Submitted by Lorna Bossenberry
This is a very exciting year for the Saskatchewan Genealogical Society (SGS) and the Weyburn Branch SGS. The SGS is celebrating 50 years (established in 1969) and the Weyburn branch is celebrating 35 years (established in 1984). The purpose is to promote and develop the study, research and preservation of genealogy and family history. In 2019 SGS has 731 members and 14 branches across the province.
The Weyburn Branch SGS held their organizational meeting in the RM of Weyburn office with 20 people present, resulting in 17 paid members for 1984. Currently the Weyburn chapter holds their meetings in the Weyburn Public Library at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of the month (except July and August) and they currently have 14 members.
Charmane Johnson and Blanche Fleming (honourary member) are the only two original members still involved.
The Weyburn Branch SGS has an agreement with the Southeast Regional Library to house their extensive collection of materials at the Weyburn Public Library including: how-to books, history books, atlases, directories, phone books, cemetery inscriptions and Canadian census microfilm.
Over the years the Weyburn branch has had several projects, most recently in 2013 when they published a book of photos for the City of Weyburn’s 100th anniversary, “Glimpses of Weyburn-Centennial Edition”.
For their 35th anniversary they are working on a couple of things to commemorate this milestone. One project is in the planning stages in conjunction with the City of Weyburn. This project will be announced at a later date, once all the details are worked out.
Also the Weyburn branch is proud to announce that they will host a presentation by Kristin Catherwood. The presentation is open to the public and will take place on Tuesday, June 11, at 6:30 p.m. in the Allie Griffin Art Gallery at the Weyburn Public Library.
Kristin Catherwood is from Radville,and is the proud owner of a quarter-section in the RM of The Gap. She is a folklorist, writer/storyteller and filmmaker, and earned a Master’s degree in Folklore from Memorial University of Newfoundland with a thesis on the barn as a symbol of the family farm in southern Saskatchewan. Kristin has a blog, fromthegap.com, which documents her experiences living in southern Saskatchewan.
Previously, she worked for SaskCulture, on the National Film Board's (NFB) Grasslands Project, and she is currently the Director of Living Heritage for Heritage Saskatchewan. She wrote and directed a short documentary, RIDE, which was produced by the NFB in 2018. Throughout all of her work, she utilizes the power of story and connection to place to show how heritage lives in our everyday lives.
