Directory of Members

Suzanne Hoffman, "The Genealogy Maven," is the immediate Past  President of the Association of Professional Genealogists, a professional Forensic Genealogist, the current President of the Illinois State Genealogical Society, the Parliamentarian for the Chicago Genealogical Society, a co-conference Chair for the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies, and a volunteer at the Wilmette FamilySearch Center.

Genealogy is her passion. She has been researching families for more than 30 years. Although she finds her Illinois-born husband's pioneer line a great deal easier to pursue, she still loves her mainly Lithuanian and Russian conquest of missing and indecipherable documents. She specializes in Illinois, Massachusetts, Eastern Europe, and Immigration.

The Genealogy Maven has a certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University OL29; has completed ProGen Study Group 46, the Genealogical Institute on Federal Records 2021, Advanced DNA Evidence 2022, and extensive AI training.  Over the past three years, I have completed more than 500 hours of training to become a professional genealogist.

Forensic Genealogy
Jewish Research
Illinois
Massachusetts
Immigration & Naturalization
Eastern Europe
Russia

• Immigration & Naturalization 1850 - 1950
• Early Settlement in Illinois
• Mayhem on a Manifest: Intrigue and Deception
• Introduction to DNA
• Introduction to Forensic Genealogy
• What Does it Mean to be a Professional Genealogist?
• Eastern Europe 1850-1890: A Migration Story
• Chain Migration
• Emerging Data Privacy Concerns
• Early Jewish Settlement in Illinois
• Socialist Advocates for Change in Boston (1910s)
• Why is Jewish Research Different from All Other Research?
• When Traditional Genealogy and Genetic Genealogy Collide

NGS - 2026, 2025, 2024, 2023
IAJGS - 2025, 2024, 2022
ISGS - 2026, 2025, 2023, 2022
BYU - 2025, 2024, 2022
Wilmette Public Library - 2024, 2023, 2021