The social media genealogy chat #GenChat began in 2013. (For more about its history and evolution, see here.) Christine McCloud became #GenChat co-host in 2018 and sole host in 2022. Sadly, this chat will end in mid-December, as shown in her announcement.
Christine presided over some major changes during her long tenure. Most important, as the social media world evolved, Christine expanded #GenChat from the Twitter platform to the Mastodon platform. This meant she hosted four chats each month instead of two.
Then, when many genealogy folks fled Twitter, she moved #GenChat to BlueSky and contributed to the vibrant genealogy community there.
Christine has maintained the two chats format twice per month, a challenging schedule on top of mastering the technology to operate both chats.😲 Not to mention that she actually has a life of her own!
Meanwhile, BlueSky gained two other genealogy chats, #GenHour (on Thursdays) and #AncestryHour (on Tuesdays). Both of these chats are weekly, lively and unmoderated, with BlueSky folks posting informally about their current genealogy activities and sharing ideas and info with other chatters.
The final two #GenChats will be November 28/29 (Friday on BlueSky, Saturday on Mastodon) and December 12/13 (Friday on BlueSky, Saturday on Mastodon).
A heartfelt thank you to Christine for keeping #GenChat going with such enthusiasm and dedication! You have done a superb job, and you are much appreciated. 😍
