When you say it out loud, it sounds even more incredible. In the 10 years since IGGP was founded, it has held 5 international conferences bringing amazing attention to the German genealogy community. So at the 2025 conference in Columbus, it was time to let our hair down and have “A Fun Night Out!”

Attendees were invited to have light snacks, including street tacos, and relax as the IGGP’s 10th annivesary was commemorated. You can read the founding agreement and mission statement for yourself to understand the scope of what this partnership was hoping to accomplish. We were fortunate to have several of those founding partner societies represented at the event. A lot has been done, but there are always ideas and goals to work on. We thank those partner societies that have joined the network and look forward to their continued participation in the continued success of the IGGP.

This fun night out did have some serious business to accomplish, however. First, IGGP President Barbara Schmidt welcomed attendees via video from Germany. And the IGGP awards were announced and the winners given a round of applause for their contributions. You can read the full list of our winners’ accomplishments.

But let’s give a special thanks to Austrian historian, Herr Dr. Thomas Aigner, (above) who when he learned that he had been named as the winner of the Shirley Riemer Lifetime Achievement Award, decided at the last minute that he would attend the conference in person!

Once the street tacos and the awards were taken care of, it was time for fun. Master of ceremonies Owen McCafferty (above) introduced the prizes to be awarded for those who succeeded at the trivia game to come, including sausages. Natürlich. A list of 15 or so questions elicited laughter, singing, pondering and complete puzzlement. What was the name of the young German boy in the film “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”?

Thank you for helping IGGP mark its 10th anniversary.