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ARCHIVED EVENTS May 8-11, 2008: Society of Professional Obituary Writers will hold its first meeting and present awards for distinguished obituary writing of 2007 at a professional development workshop at The Oregonian, Portland, Ore. SPOW is a brand new organization created for folks who write about the dead for a living. Most of us are journalists, who work for news organizations. Speakers include nationally known writer's coach Jack Hart, Pulitzer-prize winner Jim Sheeler and obit writers from Alaska, California, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, Oregon and Canada. Details on the new organization, the awards and the workshop are available at the SPOW Web site: http://www.obitwriters.org. May 4-6, 2008: I'll be conducting "Obit Writing 101" workshops at the North Carolina Funeral Directors Association Educational Conference & Exposition at Sheraton Imperial, Research Triangle Park, N.C. My sessions begin at 8:30 a.m. and 10:15 a.m. Monday, May 5. Visit the NCFDA Web site for more information. Nov. 8-12, 2007: 13th
Annual Conference Oct. 9, 2007: I'll be speaking to the Geauga County Genealogical Society about "Death Notices and Obituaries" at Chardon Library, 110 E. Park St., Chardon, Ohio. The "Gen" society meets on the second Tuesday of each month (except July and August) from 7-9 p.m. in the library's Bostwick Room. The public is welcome. For further information, call Chardon Library at 440-285-7601. July 2, 2007 - I'll speak at the 7 p.m. meeting of the East Cuyahoga County Genealogical Society about the death beat and anything else the members want to discuss. The group usually meets the first Monday of the month at the Ross DeJohn Community Center, 6306 Marsol Road, Mayfield Heights, Ohio. June 14-16, 2007 - 9th Great Obituary Writers Conference, Alfred, N.Y. Speakers confirmed for this year's conference, per conference and International Association of Obituarists founder Carolyn Gilbert, include Pulitzer Prize winner Jim Sheeler of the Rocky Mountain News, Adam Bernstein of the Washington Post, Gayle Ronan Sims of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Joan Harvey of the Oregonian, Robert Chaundy of the BBC, Nigerian journalist Betty Abah, author Marilyn Johnson, Dave Snyder of the Alfred Sun who is co-hosting the conference with Carolyn G., and Andrew Losowsky, a British-by-birth technical writer and obit expert who lives in Spain. Check Carolyn's obitpage.com for more information. We'll also post info at our obituary forum blog as we get it. May 16, 2007 - I'll speak at the 7 p.m. meeting of the Cuyahoga West Genealogical Society about how techniques for writing obituaries can help family historians. The CWGS meets at the Westlake Porter Public Library, 27333 Center Ridge Road, Westlake, Ohio, on the 3rd Wednesday of the month. The public is always invited to attend at no charge. April 19-21, 2007 - ACES (American Copy Editors Society) Conference, Marriott Biscayne Bay, Miami, Fla. I'll moderate a panel discussion about "The Peculiarities of Editing Obituaries" from 4-5:30 p.m. Friday, April 20. Panelists include Kay Powell, obits editor at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Bryan Marquard, who writes obits for the Boston Globe, Jade Walker of Associated Press (who created the Blog of Death) and a couple of yet-to-be-named copy editors. March 21, 2007 – Dressed in purple and topped with a red hat, I'll speak at the 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. meeting of the Berea Bonnet Belles chapter of the Red Hat Society at Bucci's Restaurant, One Berea Commons, Berea, Ohio. My subject: "Life on the Death Beat." March 6, 2007 - I'll speak at 7:30 p.m. to the Polish Genealogical Society of Greater Cleveland on the subject "Obituaries and History: Reliable Sources?" at St. Mary Polish National Church, 5375 Broadview Road, Parma. The meeting will be held in the parish hall at the corner of Broadview Road and Wexford Ave. The parking lot entrance is on Marietta Ave. March 3, 2007 – I'll participate in a genealogy seminar co-sponsored by the African American Genealogical Society of Cleveland and the Western Reserve Historical Society at the WRHS museum, 10825 East Blvd., Cleveland. Featured speaker will be Reggie Washington of the National Archives & Records Administration. February 17, 2007 - I'll speak to the Summit County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society at 1 p.m. at the Akron-Summit Public Library, 60 South High St., downtown Akron. My topic: "Write Your Own Obituary and Get It Right!" We'll discuss innovative ways to sum up a life and more. The meeting is open to the public. Oct. 25, 2006 - I'll participate in a panel presentation titled "A Dead Issue" for the Middle School Scholars' Program of the Cleveland Heights-University Heights school district at Roxboro Middle School 2400 Roxboro Rd., Cleveland Heights. The panelists, all from Cleveland, Ohio, and its suburbs, include Diana Hartt of the Hospice of the Western Reserve, Diana Phillips of LifeBanc organ donation agency, funeral director Thomas W. Smith and obituary writer Alana Baranick (that would be me). This seminar is designed to provide gifted-and-talented 8th graders with information about careers related to end-of-life issues. This program is not open to the public. Sept. 11, 2006: "Obituaries and History: Reliable Sources?" is the title of my presentation for the Cuyahoga