About GenWebinars
As genealogy speakers, we’ve long been frustrated with certain aspects of traditional online/virtual conference and society programs. We’ve had to squeeze our topics into tight time slots, often leaving out valuable information and insights. We’ve also been limited by program chairs’ selections and scheduling constraints. Attendees often contacted us to inquire when a topic would be offered again or if there was a follow-up program. We usually had no answer which was frustrating for everyone.
That’s why we created GenWebinars – to take control of our own content and delivery, and to bring high-quality, in-depth genealogy education directly to you. With GenWebinars, we can explore topics in the depth they deserve, offer sequential courses, and repeat programs to meet the needs of our global audience. We’re excited to share our expertise with you in a more flexible and comprehensive way!
About Our Instructors
Diane L. Richard
Diane is an internationally recognized Professional Genealogist with special expertise in exploring effective research strategies, tips, techniques and underutilized resource collections; investigating Southern U.S. records of all types; researching formerly enslaved or Free People of Color ancestors; and much more.
She has been doing genealogy research since 1987, and 2024 saw her celebrate her 20th anniversary of professionally researching client ancestors while also channeling the “inner teacher” in her by sharing her knowledge via the written and spoken word
As an international speaker, she has given hundreds of webinars and in-person programs (coast-to-coast and in Canada), conference presentations, workshops, and local meeting programs about the availability and richness of all kinds of records relevant and leverageable by genealogists and the strategies and tips to most effectively exploit these records and research tactics.
Since 2006, she has authored over 600 articles on genealogical topics for various publications, including Internet Genealogy and Your Genealogy Today/Family Chronicle. She also wrote a regular column, “Net Notes,” from 2006-2023. From 2010-2017, Diane edited Upfront with NGS, the National Genealogical Society’s blog, and published over 2000 posts. She is currently the editor of the North Carolina Genealogical Society Journal and past editor of Wake Treasures, the journal of the Wake County Genealogical Society.
Diane is the owner of Mosaic Research and Project Management, co-leader of Tar Heel Discoveries, which provides guided North Carolina genealogical research support one-on-one or via a weeklong program, and Vice President of North Carolina Historical Records Online (NCHRO), a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization dedicated to providing public access to high-quality images of original records and other related information useful to researching North Carolina history and genealogy.
She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the National Genealogical Society (NGS), the Genealogical Speakers Guild (GSG), and various local genealogy societies. She has researched NC roots for the popular TV show Who Do You Think You Are? and appeared on the Bryan Cranston episode.
Diane has Bachelors and Masters of Engineering degrees, as well as a Masters of Business Administration degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Diane is available to lecture to groups either in-person or online. Arrangements are made with her directly and not through GenWebinars. Please visit her profile on the Genealogical Speaker’s Guild website for details.
David M. McCorkle
David M. McCorkle is a land records expert with research experience in a wide variety of other records used by genealogists including court records, probate, colonial records, and governmental records. He has an extensive background in computer software, and has been working on using Artificial Intelligence tools to help researchers process evidence from these records in a more comprehensive and less time consuming manner.
He has given in-person, online, and hybrid lectures and workshops to national, state, and local genealogical and historical organizations, and well as corporate and government audiences. His topics include land grants, court records, digitization, maps, mapping tools, Artificial Intelligence, land records in general, DNA, land platting workshops, and introduction to genealogy.
David is the sole creator and ongoing administrator of the free website NC Land Grant Images and Data http://nclandgrants.com . This website contains searchable records for all 200,000+ land grants issued by North Carolina since 1663, along with over a million high quality images of original records. Many of these records cannot be viewed anywhere else outside of the State Archives of NC.
He is President and founder of NC Historical Records Online (NCHRO), a 501(c)(3) non-profit with a mission to provide public online access to images of original records and other relevant information useful to researching North Carolina history and genealogy. He is President of the North Carolina Genealogical Society (NCGS) and the Durham-Orange Genealogical Society (D-OGS), and on the board of the Genealogical Speakers Guild (GSG), Friends of the (NC) Archives, the Mecklenburg Genealogical Society, and the Historic Mapping Congress.
All of these projects along with his work with genealogical societies resulted in David receiving an award of merit in 2023 from the National Genealogical Society, as well as awards from the NC Genealogical Society and from local societies.
David is a native of North Carolina with deep roots on many lines dating back to the 1700s, primarily in the Mecklenburg County area. He wrote his first computer program in 1973, and has been working in the software industry for over 40 years. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
David is available to lecture to groups either in-person or online. Arrangements are made with him directly and not through GenWebinars. Please visit his profile on the Genealogical Speaker’s Guild website for details.