Family reunion contest: Winners named

When you read about contests, what do you do? Do you think you'll never win and forget about it?

What if the grand prize is a free family reunion?

For one lucky winner, her entry means she will soon meet with a cousin from Denmark, while two runners-up also received recognition for connections to family in South Africa and Norway.

MyHeritage.com and Family Tree Magazine partnered for the free family reunion contest in June.

Winners were recently named in a post on the Family Tree Magazine blog.

Patricia Skubis was the grand prize winner of the free family reunion. Her long-lost Danish relative Tage will travel to the United States so they can meet in person for the first time.

She will also receive a year-long VIP membership to Family Tree Magazine and a three-year Premium-Plus subscription with MyHeritage.com.

Skubis' Danish family immigrated to the US in 1888, while another branch had settled in Australia in 1873. Skubis made contact nearly three decades ago with someone from the down-under branch, but they couldn't find the connection.

 However, that was then, and today we have the power of technology.

There will be more detailed coverage in a future issue of the magazine, but here's some of it.

In March 2011, a Danish family researching THYGESEN posted information on MyHeritage.com and Skubis received a Smart Match notice. She wasn't sure about it because the parents' names were the same, but not the children. She asked for more details and was then able to confirm the match.

I went online to the Danish Church Records [on the Danish archives’ website] and found Tyge Jørgensen’s children between Neils Madsen Thygesen, born in 1794, and my great-great-grandfather Martin, born in 1805. What a great surprise I received when I found that the next son after Neils was Peder Andersen Thygesen, the great-great-grandfather of Alison Rogers.

Tage and I are fourth cousins once removed. Our great-great-grandfathers, along with Alison’s, were brothers.

Runners-up were Linda Mehlinger and Pam Ingermanson, who will each receive a digital subscription to Family Tree Magazine and a three-year Premium-plus subscription on MyHeritage.com. Read some details at the link above about a Zulu warrior pulling five schoolgirls in a rickshaw and Norwegians in Idaho and Ohio.

According to Diane Haddad of Family Tree Magazine:

Thank you to everyone who entered this contest. Both our team at Family Tree Magazine and our contest partners MyHeritage.com were touched by your stories of reconnecting with family, and we're impressed by your diligent research. You’re truly an inspiration to your fellow family historians!

The next time you read about a family reunion contest, what will YOU do?

MyHeritage: Win a reunion with a long-lost relative!

Have you discovered a long-lost relative - who may live anywhere in the world - but you haven't met him or her yet? Don't you want to meet them in person, share your research and reconnect your family?

MyHeritage.com has organized an online contest with Family Tree Magazine that will allow you and your relative to meet - IF YOU WIN.

The grand prize winner will receive a free, expenses-paid reunion with them, a year-long VIP subscription membership with Family Tree Magazine and a three-year Premium-Plus subscription with leading family history site MyHeritage.com. Two runners-up will also receive subscriptions to Family Tree Magazine and MyHeritage.com.

While entrants must live in the US, the long-lost relative may reside anywhere in the world.

Remember: You can't win if you don't enter - so read on for the details

What better time to announce such a great opportunity than just in time for the Southern California Genealogical Society's Jamboree 2012?

Here's the MyHeritage Blog post, with entry guidelines and rules:

Participate in the contest and win a free family reunion! We're very excited to launch a joint contest with Family Tree Magazine, the leading family history magazine in the USA, to celebrate long-lost relative discoveries! Lots of amazing prizes to be won! Read on…

Ever discovered a long-lost relative through your family history research?

 

Share your “long-lost relative discovery” with us and enter a contest to win a free, expenses-paid reunion with them, a year-long VIP subscription membership with Family Tree Magazine and a three-year Premium-Plus subscription with leading family history site MyHeritage.com (among other prizes - a digital subscription to Family Tree Magazine and a 3-year Premium-plus subscription on MyHeritage.com for the two runners-up!).

It takes just a few moments to write a sentence or two about your discovery of a long-lost relative and what this meant to you- either in the comments section below this blog post, on the MyHeritage.com Facebook page or the Family Tree Magazine Facebook page.

This is all you need to do to enter the contest and win a chance to meet your long-lost relative for the first time!

A few tips regarding your entry:

• What relation is your long-lost relative?
• Did you actively search for them or find them by chance? Or did they find you?
• When was the discovery made?
• Describe the personal impact of this discovery. Did it change you or cast new light on your family's legacy?
• What would it mean to you to be able to meet your long-lost relative?

