2020 Nominees for the NGS Board of Directors
The following are biographical sketches of the nominees for the Board of Directors.
President: Kathryn M. Doyle, California
Kathryn M. Doyle has been a member of the NGS Board of Directors since 2016. She currently sits on the executive committee as vice president, chairs the policies and procedures committee, and oversees the society’s social media channels. She joined the NGS membership committee in 2015 and served as its chair through 2018. Doyle was the communications director at the California Genealogical Society (CGS) from 2007–2013 where she edited the CGS e-News and wrote its award-winning blog.
Doyle has been researching her mother’s Japanese, her husband’s Greek, and her father’s Irish and English ancestry since 1999. Her genealogy education includes Boston University’s Online Certificate in Genealogical Research (OL5), ProGen28, Genealogical Institute of Federal Records (Gen-Fed), and several institute courses. She holds a degree in pharmacy from the University of Michigan and pursued a career in hospital pharmacy administration until retirement. She resides with her husband in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Vice President: Ellen Pinckney Balthazar, MS, Texas
Ellen Pinckney Balthazar joined the NGS Board of Directors in 2018. She currently co-chairs the planning committee, focusing on building organizational capacity and strategic planning. In the Austin, Texas, area she leads a collaborative initiative to preserve the collections and advance public access and programming of the local history center. A member of DAR for more than forty years, Balthazar got hooked on family history when she collected stories, pictures, and recipes from descendants of her great-grandparents to produce a cookbook.
A retired marketing and non-profit executive, she honed her consumer research skills at Procter & Gamble, her brand marketing expertise at Frito-Lay, and her public relations acumen in the international division of PepsiCo’s restaurant businesses. In 2005, Ellen successfully transitioned this business and marketing experience to the not-for-profit sector, becoming CEO of a leading 501(c) (3) organization in Austin, Texas, focused on children’s issues. Under her leadership, the organization doubled the number of families served, as well as the budget. Since retiring in 2012, she has enjoyed being a volunteer mentor and consultant to non-profit organizations. She also has served her local community as a trustee on the school board since 2001. A University of Georgia Bulldog (BSHEJ, MS), she and her husband live in Austin with their children and grandchildren right around the corner.
Vice President of Society Management: Cheri Hudson Passey, South Carolina
Cheri Hudson Passey is a professional genealogist, instructor, writer, and speaker and the owner of Carolina Girl Genealogy, LLC which provides research services as well as instruction and coaching through her Genealogy 1-on-1 classes. Cheri is the host of the genealogy chat show GenFriends seen on YouTube and is a genealogical researcher, subcontracted by Eagle Investigative Services, Inc., for the US Army Past Conflict Repatriations Branch.
Cheri enjoys volunteering and serving the genealogy community. She is a Past President of The Grand Strand Genealogy Club and currently serves as Program Chair. She is the secretary for the Federation of Genealogical Societies and treasurer for the GeneaBloggersTRIBE.
Secretary: Ed Donakey, Utah
Ed Donakey is Vice President of Strategic Relations and Deputy Chief Genealogical Officer at FamilySearch International where he manages the Chief Genealogical Office. Additionally, he works with genealogical societies and others to identify partnerships, identify fund raising opportunities, and develop solutions to acquire critical genealogical data. A professional strategist and past CEO, he also provides business and technology support to genealogical societies, non-profits, and emerging businesses. Ed’s genealogical interests keep him the Deep South, Ireland, and Scotland as he researches his ancestors daily.
Currently a member of the FGS board of directors, he is their past Vice President of Development, responsible for fundraising and partnerships. While the VP of Development, Ed also served as the National Conference Co-Chair for the 2014 FGS Conference in San Antonio, Texas while filling a five-year term on the advisory board of the Utah IT Symposium and serving as the Chair of the Kids On The Move board of directors. Rounding out his schedule, he also sits on, or has sat on executive advisory councils or boards at Calera KK, Dell, HP, Oracle, Altiris, and other technology organizations.
