I am a third generation Latvian-Canadian and a genealogist/museum professional specializing in Latvian genealogy and migration history. I love history, languages, travel and geography, and have found genealogy and museum work to be an excellent way of combining all of these interests into one.

I am here to help you with any sort of Latvian genealogy project that you may have, big or small! Please check out my Products and Services page for more information.

My mission in life is to educate people about my little corner of the world – Latvia. I was not born in Latvia, but I do live here now, finally fulfilling a mission I’ve had since I was a child. I want to help everyone learn about Latvian history, and help other people with Latvian heritage connect to their roots.

I grew up in small-town Ontario, Canada. I moved to Ottawa for university, and graduated with a BA (High Honours) in Classics & Religion and European & Russian Studies, concentration in Central and Eastern European Studies from Carleton University in 2007. After graduation, I spent some years traveling and working in Europe, trying to decide what to do next – and that is when I started writing this blog. I wanted to help make Latvian records and research accessible to non-speakers of the language.

My main goal was to make history personal – which is vital to be able to really engage and interest people. Interest in my blog took off almost as soon as I started writing it – which surprised me! I knew that there were people who were interested in Latvian genealogy, but I didn’t know that there were that many. With this momentum, I started taking on my first clients, and interest just continued to grow. I set up the Latvian Surname Project to further study into Latvian surnames and their origins.

I made the move to Latvia full-time in 2014, so that I could take on clients on a regular basis. Since coming to Latvia, I have also expanded my offerings beyond just research projects, starting to include guided family history tours and online courses. Soon I will also be offering a variety of games related to Latvian history and genealogy, as well as ebooks to assist in your research, as well as fiction. With all of the projects I have on the go, I don’t want to forget about this blog – so to that end, I have also set up a Patreon page where I encourage you to support me if you find this blog content valuable. By doing so, you are also eligible for a variety of special perks exclusive to my Patreon supporters.

In addition to this genealogy work, I also do museum work. I completed my Advanced Diploma in Applied Museum Studies at Algonquin College in Ottawa in 2012. A required component of this program was an intership, which I completed at the same institution that I now work with – the Latvians Abroad Museum and Research Centre. I have been a board member of the museum since 2012, and have been doing regular work for them since moving here full-time. Most of the work I do is with Collections Management, but I have also conducted tours of our summer 2014 exhibition at the Corner House and our summer 2015 exhibition at the Latvian National Library and helped design, create and install the summer 2015 exhibition about Latvians in Canada. I am also working on an interactive project about the history of the Latvian community of Lincoln County, Wisconsin, USA, which was established in the late 19th century.