Hello!

I’m Alora Rueth, and I’m obsessed with family history and the social and historical events that play a part in it.  My obsession became pronounced when an Ancestry DNA match’s daughter reached out to me via Facebook Messenger chat. 

This occurred years after I submitted my DNA hoping to get an answer to a research question in regard to a biological parent.  I received over 14,000 matches on that parent’s side alone!  I saw surnames that could be helpful answering the question.  But, I had no clue how to use these match results to my advantage.

I hadn’t checked in with my Ancestry account at all until I was informed in that chat there were messages for me.  Indeed, there were messages.  As I responded to these messages, I realized I was a missing piece to a puzzle.  DNA helped find that missing piece.  

This also did help me answer my research question to some degree.  While some of the information they provided was useful, I needed more proof to validate the answer.

There just had to be a process to guide me through doing the genealogy using DNA.  I wanted to do this as efficiently as I could.  Working full time and managing a household didn’t allow much time to work on this research project.  

Still, I wanted to get some validation ASAP.  First, I traded off hours doing less meaningful activities for more meaningful ones to work on this project.  I was realistic, making a goal of getting this tackled within a year’s time.

So, what do we all do when we want to know how to do something?  We do a Google search, of course!  Well, I did that and got even more overwhelmed.

About that time, I registered for the virtual RootsTech 2023.  I chose topics both related to my research question and genealogy in general.  Do Genealogy Step-by-Step (The Search Party Method) was on my watch list.

Genealogists Janet Hovorka, Crista Cowan and Diahan Southard shared a simple 5-step plan to help people “do genealogy better.”  You can find a video by FamilySearch from this presentation at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STKYNwda_pQ.

What really sparked my interest was learning that Diahan Southard is a genealogist specializing in DNA education.  She offered a workshop teaching DNA skills to help figure out DNA kit results.  She shared a personal story that I could relate to.

I found her workshop online and registered.  Right away, a coach was assigned to me to work out what I was researching for.  The process learned in the workshop is not a one size fits all approach.  Though the tools provided are the same, the way they are used depends on your research question.

As I worked through the workshop I learned about how to work with not only DNA matches on Ancestry but also MyHeritage and 23&Me.  By the time it ended, I had a good part of my research question addressed.  I was able to back up my findings too.

As a result, this research project took less than a year, not even 6 months.  It was worth the time and effort.  Best of all, I gained a lot more family than I expected using techniques I learned to communicate with them in an otherwise awkward situation.  

Eventually my obsession became a passion.  I learned about a genealogical brick wall my newly found family had to deal with for years.  This sparked a desire to help them.  

I didn’t realize helping them was helping me grow as a genealogist and family historian.  Since signing up for Diahan Southard’s DNA Skills Workshop, I’ve joined quite a few genealogical societies (National Genealogical Society or NGS, The Society for German Genealogy in Eastern Europe, Wisconsin State Genealogical Society and Germans from Russia Heritage Society).  I’ve also picked up a few classes online through NGS and the International Institute of Genealogical Studies along the way.  

I also have an interest in the preservation and organization of family photos and writing family history.  I am a Forever Certified Ambassador and use the Forever services for digital storage and family research for my own genealogy/family history projects.  

I hope you’ll follow my blog, which I hope educates and inspires you. My goal is to share the knowledge I’ve gained from my own personal genealogical journey. I’m not a professional genealogist but what you call an intermediate-level genealogist.