In 1989 a Jewish genealogy group was formed in Las Vegas. We started out small but with a great determination to succeed. The first meetings were held in the library room of the original Temple Beth Sholom. Eventually the group, led by Carole Montello, began to have regular meetings. Membership in the group grew from 6 to 8 people to nearly 80. We have constantly been adding members and programs since.

We have regular monthly meetings with speakers and training sessions.

Many opportunities for research and community service are being incorporated. We have annual "Beginner's Seminars" that help the newcomer in genealogy research. We make annual visits to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. We promote interest in genealogy by manning a booth at the Israel Independence Day. We are also part of the growing Jewish community in Las Vegas. We promote the Jewish community in Las Vegas by volunteering to assist our local PBS station,the Jewish Federation,and the Jewish Community Center.

Led by Jerry Kunzman, our JGSSN Mentor program assists members who are new to genealogy.

At the final meeting of the year, we make a presentation of an award to the "Member of the Year". The recipients to date are: Mary Barkan, Carole Montello, Janet Farino, Henry Yellowitz, and Jack Oliver.

Under Sam Showel, our Cemetery Project has been recording information from headstones in the local cemeteries. Under the chairmanship of Michael Brenner, we sponsored and managed the 2005 International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies Conference, which was held in Las Vegas.

Our library of research material has been established and is available to our members. Click here to see the list. It has books, periodicals, CD's, and videos under the watchful eye of our librarian, Abe Simon. An active Speaker's Bureau, headed by Jerry Kunzman and Jack Oliver, set up appointments for our people. We visit various groups and organizations and present different aspects of genealogical research.