Burnett Adderly, CG, of Shreveport, Louisiana; and Teri Tillman, CG, of Natchez, Mississippi.

The Samford University IGHR and the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) were both founded in 1964 by a cadre of genealogical educators seeking to advance quality and professionalism within the field. Across the decades, BCG has co-sponsored the IGHR; and a significant number of Board-certified genealogists have been its course coordinators and instructors.

The prize itself memorializes the late Walter Lee Sheppard Jr., one of the twentieth-century's leading genealogical scholars whose example strongly promoted sound reasoning and careful analysis in all genealogical specialties. As a mentor, his discerning eye could be counted upon to identify a missed source or clue in family reconstructions, thereby strengthening a colleague's conclusions. A founder and president of BCG, Lee was also a fellow and president of the American Society of Genealogists, the National Genealogical Society, the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, and other bodies. In 2007, he was elected to the National Genealogy Hall of Fame.

The Sheppard Prize is privately funded by an IGHR Track 4 graduate, for whom Lee acted as mentor and patron. The prize has no affiliation with the Board for Certification of Genealogists itself.

Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG
Course Coordinator, Track 4
Advanced Research Methodology & Evidence Analysis
Samford University Institute of Genealogy & Historical Research

Members of the 2012 Course 4 Class at IGHR

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