Monthly Program
Join us for a presentation by Nicka Sewell-Smith
Session 1: Finding John Lee
Discover how DNA, online and offline genealogy converged to break down a more than 100 year old brick wall revealing the life, times, and relations of a mysterious multi-ethnic man named John Lee.
Session 2: Older than us: The Elders of the Trask 250
From Sago and Fatima, Randall and Esther, to Moosa and Katy, learn the ancestral story of the Trask 250 from the vantage point of their oldest traceable ancestors. These incredible individuals were born before the founding of the United States, survived the Transatlantic Slave Trade, and count more than 6,000 descendants between them.
Presenter Bio: Nicka Smith is a host, consultant, and documentarian with more than 20 years of experience as a genealogist. She has extensive experience in researching the enslaved and their communities and is a valued expert in genealogy research along the Mississippi Delta.
Nicka has diverse and varied experience in media with a background in audio, video, and written communications. She's appeared on TODAY Show, CNN, MSNBC, was featured on an Emmy winning episode of the series Who Do You Think You Are, and has been interviewed by Oakland Tribune, The Undefeated, National Geographic, and TIME. She is the host of BlackProGen LIVE, an innovative web show with more than 130 episodes focused on people of color genealogy and family history.
She is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, a member of two lineage societies (Sons and Daughters of the Middle Passage (SDUSMP) and the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR)), and a past board member of the California Genealogical Society (CGS) and the African American Genealogical Society of Northern California (AAGSNC). Nicka served as the chair of the Outreach and Education Committee for AAGSNC, and is the former project manager for the Alameda County, CA Youth Ancestral Project where more than 325 youth were taught the value of family history.
Additionally, Nicka is the family historian and lead researcher for the Atlas family of Lake Providence, East Carroll, Louisiana, and guides and coaches an active group of family historians at the Who is Nicka Smith Patreon community.
PRESENTER BLOG OR WEBSITE Who is Nicka Smith? Photog, Pro Genealogist, Documentarian.
Registration will open May 12, 2024.
This program will be recorded and placed in the "Members Only" section.
The public is always welcome!