A happily married father and grandfather, Ed was elected six straight years to the v|Spring v100, recognizing the top 100 entrepreneurs in Utah. His undergraduate and graduate studies were in philosophy and political philosophy respectively at BYU.
Treasurer: Deborah Lebo Hoskins, CPA, Florida
Deborah Lebo Hoskins wrote her first family history in the fifth grade as a requirement for her social studies class. Her interest in genealogy was sparked when she cleaned out her mother’s attic in 2009 and found many original genealogical documents. She is her family’s historian and her current focus is on a surname study of her mother’s maternal line beginning in the mid-1700s. She has attended the last seven NGS annual conferences, classes at GRIP and SLIG, and has taken part in the Mastering Genealogical Proof online class and an NGSQ study group.
A 2015 graduate of the NGS Home Study Course, Hoskins completed the Boston University Certificate in Genealogical Research Program in May 2016 and the APG ProGen Study Group in November 2017. She plans on starting her certified genealogist journey in 2020–2021.
Hoskins recently retired as vice president of finance for Hunterdon Healthcare System in Flemington, NJ. She is a Fellow in the American College of Healthcare Executives and the Healthcare Financial Management Association. She received a BS in accounting from Elizabethtown College Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in public administration from Penn State University. She and her husband currently reside in Pennsylvania, but have become “snowbirds,” wintering in Florida.
Director Region 2: Faye Jenkins Stallings, CGÒ, Texas
Faye Jenkins Stallings is an avid genealogist conducting family history research in the south for more than 30 years. She currently serves as the President for the Federation of Genealogical Societies and Board member for her local Montgomery County Genealogical and Historical Society. She is the Director of the Family History Center in Conroe, Texas. She is also a professional genealogist at Southern Hearts Genealogy and received her Certified Genealogist® credential in 2018. In her prior professional career, she was a Certified Public Accountant and has held various corporate positions with a Fortune 100 company, including Assistant Corporate Controller, subsidiary Controller and Chief Financial Officer, General Auditor and Chief Ethics Officer. She also served as a volunteer for the Houston Chapter of the Institute of Internal Auditors in a number of positions, including Chapter Governance Task Force member, President and Board member. She is now very happily retired, and enjoys spending more time with her family, both the living and the dead.
Director Region 3: Janet L. Bailey, Virginia
Janet L. Bailey joined the NGS Board of Directors in 2018. She chairs the awards committee. She provided leadership to the Fairfax Genealogical Society in Fairfax County, Virginia, first as education chair in 2013, and then as president from September 2015 to May 2018. An early recruit to genealogy, Bailey has been researching, writing, and hosting reunions for more than thirty-five years. She furthers her education by attending conferences and institutes. She has completed six courses at Salt Lake Institute on Genealogy (SLIG); has attended IGHR and Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP); and is an alum of Gen-Fed.
Bailey, who lives in Arlington, Virginia, is a nationally certified Sign Language interpreter. She earned a BA from Huron College in South Dakota and did post graduate work at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC. She co-founded the nation’s first and largest interpreting services business, Sign Language Associates, Inc., and served as its president and CEO from 1982–2008. She was active within her national professional association, The Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, Inc., and served as its president from 1991–1995.
Director Region 4: Bernice Alexander Bennett, Maryland
Bernice Alexander Bennett is an award-winning genealogist, author, lecturer, storyteller, and producer-host of the popular podcast Research at the National Archives and Beyond. Bennett serves as the chair of the membership committee for NGS. She is a founding member and vice president of the Midwest African American Genealogy Institute and serves on its faculty. She is the author of Tracing Their Steps: A Memoir (2019) and co-author of Our Ancestors, Our Stories (2014). In addition, she has published in several genealogical journals and other publications, and she has presented at the major genealogical meetings and conferences.
