We regret to announce that Cinda Baxter, CG, has stepped away as the Gen-Fed Assistant Director. She has given this program so much with her talents in organization, dedication, and enthusiasm. She will be missed. We now ask all to welcome our new colleague.
Mary O’Brien Vidlak, CG®
holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Fairfield University and attended the MBA program at Rutgers University. Prior to a move to Williamsburg, Virginia, in 2006, she was the Director of Benefits for a Fortune 500 company. Like many newcomers to the Historic Triangle region, Mary immersed herself in the unique opportunities available in the area to learn more about the people who once lived there. That information led to the discovery of the deep roots of her own family in Virginia. As a result, what had been a vague interest in family history became a passion.
A relative latecomer to genealogy, Mary has benefited greatly from the numerous offerings for genealogical education. She started with the National Genealogical Society home study course in American Genealogy, followed by the ProGen Study Group, while simultaneously attending local, state, and national conferences. In addition, since 2012 she regularly attends courses at the various institutes. In 2014 she attended the National Institute on Genealogical Research (NIGR)—renamed the Genealogical Institute on Federal Records (Gen-Fed) the following year. This concentrated genealogical education helped Mary meet her goal of becoming a board-certified genealogist. She attained the designation of Certified Genealogist® in March 2016. The research report from her portfolio is one of the sample reports on the Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) website.
Members of the Virginia Genealogical Society (VGS) elected Mary to their board in 2014. During her years with VGS, she served in multiple roles including two terms as president and one as treasurer before stepping down in July 2023. She was the local society host co-chair for the 2021 and 2023 National Genealogical Society conferences. For two years beginning in July 2016, she was the co-editor of BCG’s Springboard. Mary served as a trustee for BCG from 2020–2023. She is currently the BCG ACTION list administrator.