Valley Geneaolgical Society meeting at Independence Civic Center, Willow Room, 6363 Selig Drive, Independence, Ohio, located at Selig Drive and Cathy Lynn Drive, just behind the Independence Library. The event starts at 7:30 p.m. The CVGS is a chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society. Its more than 100 members members are interested in learning about genealogical research and family history preservation. The organization also collects, organizes and preserves genealogical materials concerning Independence, Brecksville and adjoining communities in the Cuyahoga Valley area. Visit CVGS' Web site - http://www.rootsweb.com/~ohcvgs/ - for more information about the group, its future meetings and summer research tours. Aug. 24-27, 2006: Society of Professional Journalists Convention and National Journalism Conference at the Hyatt Regency, 151 East Wacker Drive, Chicago. Circle Friday, Aug. 25, (10:45-11:45 a.m.) on your calendar for "Your Career: How and Why to Bring the Dead to Life," a panel presentation featuring Larken Bradley, Adam Bernstein and me. Here's how we're describing the session: Nationally recognized obituary writers, known for bringing the dead to life, discuss various methods for summing up a life, how writing obituaries has improved their journalistic skills and why they love doing a job that some consider dead end. Up for discussion: Finding the body; dealing with the bereaved; making sure the facts add up; researching, interviewing and writing techniques; dearly departed who behaved badly; suicide; freelance opportunities; and anything else on participants' minds (Q&A). Larken Bradley writes obits for the Point Reyes Light, a weekly paper serving an area north of San Francisco, and has a freelance obit-writing business (www.obituarywriters.com). Adam Bernstein is senior obit writer for The Washington Post. June 15-17, 2006: 8th Great Obituary Writers' International Conference at the Plaza Hotel, Las Vegas, N.M. For registration information, go to: www.obitpage.com. To read my article for Poynter Online about these obit-writers conferences, go to: http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=84857. This is a wonderful event for meeting other grimsters and picking up obit-writing tips. (Reports on the conference are posted on the obit forum page.) April 29, 2006: I'll talk to the Ohio Professional Writers about "Life on the Death Beat" at the association's spring meeting at the Commodore Perry Inn, 255 Lakeshore Dr., Port Clinton, Ohio. Also on the schedule for the daylong meeting (from around 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) are Vivian Goodman from WKSU, who will talk about her experience covering the Cleveland Orchestra trip to England and Europe last summer, and retired Brig Gen. James M. Abraham, who will share the Army National Guard's recent briefing on the Iraq War and Hurricane Katrina.. The registration fee is only $10, but attendees will pay for their own lunches. To make a reservation (which is required) call Irene Wright-Abraham, OPW President, at 866-554-8894, or Treasurer Dean Buckenmeyer at 419-445-2209 or 888-445-9456. At the meeting, OPW, an affiliate of the national Federation of Press Women, also will hold an annual business meeting, present communication awards, hold election of officers and recognize the Ohio Communicator of Achievement for 2006. April 2, 2006: I'll be the featured speaker at the April 2 installment of the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center's annual free lecture series, "Sundays at Spiegel Grove." My subject will be obituaries and "Life on the Death Beat." The session will begin at 2 p.m. in the Hayes Museum. The Hayes Library, which is in the same building, is known for its extensive collection and index of obituaries, especially from Northwest Ohio. The presidential center is located at Spiegel Grove in Fremont, Ohio. For more information, driving directions and to access the center's obituary/genealogical databases, call 419-332-2081 or visit http://www.rbhayes.org online. March 7, 2006: I'll speak about obituaries to the Seneca County Genealogical Society at 7:30 p.m. at the Tiffin-Seneca Public Library, 77 Jefferson St., Tiffin, Ohio. More information about the genealogical society is available at http://www.senecasearchers.org. The library's Web site is http://www.tiffinsen.lib.oh.us and its phone number is 419-447-3045. Nov. 4, 2005: I'll speak to the OASIS writing class for adults over 50 about the life story, from conception to the present, of my book, "Life on the Death Beat." Class is 1-2:30 p.m. at the Beachwood Family Health Center, Conference Room D, 26900 Cedar Road, Beachwood, Ohio. OASIS, an educational program for adults over 50, promotes lifelong learning and community service. For more information, go to: http://www.oasisnet.org/cleveland/index.htm. Oct. 22, 2005: From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., I'll participate in a multi-author book signing at the Halloween Express, 5198 Great Northern Plaza South, North Olmsted. My book cover and title were spooky enough to land me a spot among writers with some really scary works. They include: (1) T. Anthony Truax, author of "The Naphtali Chronicles: A Whole New Breed," a modern-day spin on werewolves, www.awholenewbreed.com; (2) Stephanie Wincik, author of books like "Ghosts of Erie County," www.onehorsepress.net; (3) Mr. Maniacal, who wrote about the haunted attraction