Chinese G.I. War Brides – November 8, 2023 11am-1pm PST

Click to register for In-Person and Zoom: https://forms.gle/4pSensSzyiNHrwdG9

The highest influx of Chinese G.I. War Brides in American history
transformed our Community from a Bachelor Society to a Baby Boomer Era
How Our Moms Entered the United States under 1945 War Brides Act


BAY AREA CHINESE GENEALOGY GROUP
In-Person or Zoom Presentation
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 08, 2023, 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM PST
THE OAKLAND FAMILY SEARCH CENTER
1st floor at 4766 Lincoln Avenue, Oakland, Ca


Our Chinese WWII G.I. War Brides lived through extraordinarily difficult times during the Asiatic War, 1937-1945, the forgotten war in the West. They showed strength of character and perseverance to survive the War and the economic and political upheaval in China.

Learn how our G.I. War Brides entered the United States under the 1945 War Brides Act. Despite its significance to admit Chinese wives on a non-quota basis, they faced enormous hurdles to qualify.

BACGG members, Leona Lau with Lester Dun, Evelyn Seto, and Jeannie Young will share their personal and historical stories of their moms. With hope and courage, our moms immigrated to America with new husbands, or to be reunited with a husband separated by the war.

Coping with a language barrier, they became United States citizens, supported families back in China, while raising their own families, and helped others find their way to becoming Americans.

Our Moms’ stories should be written and preserved for our future generations.

BACGG Committee

How To Digitize & Document Your Family History

FamilySearch Library, 4766 Lincoln Ave, Oakland, CA, Oct 19, 11AM – 1PM 

Registration: Click here to register: Digitize and Document Your Family History

The FamilySearch Center, in conjunction with the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group, will be hosting a free seminar.

How To Digitize & Document Your Family History 
This session takes you into the physical and virtual world on how to build a multimedia family library. We will demonstrate and teach “how to” create an oral history using artificial intelligence, scan and restore photos, reveal free/cost effective multimedia conversion resources, and demonstrate a digital family history book. You will walk away knowing key resources, best practices, and tips on how to create your own family legacy.       

About The Speaker: Ron Chan

Ron has lectured on the principals of documenting family history at nine consecutive Genealogy Workshops, presenting and teaching how to create novel and compelling ways to bring family history to life. He is Founder and Executive Director of the Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group, whose mission is to share, educate and tell the story and struggles of the past, so future generations may know their roots.      

Angel Island Family Day – June 17

Angel Island Immigration Station – Saturday, June 17 for Family Day.

A day of fun and educational activities with your loved ones, with tickets priced at just $10 per person. Tickets include: a roundtrip ferry ride from either Tiburon or San Francisco, shuttle service to the Immigration Station, and lunch that highlights the diversity and talent of our communities.

From genealogy to hands-on crafts and storytelling, the day will be filled with music, dance, and—of course—family!

Jeanie Low and several other volunteers will be available to assist with Genealogy Research. Find her and others at the Hospital Building.
(You will need to bring the following information: individual’s name (immigrating name and/or naturalization name/ birthdate/ date of entry to the U.S. and/naturalization date/ residence/ spouse’s name/ your email). 

HERE is the link about the event and tickets
https://www.aiisf.org/familyday


National Archives Operations

As local public health metrics allow, research rooms will open on a limited basis and by appointment only. You must have a virtual consultation before the on-site visit. Staff at all locations will continue to respond to emailed requests for records. Further information is in this press release

The Rotunda of the National Archives Building in Washington, DC, and some Presidential Library museums are open with limited capacity.

Reopenings and operations will rely on local public health metrics. Check the specific facility page for updates. More information about the National Archives’ response to coronavirus can be found at archives.gov/coronavirus.

Print allIn new window[chineseamericanfamilyhistory] National Archives Announces Limited Reopening of Research RoomsInbox

Marisa Louie Lee
6:37 AM (3 hours ago)to chineseamericanfamilyhistory

Hi everyone: Sharing the news about NARA reopening most research rooms starting August 2! I don’t yet have an appointment on the books for our local facility in San Bruno (the National Archives at San Francisco) but I’m looking forward to returning after so many months away. 

———- Forwarded message ———
From: National Archives <public.affairs@nara.gov>
Date: Fri, Jul 16, 2021 at 11:21 AM
Subject: National Archives Announces Limited Reopening of Research Rooms


Media Advisory graphic banner with the National Archives Logo

National Archives Announces Limited Reopening of Research Rooms WASHINGTON, July 16, 2021–The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is starting to resume research room operations. Several locations have already begun pilots to test research room policies and procedures that promote social distancing, while otherwise allowing us to serve records in a secure manner, and starting Monday, August 2, most National Archives research rooms will reopen for research on a limited basis. NARA services will look very different from the services provided prior to COVID-19. Research visits will be by appointment only and will require a virtual consultation prior to the onsite visit. Boxes of records will be pulled in advance and will be waiting at an assigned table. Research appointments will initially be for 4-5 hours total, depending on the location. In addition, we have implemented a number of measures to ensure the safety of our researchers and staff: Requiring that unvaccinated visitors wear face coverings during their visit.

