A former information systems analyst, Jessica Horne Collins now documents ancestors rather than software bugs. Jessica has served on the CLF board for three years as 1st Vice President-Membership and represents our organization to the National Genealogical Society Delegate Council, of which she is an incoming Steering Committee member. Jessica assisted with the planning and launch of Genealogy Face2Face, CLF's virtual meetings/Zoom hangouts, that began in 2020 after the library's COVID-19 closure. She continues as one of its rotating hosts and as an occasional speaker on genealogical topics.

Since discovering family history in 2012, Jessica has furthered her genealogical knowledge through study groups (ProGen, GenProof, NGSQ) and by attending local seminars, state conferences, and the Texas Institute for Genealogical Research (TIGR). She was a 2022 recipient of an AncestryProGenealogist scholarship, attending the Midwest African-American Genealogical Institute (MAAGI) this summer as its awardee.

Jessica is active in the Texas State Genealogical Society, serving as a contributing editor for its journal, Stirpes, and on the DNA committee. She is also a member of the Association for Professional Genealogists (APG), South-Central Chapter, and National Society Daughters of the American Revolution.

When she's not researching, Jessica stays busy as the mom of two boys. She volunteers with the Parent/Teacher Organizations at her sons' schools, is involved with her church's music ministry, and sometimes finds time to papercraft.

Mary caught the genealogy bug from her Aunt Mildred who began genealogy research in the 1960s (before computers and Ancestry.com).

Mary enjoys research & tying historical events to the family history. She’s been involved in genealogy for only about twenty-five years. Mary has been retired since 2016 and doesn’t know how she had time to do her day job, which was on the systems side of HR/Payroll/Benefits in the field called Human Resources Information Systems, always in the corporate world. Mary has been a volunteer at Clayton Library for several years and looks forward to the day she can return to the library in that capacity, in addition to going as a patron. She’s been a member of CLF since about 2019.

Mary was one of the five women who worked on the Houston Suffragists Project in 2020, finding the women who likely voted in 1920 in Houston & Harris County after the 19th Amendment was passed in 1920. See HoustonSuffragists.org. We found approximately 3500 women who likely voted in 1920.

Mary has become the family historian & archivist and the repository/custodian for all family things as closets, garages, & attics are cleaned out. She enjoys attending online webinars in between research and helping with two great-nephews, ages 10 and 6, and a great-niece, age 4.

I was born and raised in Ponca City, OK. I graduated from Ponca City High School and Central State University, now known as University of Central Oklahoma in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in Biology with minors in Chemistry and Math.

My first job was with Conoco, Inc. for summers during college and for 5 years before relocating to Freeport, TX where I negotiated Wastewater, Solid Waste and RCRA permits for 29.75 years for BASF Corporation. After retiring, I worked for IEA, Inc. an Environmental Consulting Firm in Houston. This job included Environmental auditing and allowed me to travel through numerous cities and states and 2 provinces in Canada.

In retirement I have helped to lead the Senior Adult Ministry for 15 years at the New Faith Church in Houston where I have been a member for 30 years. Co-current jobs included pianist and organist at several churches in Brazoria County as well as teaching piano to young children.

Currently my hobbies include making handmade greeting cards and of course Genealogy. I got hooked on genealogy when I found out that my 2 nd great grandfather was a Free Person of Color and was one of three black members of the Creek Tribal Leadership in Indian Territory. I sometimes attended Clayton Library Presentations prior to the Pandemic and eventually discovered Face2Face Genealogy and I have been hooked ever since.

I've been doing genealogy and going to Clayton as a patron for 30+ years. I started volunteering just before the pandemic hit, so I only got in a couple of sessions of volunteering before it got shut down. I’ve been a member of Clayton Library Friends since August 2019.

I enjoy digging into old unindexed handwritten documents and finding things that you just can't Google. I work on my own family as well as some of my friends'.

My day job for 35 years was software developer, but in January I started my real dream job as a librarian at UH. I'm in the metadata department, where I get to help make the digital collections discoverable.

Carol A. Peña is a native Texan with a passion for genealogy and creative writing. This fifth generation Texan has been researching her maternal line since 2011. Carol is an active Board member of the Bay Area Writers League and has published family stories in several anthology-style books. Growing up, the middle child of seven, she was always fascinated by her mother's ghost and family history stories. Her mother's storytelling led to Carol's love of reading and passion for genealogical discoveries. In 2015, to prepare for a family reunion, she stepped up her research. She successfully added the next generation to her maternal family tree with names, birth, death, and marriage information. Carol added +600-relatives and recorded several “Mom, Tell Me A Story” video segments in time for the reunion’s family history presentation. Carol has published family stories in several anthology-style books.

Carol has been active in Clayton Library Friends on the Programs committee, acting as co-host and helping to facilitate Face2Face sessions as well as presenting one. She successfully completed the Boston University genealogy program Principles class. She plans on completing the Certificate program there. BU recommends a break after the Principles class to practice and encourages volunteer work with genealogical organizations before starting the Certificate program. Carol has been a member of CLF since April 2021.

As her +45-year career in Information Technology winds down, Carol looks forward to spending more time on genealogy research and writing, along with continued adventures with Buster, her constant companion and Wonder-Yorkie.

Connect with Carol on her website at www.carolapena.com.