Lisa Louise Cooke Headlines Our 2026 Fall Seminar
We're thrilled to announce that Lisa Louise Cooke will be the featured speaker at the SAGHS Fall Seminar on Saturday, October 17, 2026, at Coker Methodist Church's Life Fellowship Center. Registration opens at 8:00 a.m.
Lisa produces and hosts the Genealogy Gems Podcast and the Genealogy Gems YouTube channel, which has more than 35,000 subscribers. She is the author of five books, including The Genealogist's Google Toolbox, 3rd edition, and has written over 50 columns for Family Tree Magazine. She also offers a Premium Membership at lisalouisecooke.com featuring exclusive on-demand genealogy education.
Known for her engaging style and practical strategies, Lisa has been the featured speaker at hundreds of full-day seminars over the past 18 years and has presented at some of the most prominent genealogy events in the world:
Lisa found her passion for family history at the age of eight. During a visit to her maternal grandmother's home, she stumbled onto a dusty old scrapbook filled with black-and-white photos of people she didn't recognize.
"I headed to the kitchen to ask my grandma who these strangers were. She smiled, tossed her kitchen towel over her shoulder, and lovingly led me to my grandpa's big chair to sit down and talk about it. She told me they weren't strangers — they were her people. 'But I'm your people!' I cried. She assured me I was, and that her parents were my people too. She then grabbed a scrap of paper off the coffee table and jotted down a few names, dates, and places. She was concerned that she didn't even know the exact spelling of her German mother's maiden name. That moment lit a fire inside me. I wanted to be the one to find the answer for her. Over the years I did — and so much more."
Family isn't just a professional priority for Lisa. She's a doting wife to Bill, the proud mom of three daughters, and has added Grandma to her résumé.
Includes all sessions and lunch.
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Multigrain wheat bread, lettuce, tomato, chips, pickle, chocolate chip cookie (880-1360 cal)
Spinach, guacamole, hummus, tomato, red onion,cucumber, on an everything bun. Fruit cup and chips. (500-580 cal)
* Lunch is being catered by Jason's Deli. They offer a "Gluten-Sensitive Menu" — sandwiches on Udi's gluten-free bread, salads, the salad bar, baked potatoes, gluten-free chips, most of their soups. But Jason's Deli itself states it's not a gluten-free environment — everything's prepared in a common kitchen, so they can't guarantee no cross-contact, and they explicitly say they can't recommend it for people with Celiac Disease.
If you do have a food allergy, please tell us. We will do everything reasonable that we may to accommodate your situation.
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