We'd love to hear from all of you - regardless of your location. Sharing family history discoveries and personal stories provides a great source of inspiration for others researching their own families. However, to enter the contest, there are a few rules:

• No purchase necessary.
• Each entrant takes responsibility for any third-party consent.
• Winners will be chosen randomly by Family Tree Magazine - although Facebook likes will be taken into account.
• Odds of winning are directly related to how many people enter the contest.
• One winner will be chosen to win the grand prize. Two will be chosen to win the secondary prize.
• The timing of the reunion trip will be scheduled during summer 2011.
• Restrictions apply to the paid-for reunion: Paid expenses include a round-trip economy flight ticket for one person to meet with the long-lost relative in the US (or alternatively, if the long-lost relative resides outside the US, an international return flight for the relative to the US), a two-night stay at a selected hotel and $300 personal expenses.
• Only those with no prior meeting with the long-lost relative are eligible for the grand prize – and must be willing to participate in a family reunion.
• The winning entry and long-lost relative (s) are required to participate in any related media opportunities/interviews.
• The contest begins at 12AM ET June 8, 2011, and ends at 12AM ET June 15, 2011.
• The entrant is responsible for anything in regard to the legality of entering a contest in the area in which the entrant lives.
• Rules may be updated at any time without notice.
• Winners will be notified via their provided contact information the week following the end of the contest.
• Winners have seven days to claim their prize.
• One entry per person.
• To be eligible to win, the entrant must live in the United States. There are no restrictions on the residential location of the “long-lost relative.”

There'll be three lucky winners (one grand prize winner and two runners-up)! If you have a favorite tell us by either commenting below (at the MyHeritage Blog post) or clicking on the “like” button on entries on the two Facebook pages: MyHeritage.com Facebook page or Family Tree Magazine Facebook page. 

Good luck!

Hmmmm. There are those Talalay cousins in Germany who found me on Facebook, and my scientist cousin who lives in Siberia.

The possibilities are endless, but the contest is only running from June 8-15!

Whom do YOU want to meet? How would it impact your family history?

Contest: AARP 'Discover Your Roots'

There's a family history sweepstakes contest for the 45-and-over crowd, sponsored jointly by AARP and professional genealogist Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak.

The grand prize - aimed at helping readers uncover the mysteries of your family's history - includes

•  Five hours of private consultation via phone with Megan, an internationally-renowned professional genealogist.

•  Signed copies of Megan’s books: “Who Do You Think You Are?” and “Trace Your Roots with DNA.”

•  One-time DNA ancestry testing through FamilyTreeDNA.com

•  A one-year subscription to Ancestry.com

•  $1,000 gift card

The grand prize value is $2,500.

The sweepstakes began May 24 and runs through August 15, ending at 11.59pm ET.

To enter, click here. Follow the links and instructions to complete and submit the free registration form. It is open to legal residents of the 50 US states and the District of Columbia who are at least 45 years old at time of entry.

Each entrant automatically receives one entry into the sweepstakes. Each entrant may enter only one time. Note that the rules preclude using methods to enter multiple times.

There's free registration, nothing to buy, and you just might win, so why not enter?

Calling all artists: International Jewish Genealogy Month poster contest

International Jewish Genealogy Month is celebrated during the Jewish month of Cheshvan. This year, it corresponds to October 29 - November 26, 2011.

It offers an opportunity for Jewish genealogical societies to plan special programs and raise awareness of the possibilities inherent in family research.

Each year, there is also a poster contest. The winning entry is used in conjunction with genealogy month activities. The entry deadline for the 2011 poster is June 15; read below for more information.

Tracing the Tribe chaired the 2010 committee, which selected this winning entry:

Scout out your artist friends and let students at local high schools, colleges and other institutions know about the opportunity. There is excellent graphic art talent out there at all age levels.

Entries may only be made by member organizations of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies, but the artist does not need to be a member of the submitting organizations, which may submit multiple entries. There is no age requirement for the artist.

The creator of the winning entry receives free registration for the 2011 conference (August 14-19 in Washington, DC). The winner will be acknowledged at the conference, on discussion lists and on the IAJGS website.

For more details and the entry form, click here or email this year's committee chair Nancy Adelson (Seattle, Washington).

