JGSCO upcoming events

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Help Us Finish Strong – JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project (October 26, 2026)

Mon, 26 Oct 2026 16:00:00 GMT

If you have trouble getting into the library, you may call David Fasman at 310-923-3606.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Help Us Finish Strong

JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project

Monday October 26th 2026 10 am to 3 pm

We’re rounding the bend on completing the JCRS patient application records—and we couldn’t have come this far without our incredible volunteers. Thank you!

Now, let’s finish strong together.

Please consider joining us for one or more Mondays from 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM(with a lunch break). This is meaningful mitzvah work and a unique opportunity to explore fascinating Denver history.

What You’ll Do
Our goal is to create a complete index of the JCRS patient application collection. Volunteers will work with historical records and enter key data into a spreadsheet provided by the archive.

Learn more about the project:
https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/USA/JCRS.htm

No Experience Needed!
We’ll provide all the training. Just bring:
• Your laptop
• Reading glasses (if needed)
• A friend (optional—but encouraged!)

Registration is Required
Click the blue link to sign up.

https://www.jgsco.org/event-6658172

Location
Main Library at Anderson Academic Commons
University of Denver
2150 East Evans Avenue
Denver, CO 80208
Beck Archives – Lower Level, Room 102

Parking
DU Lot 315 or Lot 301 (parking will be reimbursed)
Map: https://www.du.edu/sites/default/files/2023-08/parking-map.pdf
Additional parking may be available near the library.

Food
No food is allowed in the archives.
A small café is available on the main floor for snacks.
While lunch is no longer provided, you are welcome to bring your own to enjoy outside the building—or gather a group and visit one of the many restaurants around campus.

Unlock Hidden Family Records with Family Search's Cutting Edge Artificial Intelligence Technology (November 08, 2026)

Sun, 08 Nov 2026 16:30:00 GMT

Unlock Hidden Family Records with FamilySearch’s Cutting-Edge Artificial Intelligence Technology

Speaker: Todd Knowles

Sunday, November 8, 2026

9:30 – 10:00 AM (MT)
Schmear, Schmooze, and Share

Have a Genealogy Question?

We are now accepting genealogy questions in advance for our Schmear, Schmooze, and Share, held from 9:30–10:00 AM MT.

Please email your questions to grmarcus211@comcast.net by Friday, November 6.

Please note: Your question may be shared on our Members Helping Members Forum so that other members can offer suggestions and help with your research. LINK TO THE FORUM or just log in to browse

10:00 AM (MT)
Program Begins

Location: Zoom

This NEW AI-powered Full-Text Search is a true genealogy game changer.

Join Todd Knowles as he explores FamilySearch’s powerful new AI Full-Text Search feature—and shows you exactly how to use it to uncover records you never knew existed.

Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned family historian, this tool can help you break through brick walls by searching the entire contents of historical documents—not just the indexed portions, but unindexed materials as well.

FamilySearch’s AI can read through millions of scanned documents, including handwritten records and old letters. It analyzes every word, scribble, and note—even when your ancestor’s name was never included in an official index.

You can now uncover:

Hidden family connections
Mentions in court records
Names buried in wills and land deeds
References in meeting notes and other overlooked documents

You are no longer limited by what has been manually indexed.

About Todd Knowles

W. Todd Knowles is Deputy Chief Genealogical Officer at FamilySearch, where he has worked for over 23 years.

Introduced to family history at age 11, he soon discovered his Jewish roots. His journey to trace his Polish Jewish ancestry led to the creation of the Knowles Collection, six databases containing genealogical records for nearly 1.5 million individuals.

Todd is a former President of the Jewish Genealogical Society of Utah. He has lectured worldwide, and his articles have been widely published.

Registration is required:
https://www.jgsco.org/event-6571619

Members: No charge
Non-members: $5

The Zoom link will be emailed upon registration.

And if you are interested in going to the FamilySearch library on Wednesday November 11th please register at https://www.jgsco.org/event-6806588

Please note that the FamilySearch Library is for members and is in person only

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Help Us Finish Strong – JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project (November 09, 2026)

Mon, 09 Nov 2026 17:00:00 GMT

If you have trouble getting into the library, you may call David Fasman at 310-923-3606.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Help Us Finish Strong

JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project

Monday November 9th 2026 10 am to 3 pm

We’re rounding the bend on completing the JCRS patient application records—and we couldn’t have come this far without our incredible volunteers. Thank you!

Now, let’s finish strong together.

Please consider joining us for one or more Mondays from 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM(with a lunch break). This is meaningful mitzvah work and a unique opportunity to explore fascinating Denver history.

Learn more about the project:
https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/USA/JCRS.htm

No Experience Needed!
We’ll provide all the training. Just bring:
• Your laptop
• Reading glasses (if needed)
• A friend (optional—but encouraged!)

Registration is Required
Click the blue link to sign up.

https://www.jgsco.org/event-6658184

Location
Main Library at Anderson Academic Commons
University of Denver
2150 East Evans Avenue
Denver, CO 80208
Beck Archives – Lower Level, Room 102

Parking
DU Lot 315 or Lot 301 (parking will be reimbursed)
Map: https://www.du.edu/sites/default/files/2023-08/parking-map.pdf
Additional parking may be available near the library.