Limiting the number of people in each research room.
Requiring that those who are sick or do not feel well stay home.
Implementing safe social distancing through stanchions, physical barriers, floor markings, one-way paths, and directional guidance. Chairs will be removed and workspaces will be blocked to promote physical distancing between researchers. Following CDC cleaning guidance. In addition, researchers will contribute to sanitizing procedures by cleaning their assigned tables and equipment before and after their research.
Researchers should wash their hands thoroughly before entering and after exiting research rooms and regularly throughout their visit to the facility. Hand sanitizer will be readily available outside of the research rooms. Records quarantine: All record material accessed by a researcher will be quarantined after use for three full days, and the records will not be available to other researchers during the quarantine period.
Contact tracing: If a researcher or NARA employee experiences COVID-19 symptoms while in a NARA research room or later reports symptoms, a diagnosis, or a close contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19, NARA will use contact information collected during the researcher registration process to notify other researchers of a potential exposure.Please email the relevant facility using the contact information on their facility page to request an appointment. Researchers should check the specific facility page for details and updates, as the situation can change quickly. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to reopen our facilities in a careful and deliberate manner that prioritizes the safety of staff and the public. We look forward to welcoming you back to our research facilities.#  #  # For press information, contact the National Archives Public and Media Communications staff at public.affairs@nara.gov21-50NARA locations nationwide
Our mailing address is:
700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington DC, 20408


Zoomed out of item. 

Operation WW2 Chinese American G.I. on YouTube

Listing of approved Chinese American World War II Congressional Gold Medal Recipients site Or you may also click the following link to view your relative’s name. https://www.caww2.org/cgm-recipients

Listing of approved Chinese American World War II Congressional Gold Medal Recipients site

Listing of approved Chinese American World War II Congressional Gold Medal Recipients site

Listing of approved Chinese American World War II Congressional Gold Medal Recipients site

Listing of approved Chinese American World War II Congressional Gold Medal Recipients site

Or you may also click the following link to view your relative’s name. https://www.caww2.org/cgm-recipients

Coby Yee – A Celebration of Life

Coby is cheered by audience members in 2015 at a screening of “Forbidden City, USA” in San Francisco’s Great Star Theatre.  Photo by DeepFocus Productions.

The Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group is saddened to advise that Coby Yee, a featured panelist in our East meets West: Chinatown Nightclubs, died peacefully August 14, 2020, at the age of 93.

If you wish to see Coby full of life, love and laughter, just weeks ago view BACGG had the great honor and privilege of working with Coby in this interview. Even when we had dress rehearsals, with only three of us present,  Coby was always dolled up in full costume and makeup, ready to put on a show.  It is this zeal of life, I will always remember. She told me about the  gown she made with a 15 foot train (she is only 4’11”!) to make a grand entrance for her acceptance as 2020’s Living Legend from the Las Vegas Burlesque Hall of Fame… never failing to be larger-than-life. Coby never said goodbye… she always ended with, bye for now. So bye for now, Coby, as when I look into the heavens, I will always see your bright star.

Ron Chan, Executive Director, Bay Area Chinese Genealogy Group

Photos provided by Cynthia Yee, webinar panelist, and fellow entertainers to celebrate Coby’s life. view

Coby Yee, 2020 Legend of Burlesque / Last Dance Video by Frankie Fictitious and Joyce Tang (4 min 22 sec) view Special thanks to the Burlesque Hall of Fame site , a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to preserving and celebrating burlesque.

We were unable to have the panelist answer the questions posed by the webinar attendees contemporaneously. BACGG (Ron, Gail, and Jeannie) spent several hours with the panelists going over the submitted questions, and then collating the answers. Please see their output: Questions Answered click

Here is a wonderful tribute to Coby in the New Yorker, posted on Valentines Day

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-documentary/an-aging-burlesque-dancers-unlikely-romance?fbclid=IwAR20eT968H276uGzgwa0z8fFeHAv9fO0_xJKwJBG8j8WVofI6kf4UIZFf-Y

Please feel free to leave a story, a memory, or say, goodbye for now, to Coby.

ww2 remembrance

Lets Start Writing Our Stories!

World War Two was a climatic period for our families, who are members of the ‘greatest generation’ link . Our Operation WWII Chinese American GI webinar aired on 8/29th link focuses on those who have served in our armed forces. But genealogy is about family history, and everyone in our family has an important contribution to our passion as BACGG members.

Because of the 75th Anniversary celebration of the end of World War 2 on 9/2/2020, I have set up a page click for BACGG members to write something about our relatives who lived during that period. Contrary to the 8/29th webinar, I have expanded the remembrances, including not only those who have served in the armed forces, but also on the home front, in the industrial war effort, and those interred by the tragic decisions of our leaders.

Your remembrances can be elaborate like Ron’s site click on a 3rd party website, or they can be a simple paragraph(s) like Doug’s site click . For Leona and Susan, they formatted their stories as a PDF, exported to an image, and we imported Leona’s page click and Susan’s page click.

Members of BACGG, lets return to our roots. This is an opportunity to practice writing our family history and share your family’s stories to publish on our site. These remembrances will be permanent pages on BACGG website. Members will be able to access their page at any time to change or update. Membership has it privileges.

Next year Ron will pay tribute to our veterans in the Korean Conflict, and the year after to veterans of the Vietnam war. As you gather your family history, remember to collect information on relatives in those two conflicts.

Contact Doug email me or email bacgg.doug@gmail.com

Create a Free Remembrance Vet Plaque

https://remembrance.togetherweserved.com/sign-up.jsp?source=ROH&goals=ROH&InvitedBy=Association-1988

This Memorial Day, Together We Served is inviting any Veteran or Family Member to create a Remembrance Military Service Plaque, at no charge, to remember an Active Serving or Veteran Soldier, Sailor, Marine, Airman or Coastguardsman who is now Deceased.

TogetherWeServed offers our Members the highest quality photo scanning at no cost. Send us a box of all your photos, slides or negatives and we will scan them, fix them for imperfections, post them online, and send them back to you, with a DVD of all your photo files, in the same condition you sent them. In addition we will automatically upload your selected photos to your Together We Served profile page photo album free of charge!

Email us at admin@togetherweserved.com for more details.