Come See Us At RootsTech 2020

This Wednesday through Saturday, February 26-29, FamilyTreeDNA will be at RootsTech – the Super Bowl of genealogy conferences. (Maybe more like the Boston Marathon, considering the size of the venue!). Tickets are still available here, with Virtual Passes here, and select sessions will livestream for free.

The Events Team goes to numerous events during the year. Each has its own distinct personality. RootsTech thrums with energy and excitement, unlike any other conference we attend. From the time you enter the venue to the end of the last session, the infectious intensity and passion of the attendees and volunteers who run the show fills the air. It’s like a concert mixed with a family reunion.

RootsTech began in 2012 in Salt Lake City at the Salt Palace Convention Center as a modest gathering of speakers and vendors. That modest gathering quickly grew to between 13,000 and 15,000 registered attendees, up to 25,000 on Family Day, plus thousands more attending virtually through live streaming.

FamilyTreeDNA first attended in 2013 and we’ve expanded our presence each year. As official RootsTech Sponsors for the second year in a row, we’ll feature in-booth demos with a variety of speakers, including several who are on the RootsTech schedule!

The 10th conference promises to be a winner with keynote speakers such as NFL Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith, and Leigh Anne Tuohy, who inspired the movie “The Blind Side.” Over 300 lectures and workshops cover everything from genetic genealogy to tracing your *insert country here* ancestry, to using Google forms and Facebook for genealogy. The Expo Hall is packed with vendors of every conceivable kind of genealogical tool and product, including DNA tests, of course.

Two speakers represent FamilyTreeDNA in the main sessions this year:

• Friday @ 4:30 p.m – Janine Cloud, FTDNA Group Project Manager, will present Targeted Testing – Finding the right test and tester for your genealogical puzzle
• Saturday @ 9:30 a.m. – Paul Maier, Ph.D., FTDNA Population Geneticist, will present Taste of Population Genetics: A Sampler Platter

RootsTech Demo Theater Presentations in the Expo Hall:

• Thursday @ 4:00 p.m. – Paul Maier, Ph.D., FTDNA Population Geneticist, previews myOrigins 3.0
• Friday @ 12:20 p.m. – Michael Sager, FTDNA Y-DNA Phylogenetic Specialist, discusses the Y Tree of Mankind
• Saturday @ 10:20 a.m. – Blogger Roberta Estes, introduces the Million Mito Project

Each demo theater presentation includes a giveaway, so be sure to attend!

The FamilyTreeDNA Booth will be at 1117. In addition to selling kits and upgrades at special event pricing, we’ll have 15-minute demos on a variety of topics beginning Wednesday evening and continuing on through the end of day Saturday. The demos will occur between sessions and during the lunch breaks. Each talk concludes with a drawing for a gift certificate or a free test for one lucky audience member, so have a look at the schedule to plan your visit.

We hope to see you there!

FTDNA Booth Demo Schedule at RootsTech