The members of this year's committee are: Rabbi Gary Gans (New Jersey), Howard Morris (Massachusetts), Garri Regev (Israel), Jeanette Rosenberg (UK) and Janice Sellers (California).

Ancestry.com: Ultimate Family Journey contest

Ancestry.com is again sponsoring the Ultimate Family History Journey Sweepstakes, timed to coincide with Season 2 of the US-version of "Who Do You Think You Are?" which begins Friday, February 4.

The event began January 25. Readers can register and enter once each day through April 8.

Who may enter: Residents of the 50 US states (and DC) and Canada. Entrants must be at least 18 years old at time of entry. Click here to read the official rules.

The Grand Prize includes $20,000 in travel money, up to eight hours of consultation with an expert genealogist, help from up to five experts in specialized fields relevant to your unique family history, and a year-long Ancestry.com World Deluxe membership for you and five family members.

Twenty First Prize winners will receive an annual Ancestry.com World Deluxe membership.

For more information and to register, click here to begin by entering your email address.

Where in the world will you go if you win the grand prize? Tell Tracing the Tribe about your plans!

Top 40 Gen Blogs: Voting deadline tonight!

The voting deadine for the 2011 edition of Family Tree Magazine's Top 40 genealogy blogs is tonight: Monday, December 20, at 11.59pm.

Don't forget to participate and vote - you may vote multiple times - for your favorites among the 117 blogs in eight categories. You may vote for five blogs in each category. [Tracing the Tribe is listed in the Heritage category.]

For more information on the authors of the blogs (and the URLs), click here to see Thomas MacEntee's post.

Click here for the voting form.

Results will be announced in the July 2011 issue of Family Tree Magazine.

Jewish Music: International winners announced

Musicians in the family?

Here are more you may not have known about. They are the winners of the second International Jewish Music Festival, held in Amsterdam.

Participants included 24 groups from 12 countries.

As in 2008, the Amsterdam-based festival managed to attract top ensembles from around the world to this unique competition. The pre-selected 24 ensembles came from 12 countries and four continents. For them, this is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to showcase their talent for an audience of programmers, agents and aficionados. The jury included world-renowned Yiddish singer Adrienne Cooper and klezmer expert Hankus Netsky.

Eight workshops were also presented, incuding Adrienne Cooper's Yiddish/Ladino masterclass and the famed Hankus Netsky's Instant Klezmer workshop.

The first-place winner was a Chassidic band, The Heart & The Wellspring (Israel).

Other winners:

Mames Babegenush (Denmark)
Voice of the Levites (Israel)
Shir (UK) - Best Yiddish song
Di Gojim (Netherlands)
Yonit Shaked Golan & Gabi Argov (Israel)
Lafra (Spain) - Best Sephardic performance
Klezmafour (Poland)
Trio C Tot De Derde (Netherlands)
Vent d'Ouest Klezmer Band (France)

To view an 11-minute documentary of the finale, click here.

Got a memoir? Moment Magazine wants yours!

Here's a great contest for genealogists!

Moment Magazine is holding a memoir contest and wants to hear yours. It is open to all individuals residing in or outside the US except where prohibited.

Everyone has a story...To celebrate the rich and diverse narratives of its readers, Moment is holding a memoir writing contest. We are looking for short personal essays/memoirs (no more than 3,500 words) about you or your family that have some kind of Jewish connection or content. Moment will review all submissions and award one first place award and two honorable mentions to works of outstanding writing.

Prizes: 1st place, $500+possible publication; two honorable mentions, $150 each.

Submissions must be postmarked by December 31, 2010. Download a signed copy of the contest's official rules (download, print, sign and send with your entry). Winners will be announced in 2011.

In case you're wondering:

No previously published works, or works already accepted for publication elsewhere, are eligible. Work may be under consideration elsewhere, but must be withdrawn from the competition if accepted for publication.

Moment editors will review winning stories and contact the winners if their stories are being considered for publication. And - in case you think that each of your words is golden and may never be changed - all selected material is subject to editing by the mag's editors.

A reader fee of $35 is required for each entry; multiple submissions accepted.

For the nitty gritty on what each entry must and must not include, the format, address to send to and other essential details, click here. That link will also provide the important official rules link.

[Note from Tracing the Tribe: Pretty please, do not send in an entry about how your family's name was changed at Ellis Island. Thank you.]

Family Tree Magazine: Win! Win! Win!

Family Tree Magazine is offering an "ultimate family history giveaway."