industry in "The Art of Fear: Theories of a Dark Entertainer," www.artoffear.com; (4) Jennifer Robins, author of the paranormal mystery, "Ghostly Antiques: A Novel about Psychometry;" and (5) Paul Campbell, whose book, "Inside the Insane," is a collection of short horror stories. Oct. 19, 2005: I'll give students in a feature-writing class at Point Park University, 201 Wood Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa., a primer on how to quicken the dead. Class time is 9:30-10:40 a.m. Instructor Erv Dyer, a reporter with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, says: "At Point Park University, journalism students, like those at most schools, get plenty of fundamentals in covering the living. They go to meetings, press conferences and many a chicken dinner in pursuit of the stories that they think they can bring to life. It is not until they actually get a job that they find out that many of them have to cover death and dying, also. The police station, the coroner's offices and elsewhere. If someone dies on their beat, or specialized area of coverage, they are frequently assigned an obit, a capsule or extended feature of the unique contributions a person has made to a local community or society at large." Oct. 18, 2005: I'll speak to the Pleasant Hills Public Library Writers Group from 6:30-8 p.m. about "Life on the Death Beat." The meeting, which is open to the public, will be held at the library, of course, which is located at 302 Old Clairton Road, Pittsburgh, Pa. The writers group was founded four years ago by Joanna Blair, a local writer and award-winning freelance journalist, and Terry Tatrai, an administrator in the office of the vice president for student life at Duquesne University since 1988 and former instructor for the Community College of Allegheny County's Institute of Corporate and Professional Development where she taught "Fiction Writing and Writing and Publishing courses. Meetings are held in two locations: the Pleasant Hills Public Library on the first and third Tuesday of each month and at the Monongahela Public Library on the first and third Wednesday. For more information call the Pleasant Hills library at 412-655-2424. Oct. 18, 2005: During the day, I'll visit my alma mater, Gateway High School, in Monroeville, Pa., and talk with students about how my education at Gateway helped prepare me for a career in journalism. Oct. 17, 2005: I'll speak to the Parkersburg Rotary
about "Writing About the Dead and Loving It" at a noon luncheon
meeting at the Parkersburg Holiday Inn, 225 Holiday Hills Drive, Parkersburg,
W.Va. October 16-18, 2005: Society of Professional Journalists
National Convention, Las Vegas, Nev. Sept. 18, 2005: I'll be addressing a meeting of
the Cleveland Memorial Society on "How to Write Your Own Obituary"
at 2 p.m. at First Unitarian Universalist Church, 21000 Shaker Blvd. (at
Belvoir Oval.), Shaker Heights, Ohio. Sept. 17: The Second Annual Midwest Book Fest at Bellevue Senior High School, Bellevue, Ohio, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The festival, which offers authors an opportunity to show off their books, chat with prospective readers and get to know their peers, was organized by another author, Tena Green. Here's the link to the MBF site: http://hometown.aol.com/MidwestBookFest August 2005: Release of "Best Newspaper Writing
2005," the Poynter Institute's book that features the year's best
newswriting and community service photojournalism from the American Society
of Newspaper Editors annual competition. August 2005: Release of "Life on the Death
Beat: A handbook for obituary writers." June 16-18, 2005: The 7th Great Obituary Writers
Conference, Francis Hotel, Bath, England. May 24, 2005: I'll be addressing a meeting of the Lorain, Erie and Huron Counties District of the Ohio Funeral Directors Association. April 27, 2005: I'll talk about obit writing with Sue Zimmerman's journalism class at Kent State University. April 23, 2005: "Homecomings, Crossings and Passings: Life and Death in the African Diaspora," 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., John Carroll University, Dolan Center ofr Science and Technolog, 20700 North Park Blvd., University Heights, Ohio.This academic conference is a collaboration between Cleveland State and John Carroll universities, which highlights recent work on the histories and cultures of African-descended peoples and strategies used to ensure their collective survival. A dozen speakers are scheduled to make presentations. Keynote speaker will be Karla FC Holloway, Duke University professor and author of five books, including "Passed On: African-American Mourning Stoires." I'll offer practical advice on how to tell the life stories of ordinary people through obituaries. For more information, visit www.csuohio.edu/history or contact Regennia N. Williams, Cleveland State University, Department of History, 2121 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, Ohio 44115; email: african.diaspora@csuohio.edu; phone: 216-523-7182. April 14, 2005: American Society of Newspaper Editors Convention, Awards Presentation, JW Marriott, Washington, D.C. ASNE award winners will be presented awards at the morning session of the convention, be involved in a panel discussion on news writing and be recognized at a luncheon where the guest speaker will be President George W. Bush. For more information, go to www.asne.org
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