The FamilySearch Library and how to use it to further your research (November 11, 2026)

Wed, 11 Nov 2026 17:00:00 GMT

Join The Jewish Genealogy Society of Colorado

at the FamilySearch Library

The FamilySearch Library and how to use it to

further your research

Wednesday November 11th , 2026

10 AM In-Person Only

2710 S Monaco St Pkwy

Use the side door on Yale, there is a parking lot

JGSCO Members Only

There will be a limit on participants who do not own a laptop

Everyone must register

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Help Us Finish Strong – JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project (November 30, 2026)

Mon, 30 Nov 2026 17:00:00 GMT

If you have trouble getting into the library, you may call David Fasman at 310-923-3606.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Help Us Finish Strong

JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project

Monday November 30th 2026 10 am to 3 pm

We’re rounding the bend on completing the JCRS patient application records—and we couldn’t have come this far without our incredible volunteers. Thank you!

Now, let’s finish strong together.

Please consider joining us for one or more Mondays from 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM (with a lunch break). This is meaningful mitzvah work and a unique opportunity to explore fascinating Denver history.

Learn more about the project:
https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/USA/JCRS.htm

No Experience Needed!
We’ll provide all the training. Just bring:
• Your laptop
• Reading glasses (if needed)
• A friend (optional—but encouraged!)

Registration is Required
Click the blue link to sign up.

https://www.jgsco.org/event-6658193

Location
Main Library at Anderson Academic Commons
University of Denver
2150 East Evans Avenue
Denver, CO 80208
Beck Archives – Lower Level, Room 102

Parking
DU Lot 315 or Lot 301 (parking will be reimbursed)
Map: https://www.du.edu/sites/default/files/2023-08/parking-map.pdf
Additional parking may be available near the library.

Galician Records of the JDC War Orphans Bureau 1921-1922 (December 06, 2026)

Sun, 06 Dec 2026 16:30:00 GMT

Galician Records of the

JDC War Orphans Bureau

1921-1922

Speaker and Project Coordinator:

Alexander Feller

Sunday December 6th 2026

9:30 – 10:00 AM (MT)
Schmear, Schmooze, and Share

10:00 AM (MT)
Program Begins

Location: Zoom

After World War I, the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) established the War Orphans Bureau to aid thousands of European Jewish children who had lost one or both parents. Many of these children lived in devastated towns across former Galicia.

A key function of the Bureau was creating detailed orphan lists to manage aid distribution and track each child’s needs. These lists were compiled at the town level through local networks of rabbis, teachers, orphanages, and relief workers. Each entry included the child’s name, age, birthplace, parents’ status, guardian, physical condition, and educational background. Children were classified as full orphans, half-orphans, or displaced, helping prioritize the level of assistance. The lists enabled the Bureau to provide stipends, clothing, food, education, and medical care. They were updated regularly and submitted to the JDC’s headquarters for monitoring and planning. Orphan lists also supported efforts to reunite children with relatives, and when available, included addresses of relatives abroad. These records were vital for accountability and long-term care coordination.

Today, the lists serve as valuable historical resources documenting Jewish communal rescue efforts and as important genealogical records on Galician children and their parents. Given the disruption to vital record keeping during World War I, these lists can provide information of a deceased parent’s year and cause of death which may not be recorded elsewhere. This project transcribed orphan and parental information from lists for towns of former Galicia into a format that will allow members to search names in the All Galicia Database.

Benefits to Researchers

World War I was a turbulent time for many towns within the former province of Galicia. Death, disease, and poverty affected almost every family. Men were called up to be soldiers by the Austro-Hungarian Army, deported into Russia by the Russian Army, or died because of disease or war. Mothers and their children were left to survive in their hometown or relocated to other towns. Given the disruption in vital record keeping due to the war, and the movement of families, this period presents a challenge to genealogists in tracing the whereabouts and disposition of family members. These records provide information on children and their parents in the aftermath of World War I that can fill in those gaps. Information on a child’s birth year and birthplace can be used to locate birth records or add vital information where birth records no longer exist. Information on a parents’ death or health status provides additional data to better understand the fate of a child’s parents during the war that was otherwise frequently unknown. Names and addresses of relatives abroad mentioned in these lists may help connect previously unknown relations.

Registration is required:

https://www.jgsco.org/event-6718954

Members: No charge
Non-members: $5

The Zoom link will be emailed upon registration.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Help Us Finish Strong – JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project (December 14, 2026)

Mon, 14 Dec 2026 17:00:00 GMT

If you have trouble getting into the library, you may call David Fasman at 310-923-3606.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Help Us Finish Strong

JCRS Beck Archives at the University of Denver Volunteer Project

Monday December 14th 2026 10 am to 3 pm

We’re rounding the bend on completing the JCRS patient application records—and we couldn’t have come this far without our incredible volunteers. Thank you!

Now, let’s finish strong together.

Please consider joining us for one or more Mondays from 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM(with a lunch break). This is meaningful mitzvah work and a unique opportunity to explore fascinating Denver history.

Learn more about the project:
https://www.jewishgen.org/databases/USA/JCRS.htm

No Experience Needed!
We’ll provide all the training. Just bring:
• Your laptop
• Reading glasses (if needed)
• A friend (optional—but encouraged!)

Registration is Required
Click the blue link to sign up.

https://www.jgsco.org/event-6658206

Location
Main Library at Anderson Academic Commons
University of Denver
2150 East Evans Avenue
Denver, CO 80208
Beck Archives – Lower Level, Room 102

Parking
DU Lot 315 or Lot 301 (parking will be reimbursed)
Map: https://www.du.edu/sites/default/files/2023-08/parking-map.pdf
Additional parking may be available near the library.