Enter for a chance to win more than $2,000 worth of genealogy products, including a Family History Library research retreat and hotel stay, subscriptions, software, gift certificates and more.

It's okay to enter everyday - so bookmark the page and note your calendar - through October 31. Maybe you'll be the lucky one to win this fabulous package.

The prize package includes the following:

•A week-long Salt Lake City research trip! Free registration in a Family History Library Research Retreat from Family History Expos ($399 value) plus a free six-night stay at the neighboring Salt Lake Plaza hotel ($510 value)

•Annual subscription to FindMyPast.co.uk ($239 value)

•2-year PremiumPlus membership to MyHeritage.com ($238 value)

•RootsMagic 4 software, Getting the Most from RootsMagic book, RootsMagic tote bag, 4GB RootsMagic flash drive, Personal Historian software, Family Atlas software ($122 value)

•1-year Research Membership in the New England Historic Genealogical Society, including access to AmericanAncestors.org, plus a 1 hour consultation with a professional NEHGS genealogist ($125 value)

•3 gift certificates for any spiral-bound or paperback book from Arphax Publishing's Family Maps or Texas Land Survey Maps series ($90 value)

•Annual subscription to GenealogyBank ($89.95 value)

•Google Earth for Genealogy DVD and Genealogy Gems Podcast Premium annual membership ($42 value)

•10 Years of Family Tree Magazine DVD, The Family Tree Sourcebook and a 1-year Family Tree VIP membership ($185 value)

What are you waiting for? Enter today! Read the official rules here.

California: Win free family history expo tickets!

Local genealogy events enable participants to network with area individuals sharing mutual interests, have more one-on-one time with major speakers and jump start research.

The events bring genealogy to the people in an easy-to-reach, short-term format, requiring less traveling time and lower costs.

They provide a wide range of excellent programs to participants of various skill levels. Tracing the Tribe feels that participants - particularly beginners - will be much better prepared to later attend larger conferences, such as the 31st IAJGS International Conference on Jewish Genealogy (14-19 August 2011, Washington, DC).

Family History Expos (FHE) runs excellent programs - according to many geneabloggers who have attended and presented. Their next event is set for the San Francisco Bay area suburb of Pleasanton, California (Friday-Saturday, October 8-9), with an excellent lineup of topics and speakers (see below).

Even better, Geneabloggers.com - the genealogy community's resource for genealogy bloggers - is running a contest to give away two free adminission tickets (normally $75 each) to the October event.

It's simple to enter. All you have to do is let Geneabloggers know how attending a Family History Expo event would help your own genealogy research. Click here for more information and to enter.

Enter from September 21-24, and check Geneabloggers.com on September 25 to see which lucky people have received those tickets.

The Pleasanton program is here.

Well-known speakers include Beau Sharbrough, Amy Coffin, Geoggrey D. Rasmussen, Jean, Wilcox Hibben, Arlene Eakle, Thomas MacEntee, Bruce Buzbee, Ron Arons, Lisa Louise Cooke, Lisa Alzo, Leland K. Meitzler, Janet Hovorka and Craig Manson, as well as staffers from Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, software vendors and others.

Topics include blogging, social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), software, African American research, US Census, mapping, Irish research, California resources, land and property records, how to track down elusive ancestors, photographs (preservation, scanning, retouching), organizing, German records, genealogy gifts and games, Google search, beginning genealogy, and scheduled one-on-one appointments with the experts.

Upcoming FHE events are set for Atlanta, Georgia (November 12-13) and Mesa, Arizona (January 2011).

Contest: Your heirloom may win roots travel

What's the most unique thing saved from your family's history? Write a 300-word essay about it and you might win this heritage stories contest.

Lands' End - a catalog that shows up frequently in mailboxes across the US - has created a Heritage Collection and now wants others to tell their own family stories.

Readers can submit entries through September 30:

From antique hunting in a parents' attic to digging up old treasures on the family farm, everyone is getting excited about items from long ago - including Lands' End. The company is celebrating its rich, storied past with the Lands' End Heritage Collection - well-known, classic pieces that are synonymous go-to favorites by virtue of their authenticity. Inspired by this collection, Lands' End is inviting everyone to share their own heritage with the "Heritage Stories" contest.

Beginning Sept. 8 through Sept. 30, submit a short description of the most unique thing from your family's past. Perhaps an authentic family heirloom, quality advice, or a valued family motto - that has been treasured and counted on over time.

