This year has seen some great accomplishments for the VRT project. [This pertains to filmed records only]. A synopsis
of our progress this year is as follows:
Records Translations:
Completions:
Towns for which filmed records have been completely translated:
Stakliskes
Kudirkos Naumiestis
New starts:
Mikaliskis - first record set was sent out, translated and distributed
Merkine - the first record set was just sent to a translator
Contemplated starts:
Evaluation of the new group of translators mentioned later will result in the assignment of the first records for
Butrimonys.
Other:
The first translations for the following towns were received and distributed:
Kovno
Vilijampole
Vilkija
Development of translation resources:
Not long ago, I posted a job for translators on an Israeli web site. I have received numerous responses and an ongoing
dialogue has been established with interested parties. In order to select translators for our project needs, an exam has been
designed to acquaint potential translators to the Old Cyrillic records, the JGen record templates, as well as establish
minimum acceptable criteria for transliteration, translation, knowledge of Jewish given and surnames, local geography, English
proficiency and computer literacy.
Fundraising:
Due to the limited number of personnel working on the VRT project, fundraising had taken a back seat for some months
as we concentrated efforts to proof and distribute translations.
On the brighter side, with the passage of time and donations coming in for smaller towns now and then, I can say more
towns have balances approaching the $500 threshold. This amount is the minimum established whereby the first records for a
town are added to the translation queue, thereby scheduling the start of translation. I will take this opportunity to
list those towns with balances of $300 or greater:
| Nemunaitis |
400.00 |
|
Naujamiestis [Vilna district] |
400.00 |
Valkininkas
300.00
| Total Cekiske |
400.00 |
| Total Nemunaitis |
400.00 |
|
|
| Total Varniai |
397.50 |
| Total Birzai |
348.40 |
| Total Babtai |
325.00 |
| Total Grinkiskis |
300.00 |
| Total Pusalotas |
300.00 |
|
|
All these towns are approaching the $500 threshold, yet they can all be trumped by a few donations for a town currently
not on this list [with a lower balance of even zero!].
If you have not seen any records for your town and are interested in getting your towns records in the translation queue,
please get together with your family and friends to fund the translations for your town. Any questions about the status of
your town can be forwarded via the "Contact Us" page on this site.
This is now the time of year when many of us are getting ready to pack up and go on vacation and/or attend the IAJGS
conference in July. At the same time, the VRT project continues along, albeit at a somewhat slower pace. I would like to take
this opportunity to ask all researchers interested in the vital records to make a qualifying donation to allow our work to
continue.
