Welcome to the podcastGenealogy website.
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Bob Fornal

A self taught computer programmer, I started working with computers over 30 years ago. I have been teaching computer software, hardware, programming, and networking over 20 years.

I run several genealogy forums, assisting researchers (beginner to professional) on research in Poland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and the United States.  I have spent time researching on-site, as well as on the Internet.

I got into genealogy about 25 years ago listening to stories about my family members primarily from my grandmother, but also at times from other family members. I am not a professional genealogist ... but, I am not an amateur or simply hobbyist either. I have worked hard over the years on my family genealogy and more recently, have been involved with a few forums and genealogy site development.

I have made my share of mistakes in genealogy: a crashed computer with only a paper backup, lost database with no copy of the images I had scanned and loaded, and waiting too long to document what some relatives had told me.

My personal goal with this site is to share some of the excitement and knowledge that I have gained in this amazing field.

... and now, my business partner, Dave ...

Dave Hawk

I got my start in the computer field in the early 1980s as an end user. I was so fascinated by the possibilities I saw that I went to college for electrical engineering in 1988 and by 1989 was working in the field as a tech on multi-user multi-tasking mainframe systems. I made the jump to the PC IBM compatible range of systems in 1992 and have worked in the field on everything from personal PCs, small and large area business networks, web sites, and just about every peripheral you could think of as a repair and maintenance tech. I have stayed busy for the last 10 years by running my own consulting business that both supports and maintains private and corporate computer systems.

My interest in genealogy stems from my Grandmother who, along with her sister, did extensive research into what would be my father's side of the family. Now that she is 96 years old, she has turned all that research over to my so that I can continue her work and expand it to include both sides of my family tree as it branches out from my personal lineage. Since Bob and I have worked together for nearly 2 decades on computer systems it was only logical that when faced with the task of researching my family tree that I turn to him for advice and assistance. This is why you will notice in our podcasts that I take the part of a student with Bob as a mentor, teaching me the "ropes" in this exciting field of study. He in turn learns about the sound boards, mixing, etc from me as I have an extensive knowledge from being a semi professional musician for longer than I have been in the computer field.

My goal is to learn and while learning to teach and reach as many people as I can about how to research their heritage so that they can pass this invaluable knowledge to future generations.

Jennifer Fornal

A Special Education Teacher, Jennifer (Bob's wife) has become our "sound" person.  She operates the sound board, making sure we have good, clean recordings for the show.