In Memoriam – Our Dear Friend
Gail Capelli (1948 – 2022)
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With great sadness the Planning Committee shares the passing of Gail Cappelli. Gail was the daughter of Albert B. and Joan K. (Shardalow) Cappelli, and she spent her childhood on the Main Line in Wayne and Berwyn. She graduated from Conestoga High School and Cabrini College. Gail devoted her career to teaching elementary students in the Norristown Area School District. She is survived by three brothers and a sister, their families, aunts, uncles, and many cousins. Her beloved dog, Tucker, is now with a new family. Genealogy was Gail’s passion. She was immensely proud of her Italian and English family and created custom hand-printed charts for family members. She took genealogy classes whenever possible and became involved in the Main Line Genealogy Club early on. She served on the Planning Committee for 12 years, retiring from her role as Registrar, Historian and Assistant Treasurer in 2021. When the MLGC met at the Easttown Library, Gail was always the first to arrive and set up her station at the meeting room door. She welcomed each person as we signed in, gave a nametag, and collected our $5 donation. She knew everyone and remembered the speakers and program topics! She kept statistics on attendance and recorded the meeting data for the secretary’s minutes. If anyone was missing a handout, she would email it on request. One former Planning Committee member recalls her talent of designing clever little notes and reminders for beginning genealogists. She was an expert with signage, forms, and checklists. She was generous with her time, helping members with English and Italian records. One of her last projects was organizing the surname research cards that we displayed at meetings and which enabled two Planning Committee members to discover that they were distant cousins through their fifth and sixth great grandfathers! We want to honor Gail’s legacy through memorial books in the Tredyffrin Public Library genealogy collection. We invite you to contribute directly to the library (check or credit card), using the directions at https://www.tredyffrinlibraries.org/about-us/support/. Please designate your gift as “Gail Cappelli Memorial.” Every book purchased will have a special memorial book plate, and the topics will include British and Italian research, mastering immigration records, and general resources on family history. The library will send acknowledgement letters that are IRS compliant. Join us in remembering Gail and benefitting the Main Line genealogy community! If you have questions, please use the Contact Us link from the website menu. |
Where We Meet
The Main Line Genealogy Club meets the 2nd Thursday of the month, September through June, from 1 to 3 pm. Now that the pandemic emergency has subsided, we will resume in-person meetings at our NEW location: Tredyffrin Public Library. 582 Upper Gulph Rd, Strafford, PA 19087 AND, simultaneously, online via Zoom. These hybrid in-person and Zoom meetings will allow you to participate either way.
Our Next Meeting
october
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Event Details
Audiences love this interactive lecture on discovering who’s who in their family pictures. They’ll learn 10 easy steps for naming those unidentified pictures tucked away in shoeboxes.
Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective® is sought out by clients all over the world to help them solve their photo mysteries. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others. Join Maureen each week as she discusses historical photos and how they fit into your family history on her podcast, The Photo Detective. From ancestor identification to photo preservation, it covers it all. Featuring special experts from genealogy, fashion history, photo history, and photo restoration.
Note: Maureen will be joining us via Zoom, not in person.