What are the rules?

To enter the "Heritage Stories" contest, please submit an essay, in 300 words or less, explaining the most unique thing saved from your family's history. All entries must be submitted to landsend.com/thehub by Sept. 30, 2010, 11:59pm CDT. This contest is open to United States and Canadian residents. The official contest rules can be found at www.landsend.com/thehub.

And if you win?

Winners will be notified on or around October 15, 2010. Twenty-five winners will each receive $100 towards their choice of items in the Lands' End Heritage Collection. One Grand Prize winner will receive $250 towards the Lands' End Heritage Collection, plus a $2,000 Visa Travel Money Card to use toward continuing their family's traditions or discovering more of their family's heritage.

Tracing the Tribe's crystal ball forsees roots travel in someone's future!

For more details, click here and read the complete press release here.

IAJGS 2010: International Jewish Genealogy Month

Each year, the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies holds a competition for a poster for International Jewish Genealogy Month, held during Cheshvan (October-November).

The winner this year was Jen Lowe, a member (since 2009) of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Colorado (JGSCO), where she serves as secretary.

She first started doing genealogy at age 16 when her great-uncle handed her a family tree void of women.

In 1973, her father purchased the Texaco station in Cotopaxi, Colorado. This led to Jen's current research project - the Cotopaxi Jewish Immigrant Colony.

Her roots are in Germany, Switzerland, England and places still unknown.

Jen holds a BS (Business, Colorado State University, Pueblo) and an MBA (University of Northern Colorado, Greeley). Married with two sons, she's been retired since 2002, after working 33 years as a civil servant and in business management.

She’s quite happy to have time to pursue her real love – mixed media art. Her projects have been published 154 times in books and magazines around the world.

The winning poster is also at the IAJGS website; see Jewish Genealogy Month (left sidebar). All genealogy societies, historical societies, synagogues, schools, libraries are invited to download and print out 11x17-inch copies and post them wherever possible.

The poster committee included Merle Kastner of the JGS of Montreal, and Rabbi Gary Gans of the JGS of Greater Philadelphia with myself as committee chair.

We are all delighted that Jen decided to share her talent with IAJGS and all Jewish genealogists around the world.

Ancestry Sweepstakes: Ultimate family history journey!

If you are the grand prize winner in Ancestry.com's new sweepstakes, you may win a very nice deal.

Have you always wanted to visit your ancestral village? Research in archives? Here's your chance. No purchase is necessary.

You can register once a day - and if you register up to five friends, you have the opportunity to register more than once a day. Read the rules carefully.

The contest runs through April 30, and you could win the following:

$20,000 in travel money

Eight-hour consultation with an expert genealogist

Five experts in fields relevant to your personal family history to help you learn even more

Annual World Deluxe Subscription for you and five family members

In addition, 20 First Prize winners will receive an Ancestry World Deluxe Edition subscription.

The Grand Prize drawing will be held on or around May 3. Go to Ancestry.com, complete the form and see links to other relevant sections, such as the FAQ and Official Rules.

How to sign up for the sweepstakes: Provide your email address and contact information. You don't have to buy anything to enter. By registering (you will receive a follow-up email with a username and password to log in to a free account, but not to the subscription databases), you can start a family tree.

To enter, go directly to Ancestry.com. Register once each day using the username and password sent to you.

Good luck!

Inspiration: Vote for this Jewish genealogy video

"Genealogy is roots, connections, wanderings, imaginings, hearts, souls and minds," says one participant in a short inspiring video that all genealogists - Jewish or not - should see (and vote for now).

Developed by the Jewish Genealogical Society of Colorado and produced by the multi-talented Ellen Shindelman Kowitt, this video has the potential to influence a large audience of young people and bring them into the field.


But the JGSColorado needs the help of Tracing the Tribe's readers to do it. Watch the video here as it reveals to viewers concisely and precisely what Jewish genealogy is, why we do it and some advice for beginners.

It takes only eight minutes to view the video and a few seconds to vote for the full five stars it deserves.

Ellen is one of the most dedicated and passionate genealogy people that I know. Her work focuses on the preservation and connectivity of the Jewish community in Colorado and throughout the world. Her passion for our favorite topic has brought people to their roots and revealed stories that would have been lost forever.

The video was produced as part of a larger JGSColorado project, and the group needs your help in a grass-roots video contest.

