Professional Genealogist
A little about me:
I am a "baby", as far as genealogists go. At the the young age of 26, I am an experienced professional genealogist with my own genealogical research business. Unfortunately, this is a major DIS-advantage. Besides the fact that there are very few people my age that want to spend all of their waking time in cemeteries, courthouses, etc., I am quite often the subject of comments such as "You're too young to know anything about genealogy" and other such misconceptions. This is why I offer this short bio letting you know WHO I am and how I came to love genealogy.
I was raised LDS, or "Mormon", and the love of genealogy was instilled in my heart at a very young age. I have held a passion for family history since I was 5 or 6 years old when I started work on my own family history. I started by "interviewing" everyone in my family but due to my then childish overzealousness, I ended up "grilling" everyone in the family until they were all sick of hearing the word - genealogy. *BIG GRIN* After overstaying my welcome with the "interviews" I moved on to researching other avenues. Of course, this was PRE-Internet so, I sent off for records, waiting weeks or months to receive the precious documents. I would order microfilms of passenger lists, vital records (unavailable for ordering), or anything else I could find that might lead me to that wonderful "AH-HA!"
One day, while stationed in Bosnia with the Air Force, I stumbled upon the world of online genealogy. I was showing someone how to use the internet. I typed in "www.yahoo.com" and randomly chose to click on things that I enjoy. I clicked on Arts & Humanities, then Humanities, then History and there it was...the word "Genealogy"! I turned around and told the guy, "I'm sorry, but I've just found something and you're going to have to find another computer to use"!
Over the years I have learned to control my enthusiasm and have educated myself on the proper methods, procedures, standards, etc for genealogical research, not to mention interviews. *BIG GRIN* I firmly feel that while the Internet provides some amazing resources difficult, if not impossible, to find elsewhere, it should not be utilized as a SOLE source for genealogy. I still order vital records, I just receive them in two days instead of two months! I still order microfilms and pour over them in my Family History Center (FHC). In fact, I started volunteering at my local FHC just so they would give me a key and I can go in and look at my stuff whenever I want! *GRIN*
Sources
I have a huge personal genealogical library that I reference frequently. Included in my library are tons of books on German and Italian ancestry, a few books on Irish and Scottish ancestry, and finding females in family history. I also own many generic genealogical reference materials ranging from "getting started" to "expert research" and "finding the impossible".
I also consult the following sources:
Specialties
Services I offer - Please see Fees area for specific fees pertaining to services
Additional Services offered UPON SPECIFIC REQUEST ONLY
Fees
ANY unused fees will be returned to the customer!
Consultations
As the name suggests, I offer professional genealogical consultations for free for the first hour and $15 per hour after that, if necessary. I will look at everything that you have and offer suggestions and recommendations for you to pursue to further your research.
Research Fees
FREE QUOTES accepted via postal mail or e-mail!
My research fees are $40 an hour plus expenses and travel. This fee is highly competitive in the field of professional genealogists. In this field, there is never a guarantee of positive results, however, every possible source will be exhausted before I report a negative result. You will receive a detailed, written report with all of the information found and/or the sources searched. Included in the report will be the source(s), the description, what the goal of the search was, as well as the results of the search. Sources searched with negative results are included so you won't waste more time and money researching sources that have been exhausted.
Retainer
A retainer is required for a minimum of 3 hours, for a total of $120, before research can begin.
Expenses
General expenses include but are not limited to:
Travel expenses include but are not limited to:
Data Entry Fees
Photograph Fees
Methods of Payment
Memberships and Professional Affiliations
Current Projects
Special Contractual Information
All information collected and obtained by my staff or myself is copyrighted and owned by my staff, and myself unless constrained by an existing copyright. All records collected may or may not be donated by my staff or myself to any FREE reputable Genealogy Record Archives, on- or off-line.
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GenConsult / This page was last modified: Monday, 3-Nov-2002 02:017:36 EST / All rights reserved (c) 2002, Brandilyn Rae Ruppell / Host: Brandilyn Rae Ruppell