Southern California Genealogy Society’s 2016 Jamboree is almost here and I am excited. For the first time in years, I am going to attend! I had big plans to go last year, but got waylaid by an Alaskan cruise (no, I am not asking for sympathy), but this year, it’s a go.

This is going to be a fabulous week, as I am driving to Burbank from Tucson, and I can fit in all of my favorite activities – shopping at the Cabazon outlet near Palm Springs, visiting friends in Alta Loma, where I used to live and then attending Jamboree itself next weekend. I also plan to squeeze in a visit with my first cousin, once-removed, Nick, who is a young-at-heart 94 years old.

Jamboree begins on Thursday, June 2, with The Future of the Past: Genetic Genealogy 2016. This is a bonus day, so to speak, with its own registration fee. I am not much into DNA and genealogy, mostly because I personally have no brick walls that are close enough in time to me that DNA testing might help crack open, so I will forego Thursday’s sessions.

On Friday, the 3rd, Jamboree gets into full swing. If you have never attended Jamboree, it is a smaller version of RootsTech without most of the tech end of things. There are sessions with top notch speakers, a vendor exhibit that is wonderful, and a pile of extra workshop and banquet choices that are optional add-ons.

As at RootsTech, I will need to make some choices with so much going on at the same time. Right now, these are some of the sessions that have caught my eye:

Genealogy World Roundtables
Women’s Work: Tracing your Ancestors Occupations and Volunteer Work by Gena Philbert-Ortega
German Immigrant Waves: Contrasts and Sources by James M. Beidler
Getting Beyond the Bare Bones: Reconstructing Your Ancestors’ Lives by Thomas Wright Jones
Unappreciated Treasures Online: Libraries, Archives and Digital Collections by Cyndi Ingle
Plot, Plan and Scheme: Storyboarding for Genealogists by Lisa Alzo
Problems and Pitfalls of a “Reasonably Shallow” Search by Elissa Scalise Powell
Organizing Your Genealogy Files by Drew Smith
Tracking Migrations and More: The Records of Old Settlers Organizations by Paula Stuart-Warren
Case Studies in Forensic and Family Genealogy by Sheila Benedict

And this list just covers Friday! No, sessions don’t run from midnight to midnight and, yes, I will have to miss some great talks. That’s just the way it goes.

I will be posting news and photos online during Jamboree to keep you up on what is happening. Like when I was at RootsTech, my posts probably won’t be online until much later in the day.

If you aren’t able to attend this year, you might want to keep June open and watch for the official announcement of the 2017 dates.