If the video wins any final position from first to fifth place, it will be announced at the Jewlicious Festival - the largest Jewish student and young adult festival in the world - in southern California February 19-21. It is the only video with a genealogy theme in the competition.

As genealogists, we are always talking about how we can bring in younger people. Imagine if this video were played to that huge young audience? How may this video impact the future of the Jewish genealogy world?

Be a part of this dream and help the JGS of Colorado - and perhaps the entire field of Jewish genealogy - by voting for this video.

Let's win one for Jewish genealogy! Vote now!

Send this announcement to the members of your family, to the members of your genealogy societies, to your friends who understand your passion to this field, and ask them to vote as well. This post will be on Facebook and on Twitter, so if that's your thing, please "LIKE" it and retweet it to let people know about it.

Go here or http://www.leadel.net/jews-that-do-contest/videos/connecting-your-roots

Some relevant quotes from the video:

According to Rabbi Josh Rose of Congregation Har HaShem:

"It isn't just accumulating information about your [ancestors], but being drawn into the process and being affected by it. Genealogy is you. Both what we discover and the very process of discovering is at the core of what we are. Link this to the study of Torah and you are learning the story of our people, the genealogy of our people. It is not only what we discover but the process, how that learning informs you, changes you, draws you in."

Martin Mandelsberg, a Holocaust artist, notes that genealogy asks (and sometimes answers): "Where did I come from? How far can I go back? Are there people like me? I had to come from somewhere - who am I?

Terry Lasky, who has documented 22,000 Jewish burials in Colorado, advises viewers of two important points: "Have patience. Don't expect to find everything in an hour," and "Never give up."

Go to the link above, see the full video, be inspired and vote for it now.

Books: 2010 Sami Rohr Prize finalists

Five non-fiction finalists, from among 25 entries, were announced for the 2010 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, the fourth year the award has been given.

Topics range from the role rabbis and Jewish intellectuals have played in forming American public identity, a candid and quirky spiritual memoir, the Jewish renaissance in Russia at the time of the Russian Revolution, the involvement of Jews in the international feather trade and Yiddish radio in America.

The prize is administered by the Jewish Book Council.

The winner gets $100,000, and the first runner-up will receive $25,000. The five finalists will meet with judges on December 6 in New York. The winners will be announced in January 2010, and the awards ceremony will take place March 31 in Jerusalem.
The finalists and their books:

-- Lila Corwin Berman - Speaking of Jews: Rabbis, Intellectuals, and the Creation of an American Public Identity (University of California Press)

-- Ari Y. Kelman - Station Identification: A Cultural History of Yiddish Radio in the United States (University of California Press)

-- Kenneth B. Moss - Jewish Renaissance in the Russian Revolution (Harvard University Press)
-- Danya Ruttenberg - Surprised by God: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Religion (Beacon Press)

-- Sarah Abrevaya Stein - Plumes: Ostrich Feathers, Jews, and a Lost World of Global Commerce (Yale University Press)

To read the complete press release, please click here.

Las Vegas: MOTs play poker

Tracing the Tribe is not always about genealogy, per se. It also covers the achievements of members of the tribe in various fields. Today it's poker.

A certain generation of us remember our male relatives playing cards (friendly or for money), and our female relatives playing cards or mah jong. But, as noted before, those weren't places where millions of dollars changed hands. They were decidedly small stake games.

Today, we trace the MOTs even to Las Vegas, where four (out of nine) are in the finals of a really big stakes poker tournament.

The Forward's story, by Ron Dicker, called them "Chai Rollers."

In defiance of the odds on a scale of, say, holding a royal flush, four of the nine players who will be sitting at the final table at the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas are Jewish.

The competition begins November 7, with a $8.6 million top prize.

Where did some of these top players pick up their skills?

While many Jewish studies say that Jewish summer camps are one of the best ways to transmit and preserve Jewish values, Tracing the Tribe didn't know poker was part of it, although that's where one finalist learned the ropes.

Jeff Shulman, 34, learned the basics of poker at B’nai B’rith summer camp in Neotsu, Ore. He quickly parted bunkmates and their money. “It was fairly natural for me.”

You maybe thought that extra money for your camper was going for ice cream?

And although the Talmud says that a father must teach his son to swim, I hadn't heard that the next line was "teach him to play cards for big money." Jeff's father, Barry Shulman, is also a top player and took home $1.3 million at the World Series European Championship, on October 1 in London. The tournament was halted for a day because of Yom Kippur.