A graduate of Grambling State University (Louisiana) and the University of Michigan, School of Public Health, she enjoyed a thirty-five-year career in domestic and international public health. Bennett also has served on several non-profit boards, including Planned Parenthood, National Capital Area, the Infusion Nurses Association and is a former board president of the YWCA National Capital Area.
Director at Large: David Rencher, AGÒ, CG, FIGRS, FUGA, Utah
David E. Rencher is the Director of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah and the Chief Genealogical Officer (CGO) for FamilySearch.
He has been a professional genealogist since 1977. He is the recipient of many awards, including Fellow of the Irish Genealogical Research Society, London (FIGRS) and Fellow of the Utah Genealogical Association (FUGA).
He is a past president of the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) and of the Utah Genealogical Association, and a former chair of the Record Preservation and Access Committee (RPAC), which is a joint committee of the Federation of Genealogical Societies, National Genealogical Society, and International Association for Jewish Genealogical Societies (IAJGS). He is currently the VP of Development for FGS and is a former trustee for the National Institute of Genealogical Research Alumni Association (NIGRAA) and a Trustee of the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History (ISBGFH).
Director at Large: Colleen Robledo Greene, MLIS, California
Colleen Robledo Greene, MLIS, is an academic librarian, college educator, and web developer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in History, a Master of Library and Information Science, and a certificate in genealogical research from Boston University. Colleen is the Digital Literacy Librarian at California State University, Fullerton, and also teaches an online graduate-level genealogical research methods course for San Jose State University.
Colleen has been researching her family history since 1997 and is passionate about helping other people discover their own roots. She is a nationally recognized speaker and educator specializing in methodology, Mexican and Hispanic research, libraries and archives, technology, and society communications.
Director at Large: Marlis Humphrey, Florida
Marlis Humphrey is a professional genealogist who serves as president of the Florida State Genealogical Society and past president of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies. She has worked as a technology leader, serving as a VP of Marketing and Technology for BlueTube, Inc., and as the Chair of the ATM Forum in the broadband technology field. She has an MS in Management of Technology, University of Miami and a BA in Russian Language with a minor in Math and Computer Science from Knox College, Illinois.
She is passionate about the discovery of unknown ancestors, teaching others to be successful, and the sharing of family histories.
Director at Large: Andre Kearns, Washington, DC
Andre Kearns is a genealogist, public speaker, commentator and writer with deep roots in the American south and a passion for discovering new ancestors and learning their stories. As an African American, he knew he descended from enslaved persons and likely slave owners which DNA analysis has helped to confirm. Through his research he also discovered ancestors who were free people of color long before the civil war, Native American, and multi-racial persons. Discovering this ancestry has unlocked previously unknown rich aspects of American history. Genealogy has been Andre’s hobby for 15 years.
He holds a BA in Business Administration from Morehouse College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He shares his research findings at CumboFamily.com and regularly blogs on race, culture, history and genealogy at www.medium/@andrekearns.
Director at Large: Janet A. Alpert, FNGS, South Carolina
Janet A. Alpert served as secretary of NGS from 2004–2006 and as president of NGS from 2006–2010. She has recently served on the NGS Board as a past president. She returned to the NGS Board of Directors in the summer of 2018 to fill an unexpired at-large term. She also serves the genealogy field as chair of the Records Preservation and Access Committee (RPAC). A member of DAR, Alpert’s genealogical research extends from New England, New York, and Pennsylvania to Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio. She also works with DNA cousins to help identify new family relationships.
Alpert accepted leadership roles for three of the NGS Family History Conferences. She was conference chair in 2011 for the Charleston, South Carolina, conference and in 2018 for the Grand Rapids, Michigan, conference. In 2014, she was a co-chair for the Family History conference in Richmond, Virginia. She currently serves as chair of the NGS Conference Committee.
A resident of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, she and her husband spend summers in Michigan. Alpert is retired from a thirty-five-year career in the title insurance industry.