Directory of Members

Terri Ward is a genealogist, educator, and founder of The Front Porch Genealogist, a platform that reclaims African American family history through truth-telling, storytelling, and soul. Specializing in Southern and Coastal Georgia research, she helps descendants of both the enslaved and the enslavers trace their roots, confront historical erasure, and connect their lived experiences to legacy. Her journey began in McIntosh County, Georgia, where she collected oral history and stories from community elders and cultural icons, sparking a curiosity that led her to repositories and archives nationwide. This quest honed her skills and expertise in chronicling families deeply tied to Georgia's Low Country and Gullah-Geechee Heritage. Her work bridges oral history, archival research, and cultural memory.  As a “Lineage Liberator,” Terri believes that every ancestor has a right to be remembered with dignity, and she equips others to do the same. Her presentations are known for their depth, warmth, and transformative impact.

Beyond speaking, Terri is the currently appointed 2026 Publicity Director for the Genealogical Speakers Guild.  She also served as the former Publicity Director of the Georgia Genealogical Society, 2023 - 2025.  She's a member of the National Genealogical Society (NGS,) the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, (AAHGS,) National and the Metro Atlanta Chapter, an Inaugural Member of the NGS James Worris Moore Leadership Academy Cohort, (NGS JWMLA) has co-founded the Low Country Georgia DNA Project, and is a founding member of UJIMA Genealogy of Coastal Georgia.  She is the Recipient of the 2024 IGHR Frazine K. Taylor Scholarship for IGHR, as well as the Recipient of the 2024 Midwest African American Genealogy Institute, (MAAGI) Scholarship.

She's been a featured guest on genealogical and history themed podcasts, and has written a series of themed newsletters. Terri holds a B.A. in Foreign Language and a minor in Latin American Studies from the University of Central Florida.

• Recipient of the 2024 Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR) Frazine K. Taylor Scholarship
• Recipient of the 2024 Midwest African American Genealogy Institute (MAAGI) Scholarship
• Awarded Membership in the Inaugural Class of the 2025-2026 James Worris Moore Leadership Academy
• Awarded the Georgia Genealogical Society (GGS),  2025 Emerging Voice Award

• Coastal Georgia History
• Coastal Georgia Genealogies
• African American History
• McIntosh County Family Histories
• Plantation Era Research
• Slavery and Reconstruction in the Georgia Low Country
• Tunis G. Campbell
• Free People of Color
• The Early African American Militia in Georgia
• Early African American Politicians of Reconstruction Era Georgia
• The Historic Harris Neck Community of McIntosh County, Georgia
• Origins & Surname Studies of Coastal Georgians
• Genetic Genealogy & DNA Analysis

• Representative Work & Presentations
  • Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society (AAHGS) 2025 National Conference, "Endurance & Legacy:  The Impressive Generations Built by An Enslaved Low Country Georgia Matriarch"
  • Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society (AAHGS) 2024 National Conference, "The Invisible Giant of Butler Island Plantation:  A Former Slaves Rise & Forgotten Contributions to Post-Reconstruction Politics in Georgia"
  • Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society (AAHGS) 2023 National Conference, Hidden in Plain Sight:  "The Forgotten Legacy, Hidden History & Genealogy of Samuel B. Morse, ...--An Honest Man."
  • TechSoup, "Rooted in Freedom:  What Genealogy Teaches Us About Tech, Justice, and Liberation."
  • Coastal Georgia Historical Society, (CGHS) Beyond the Auction Block: Pioneers of Progress & Change, from Butler Island Plantation
  • Ashantilly Center, “The Enduring Legacy of Henry & Mary Todd, McIntosh County’s Wealthiest Free People of Color”
  • Coastal Georgia Genealogical Society, (CGGS) “Roots Across the Waters:  Tracing Georgia’s Loyalists & Caribbean Legacy with Genetic Genealogy”
  • Georgia Genealogical Society, (GGS) “Veiled Roots: They Mysterious Origins & Legacy of Henry & Mary Todd,” ARCHIVED VERSION FOR GGS MEMBERS ONLY
  • Coastal Georgia Genealogical Society, (CGGS) Mary Dawley Moran, “A Low Country Georgia DNA Case Study” AVAILABLE ONLINE via YouTube
  • UJIMA Genealogy of Coastal Georgia, “From Enslavement to Freedom: The Saga of Butler Island, Part II” AVAILABLE ONLINE via YouTube
  • UJIMA Genealogy & The Low Country Georgia DNA Project, “Tools to Attack Your Brick Walls” AVAILABLE ONLINE via YouTube
  • The Burning of Darien Museum, “Butler Island and McIntosh County: Roots & Branches Genealogy and History” AVAILABLE ONLINE via YouTube, Presentation Starts at 19:48
  • Roots & Branches Genealogy Conference, Charleston, South Carolina 2007
  • Afro-American Historical & Genealogical Society (AAHGS) Metro Atlanta 2018 Black History Month Program, "Under the Yoke of Slavery in Low Country Georgia"
  • Don't Get it Twisted:  Endogamy in Coastal Georgia Family Lines - DNA Case Studies
  • The Darien Insurrection of 1899:  A Two Part Series Covering the Insurrection and The Network of F.A.N.S Involved
  • Parsing the Pensions:  Case Studies Regarding the Valiant Soldiers of the 33rd USCT & More
  • Tunis G. Campbell:  A Three Part Series Covering Georgia's Most Controversial Community Builder & Leader
  • More than a Diary:  Bilali Mohammet of Sapelo Island & His Long Fascinating Legacy
  • A Genealogy of Coastal Georgia African American Churches, Their Founders, and Leaders
  • And the Walls Came Tumbling Down:  Education in Coastal Georgia Post Emancipation
  • 40 Acres and a Mule:  Life, Land & Property Ownership in a Coastal Georgia Community
  • Numerous Coastal Georgia Family Reunions covering a span of years, 1995 – 2025
  • Guest Speaker:  Bernice Bennett’s "Ancestor’s Footprints Podcast," May 2025
  • Guest Speaker:  Michele McCrary's, "Curious Roots Podcast," (a series of interviews 2024)

I will provide a laptop for the presentation(s).

Travel, meals, and accommodations to be outlined and included with contract.