Jeff studied with his father to master the high stakes game, and in 2000 he also qualified for the World Series championship table, and finished seventh. He says he's always believed he was a good money manager, and doesn't think of it as Jewish.

Shulman lives in Las Vegas. The other three MOT finalists are Steven Begleiter, 47, (Chappaqua, N.Y.), Eric Buchman (Valley Stream, N.Y.) and Kevin Schaffel (Coral Springs, Fla.), are the latest to reach the top level of a game with a large number of Jewish participants. These top nine players are what's left of 6,500 people from 115 countries who entered the competition months ago.

“We simply can’t explain this statistic,” World Series of Poker Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack and tournament director Jack Effel said through a spokesman. Bo Bernhard, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas’s director of gaming research, also was stumped, and said he could offer “zero explanation.”

Other MOTs who have won big recently are Hollywood agent Jamie Gold, who took home $12 million at the 2006 World Series Main Event. Player of the year for 2006 Michael Mizrachi won almost $7 million.

How are other MOTs involved? World Series titleholder David Sklansky has written poker theory books. Brother-and-sister duo World Series event winners, Howard Lederer and Annie Duke still play at a top level. Read about the Babe Ruth of high-stakes poker Stu Ungar in the complete article.

The story quotes Tel Aviv University sociologist Giora Rahav:

“I’d say that there is reason to believe that Jews have a higher rate of participation in gambling than their neighbors. As for making money by gambling, the only thing I can think of is that the [Jewish] tradition of well-controlled drinking applies here as well. If they are well controlled, they lose less.”

A woman eliminated early on, Martha Frankel, noticed the preponderance of MOTs:

“You look around that room at the World Series of Poker,” she said. “If somebody started speaking in Yiddish, half of us would have looked up.”

Read about Frankel's life and her book in the complete article.

Begleiter got involved in middle school, but made a commitment in the suburbs, playing in a basement poker league with his friends, who are also benefiting from his participation. Read about his profit-sharing arrangement with his friends in the article.

Rounding out the story, Begleiter pointed out that no matter each player's nationality or religion, the main point was luck. Mazal is a good thing!

“We all had our share of good fortune in getting here,” he said. “The Red Sea definitely parted for me a couple of times.”

Read the complete article at the link above.

NGS: Two contests set

The National Genealogical Society has announced two competitions, one for writing and the other for newsletters.

The submission deadline for both the NGS Family History Writing Contest and Newsletter Competition is December 31. Only NGS members (individual or organizational) may participate.

For the Family History Writing Contest, the winner receives a certificate and prizes (estimated value $1,500), including travel to and from the NGS Conference and Family History Fair in Salt Lake City set for April 2010. up to five nights' hotel, free conference registration and free banquet ticket. Travel has some restrictions, so see the website for details.

What is NGS looking for?

- An original work not previously published or submitted elsewhere, covering three to four generations with proper documentation using the NGSQ Numbering System.

- Time period: Early American or later-immigrant. For early American, the progenitor may have been born elsewhere, but he and his descendants must have lived in Colonial America and/or the US. For a later-immigrant family genealogy, first and second generations may have been born elsewhere, but must have immigrated and lived in the US. The writer may be included as a third generation member, but not earlier.

- Criteria: Based on how well the writer demonstrates his or her research skills by using and analyzing a wide variety of original documents and telling the story by placing the family in the relevant historical context.

For all the details: Click the Awards & Competitions section of the NGS web site.

The NGS Newsletter Competition has the same December 31 deadline. and is for genealogical or historical societies which produce outstanding newsletters. Societies must be organizational NGS members.

There are three levels: (1) Major genealogical society newsletter, (2) local or county genealogical or historical society newsletter, or (3) family association newsletter. Three copies of two consecutive issues from the current year (2009) must be submitted along with the completed entry form.

Winner will receive a certificate, one-year NGS membership, and will be featured in an NGS Magazine article. Runner-up will receive a certificate and be featured in the NGS Magazine. Winners will be announced at the Opening Session of the NGS Conference and Family History Fair in Salt Lake City, on April 28, 2010.

For all the details, click the Awards & Competitions section of the NGS web site

GenClass: Family history contest, October

GenClass.com - which provides genealogy education online - has announced its new "Celebrate Your Family History Contest," in conjunction with National Family History Month in October.

The winner will receive a free course of his or her choice - check out the course offerings at GenClass.

