Genealogy volunteer Bill Caldwell sits in the Chattanooga Public Library on Wednesday after spending most of the day researching the family histories of people he has never met. Caldwell became interested in genealogy while studying government at Florida State University and now volunteers with the national organization, Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness.GET INVOLVEDTo connect with Bill Caldwell, contact Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness at www.raogk.org, where the guidelines for making a request are explained.
When Bill Caldwell looks for buried treasure, he’s not seeking gold, jewels or coins. He is on the hunt for things like World War I draft registration records and cemetery listings.
The Chattanooga resident is one of about 4,000 volunteers for a group called Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness who do free genealogical research.
“I can watch daytime TV or grass growing, whichever is less boring,” said Caldwell, a retired government employee, “or I can do some worthwhile research, analysis and documentation that will help someone else and be fun for me, too.”
The Florida native said he has done genealogical research for 40 years or more. He has volunteered his time to help other people for the last 10 or 12 years and has worked through Random Acts of Genealogical Kindness for the last several years.