Volunteers Needed!

Like many others in the business world, St. Louis Genealogical Society rode out the storm of the "pandemic years" with a skeleton crew of hard-core workers. This was an amazing feat, considering that our society has no paid staff. Everything we accomplish is because of our volunteers. Elected officers, members of the board of directors, and office "regulars" all pitched in to keep the society moving along during those months of uncertainty. As it became safer to work together at the office, volunteers relied on each other to follow safety protocols, and we were able to pick up the pace. However, although many of our volunteers have returned to work, there is currently more to do than there are people to do it!

We have been able to expand our online presence through Zoom presentations. We have continued adding dozens of pages to our website, and we have continuously published our Quarterly journal and this blog. But all of that takes a steady stream of volunteers and many hours of labor. We know that our St. Louis Genealogical Society members are a diverse and talented group of researchers. Many of our members are or have been in corporate leadership roles, and others have had long careers doing a wide variety of jobs that required specific skill sets. If you have space in your schedule for volunteering, we really hope you will share your time and talents with us now.  

(Photo above, right: One of our Ask Louie volunteers provides assistance in the library at our office; photo by Ilene Murray, used with permission.)

How can you help?

We currently have needs in several areas:

1. Technology: We need someone with current IT skills who can help run a fifty-plus computer LAN and is proficient with upgrading hardware, software, and servers.
2. Zoom Team: Our Zoom team members could use extra help with setting up and running our hybrid meetings. 
3. Publications: We need help with our Quarterly journal, specifically someone with graphics and photo-editing experience, who can work in Microsoft Publisher, and is comfortable doing design and layout. Ideally, this person also will have some writing and editing skills.
4. Proofreading of Data Entry: Currently, there are people doing data entry but all those files need careful proofreading before they can go up on our website. This is a job that could be done remotely, if coming into the office is not possible.
5. Writers: We always can use articles for our Quarterly, content for this blog, and biographies for our City/County Biographies project. Guidelines for Quarterly article submissions are on our website, as are guidelines for submitting biographies.

Ready to lend a hand?

If you are passionate about family history and interested in volunteering, please contact us! Call into the office on Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday mornings between 9:00 and noon (Central) at 314-647-8547 and ask for Marilyn, our volunteer coordinator, or Karen, our president, or send an email to volunteers@stlgs.org. We can't wait to meet you and add you to our hard-working, dedicated staff of volunteers!