Here are the details:

Tell GenClass - in 1,200 words or less - all about the most creative way you’ve honored your ancestors and what inspired you to do so. It could be in a book, a quilt, music, artwork or other form.

Word text only please (no images should be attached, although links to images within the text are accepted). Type or paste the text into the body of an e-mail message with the subject line: GenClass Celebrate Family History Contest. Send it to lisa.genclass@gmail.com.

The deadline for submissions is Monday, October 5 (midnight Eastern Standard Time).

One winner will be randomly drawn from all submissions received by the deadline, and the winning entry will be published in a future issue of the GenClass newsletter.

Have you honored your ancestors in a creative way?

If not, now is the time to do it!

Top 40: Nominate your favorite gen blogs

Here's something for Tracing the Tribe's readers to get involved in.

Family Tree Magazine is asking its readers to nominate their favorite geneablogs for its list of the best 40 genealogy blogs. Nominations will be accepted through September 30.

According to the mag's Genealogy Insider blog post:

Do you have a favorite few genealogy blogs that you read regularly? Maybe the blogger offers excellent genealogy advice, insightful analysis or a unique point of view. Or the writing is especially creative or humorous.

If so, we want to know about it.

In the May 2010 issue, we’ll be naming the FamilyTree Magazine 40 Best Genealogy Blogs (“Family Tree 40” for short).

First, we’re asking the genealogy community to nominate the genealogy blogs they read most. Later, family historians will vote on their favorite blogs in several categories.

Click here (or on the FT40 logo in the sidebar at right) to nominate favorite geneablogs - I hope Tracing the Tribe is one of your favorites. I'll also be nominating several excellent blogs written by my geneablogger colleagues.

While you're at the magazine's website, also take a look at the recently added must-read essential book list for researchers of Jewish ancestry, Ashkenazi or Sephardic.

Voting will take place from October 5-November 5, and the Family Tree 40 will be announced in the May 2010 Family Tree Magazine. Follow updates in the publication's weekly newsletter, and in the Genealogy Insider blog. You can also follow the magazine's Twitter feed (hashtag #FT40).

Click here to make your nominations.

Changing the rules: GenealogyWise

GenealogyWise.com has changed the rules on its "contest," and may do so again, according to this early morning message from the company.

The rules are somewhat better and not focused on the goal of "grabbing" (quantification) as many members and posting as much as possible. The objective has changed to something more quality-oriented, which puts the responsibility on the page writer and poster for their own work, and not for their "organizing" ability.

Why the change? It seems the geneablogger community and others felt much the same way I did in my previous post. The feedback was not good and GenealogyWise responded quickly.

I am still wondering if the company will now decide to set up an advisory council of geneabloggers and other individuals who will ask the right questions before such events are announced, and thus avoid these type of incidents that come under my favorite category of "Yes, we can do such-and-such, but should we?"

It appears that something like that is in the works, as the contest will be judged by 10 members of the GenealogyWise community.

The new rules still offer $100 for each winner, but the categories are newly described as these:

Due to community feedback, the rules of the contest have been modified so that content contributed by members is more meaningful and of a higher quality:

- for the member with the highest quality blog posts.

- for the member with the highest quality videos shared.

- for the member with the highest quality forum posts.

- for the member with the highest quality photos uploaded (including descriptions).

- for the member with the highest quality surname group.

- for the member with the highest quality society group (historical or genealogical society).

- for the member with the highest quality other group (not surname or society group).

- for the member who has been the most helpful person to new members.

The message indicated that the corporate goal of the contest is to help members of this new social network get to know each other, and to encourage members to add valuable, relevant content to this new site. That's a good thing.

I was delighted to see this sentence: "GenealogyWise may disqualify any members who are 'gaming' the system, such as adding irrelevant or low-quality content." That's also good to know.

Somewhat disturbing, however, is the statement that "GenealogyWise reserves the ability to change the rules (again) if necessary."

I don't know about you, but I believe future events need to be thought out much more carefully. A game that keeps changing the rules mid-stream is just as annoying as one which isn't well-thought out before it is announced the first time.

Personally, I think this is opening another can of worms.

A better way would have been to just call this off for now, sit down, discuss ramifications and consequences and work out the final rules beforehand. Then announce it again when the proper groundwork has been set.

While both previous and new rules messages indicate contacting Debbie Anne Jackson for questions, the only email given is a general mail@.

Let's see what tomorrow's messages brings.