When I was a little girl, I dreamed of being a teacher. My mom worked in a library and my aunt taught high school. I always had access to books and textbooks and I played school with my siblings all the time, much to their dismay. HA!
Fast forward to college…I wanted to be a band teacher or play in the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. However, after a grueling semester of marching band and the fact that I could play the clarinet but not the piano, I dropped the Music Major and the dream of teaching.
In the end, many years later, I graduated college with a History degree. It took almost a decade before I created my genealogy business which then became a military business. Since 2012 I have taught programs for libraries, societies, and small groups.
I love, love, love teaching and helping people break down their brick walls and find answers they never expected. This in turn helps researchers write and share their veteran stories. This love of teaching has turned also into coaching and group coaching.
Our veterans deserve to have their stories told and families deserve answers, especially when military service created issues which may still be lingering in the generational DNA since. I know this personally because I’ve been living out, investigating, and processing my grandparent’s World War II trauma for decades.
Webinars, Institutes, College Programs, SIGs and Conferences Don’t Always Work
You may wonder why genealogists or military researchers, or anyone would need coaching. Why not just attend another genealogy program or webinar? Why wouldn’t you (spend a lot of money) to go to a conference, an institute, or other special interest group event?
Those types of events and education do not work for everyone. They also have to be general enough in nature to cover the basics. Time does not often allow for the instructor to really dive into what individual students or researchers actually need to move forward. This is where private or group coaching sessions come into play. I am here for it and VERY excited to be doing it.
So far in 2026 I’ve held a couple of Ask Me Anything – Veteran Book Writing & Publishing sessions which were well attended. I also held a Group Coaching for Online Military Research session which was amazing. Everyone walked away with new ideas, a great deal to consider, new resources, and plenty of places to go online to find answers they had no idea existed.
One person had this to say after the Online Military session:
Jennifer’s courses and Zoom chats have removed so much mystery from the process of researching a military veteran. I appreciate the straightforward approach that avoids going down endless trails of research that does not yield any results. She has designed a method to work through the labyrinth of military records which makes it possible for any level of researcher to understand.
I am an experienced researcher and Jennifer opened research doors for me I was unaware of. If you’re serious about your research invest the time with Jennifer, her knowledge is the kind only gained from decades of experience in this field. ~M.T.
Would You Like to Try Group Coaching?
Participants are finding great value in these small group coaching sessions. One researcher who is writing her father’s story asked if I offer any sessions specific to Fold3. Why yes I do! I am now offering both general online research coaching and specific coaching for NARA Catalog and Fold3. I’m also open to suggestions on what others need.
I think we all know that NARA Catalog is incredibly challenging to search and find records. Of all online sites, even for my own research, I’ve had to develop strategies to locate information in the catalog. In some ways, it is more difficult than navigating Fold3. My hours of experience are now helping others.
I have several sessions coming up for both research and writing/publishing. You can explore all session details in my STORE at the Ancestral Souls Wisdom School, my online course site. All times are CDT
NARA Catalog Group Coaching. Saturday, January 31, 10:00 a.m.
FOLD3 Group Coaching. Saturday, February 14, 10:00 a.m.
Online Group Coaching. All websites. Multiple options: Saturday, February 7, 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, February 11, at 7:00 p.m. and Monday, February 16, at 7:00 p.m.
Ask Me Anything – Book Writing & Publishing. Monday, February 9, 10:00 a.m.
Don’t forget that I also do group coaching for YOUR specific group. Research is more fun with friends right! Just get some people together, have the leader contact me to set up a day and time for the session. I’ll create a specific registration for your group and each person can register individually. Details are under Small Group Coaching in my Store.
If you are ready to move your World War I, World War II, Korea or Vietnam research and writing forward in 2026, consider a group or private coaching session. You will be surprised at just how many answers you will discover.
Would you like to research your veteran? I can help!
If you’d like help researching your WWI, WWII, Korea, or Vietnam veteran or writing their story, let’s chat. I offer free phone consults for potential new clients. Email info@wwiirwc.com to get started today!
You can also learn my 2-part military research strategy in my Research a Veteran program available at my online course site. Explore this and other research and writing webinars at the Ancestral Souls Wisdom School store.
© 2026 WWII Research and Writing Center
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