Lots of people dabble in genealogy in their quest to fill out a family tree, but Kim Knight has taken it to a whole different level.
Knight has a college degree in archival management and genealogical research from Brigham Young University and she’s been a genealogy professional for more than 20 years.
What began as research on her father’s side of the family has blossomed into a business that helps others find their ancestors. But the work is so much more for Knight, she told WIZS’s Bill Harris and guest host Phyllis Maynard on Thursday’s Town Talk.
Genealogy is her go-to activity when she needs to take a break from the trials of everyday life. It’s a therapy of sorts for Knight, who deals each day with the effects of traumatic brain injury. And with a cancer diagnosis.
Maynard and Harris conducted the second part of an interview with Knight as part of a regular segment called “Former Active Duty” Still Boots on the Ground” that checks in with former service members who remain active in their community to help others.
There are many available computer-based platforms to entice an amateur genealogist, but Knight said she would choose https://www.familysearch.org/.
“It’s free, easy to use and has a tremendous database already behind it,” she said.
Other free sites include https://www.findagrave.com/ and https://www.cyndislist.com/us/.
While the amateur genealogist may enjoy poring over documents in search of family history, a professional genealogist has gone through rigorous training and certification to conduct research.
It’s reading ancient documents, learning how to pick through information and collect more than just dates of birth and death that intrigue Knight.
“It’s like painting the picture of the person’s life you’re researching,” she said.
For instance, she recently helped a young Black man with some research and she found some interesting information. “I found that his great-great-great grandmother in the 1880’s went to college, earned her degree and went on to be a teacher – that was an amazing find for this young man,” she said.
Before all the online resources became available, genealogy fieldwork involved visits to courthouse, registers of deeds, and combing through lots of documents by hand. Now, clicks of the mouse and a few keystrokes can open up whole worlds of information to genealogists.
Knight cautions anyone doing family research to take care – misinformation abounds, and it’s vitally important to make sure the data is correct before adding it to your own family history.
For Knight, that’s part of the game with genealogy.
“It’s part of the fun, actually,” she said. “It’s a kick. I really enjoy genealogy.”
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