By Mary Torres, Special to the Star
It’s nice to see that some activities in our community which had been canceled due to COVID-19 are coming back such as Market Days in Downtown Harlingen that successfully reopened on May 1 and will continue on the first Saturday of every month.
Another Downtown event, Harlingen Art Night is scheduled to return on Friday, May 28, from 6 – 9 p.m. This is a wonderful Downtown Harlingen evening event that celebrates local art and artists. Merchants open up their businesses showcasing artists and offering refreshments, galleries host artists and exhibitions, live music is featured at various venues.
There is an artist alley called “Art on A St.” where artists can showcase and sell their original work during the evening. Stroll down the twinkling lights of historic Downtown Harlingen and enjoy the murals, original art, live music, shops, and restaurants!
The Harlingen Veteran’s Memorial Committee in conjunction with the Veterans Board and the City of Harlingen will host a Memorial Day Program on Monday, May 31, as a tribute to and to honor the memory of many brave heroes who gave their lives for this country. A candlelight vigil will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial at Pendleton Park, 1425 Morgan Blvd. For more information visit www.harlingenverterans.com.
In the world of genealogy, I recently discovered ConferenceKeeper.com, one of the most complete calendar of genealogy events on the Internet! The mission of ConferenceKeeper.org is to curate details of genealogy events and freely share the information on a single, organized website and across various social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Their goal is to help individuals increase their knowledge, skills, and enjoyment of genealogical research by sharing details of genealogy events of all kinds. On the site you can find a calendar with all genealogy events for every location listed by date; a page listing just upcoming conferences; genealogy event pages by location in specific areas of the U.S., Canada as well as other world countries.
The U.S. location pages include helpful links to state-level archives, websites, and a list of genealogy societies for that state. The Virtual page lists virtual conferences and online opportunities, genealogy travel, tours, and cruises; a call for papers listing opportunities for genealogy speakers; a content page with genealogy-related giveaways; a grants and scholarship page and genealogy volunteer opportunities.
It’s quite an interesting site to visit and explore if you have a spare minute or two!
The Harlingen Arts & Heritage Museum and the Rio Grande Valley Museum Association invite you to visit “On the Surface,” a solo show by Rachel Comminos of Harlingen featuring beautiful hand-tufted textiles on exhibit until September 26, 2021.
Save the date for the opening reception, Thursday, June 17, 2021, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. While you’re at the museum visit the “Here Come the Brides” exhibit featuring beautiful vintage wedding dresses from the collection of June Ramirez, The Antique Emporium, Downtown Harlingen. Museum hours are: Tuesday – Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 P.M., Sunday, 1:00 – 4:00 P.M. and Monday – closed. For more information call 956-216-4901.
The Texas State Genealogical Society will be presenting Virtual TIGR 2021 (Texas Institute of Genealogical Research) on June 13-18, 2021. This five-day event promotes learning in an instructional classroom atmosphere, taking each attendee’s skills to another level.
TIGR offers four courses that create a unique learning experience for those researching ancestors in the Southwest and the 2021 Institute has added a course this year focused on “DNA Fundamentals for Genealogy.” In addition, TIGR’s inclusion of a unique course on Texas research addresses a critical need for genealogists researching complex Texas and early Republic of Texas records.
Be part of this year’s exciting event. Registration includes course instruction and a digital syllabus. Seating for each course is limited. Registration ends on May 31 and the fee is $425 for TxSGS members and $475 for non-members. For more information email tigr@txsgs or follow them on Facebook: TXIGR.
