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RootsTech Connect announces first 4 keynote speakers to headline virtual, global event

RootsTech Connect 2021 has announced the first four keynote speakers for its free family history event to be held in the spring. 

The global event — slated for Feb. 25-27, 2021 — is attracting participants from around the world. For the first time in RootsTech’s 10-year history, classes will be completely virtual and offered in multiple languages. Presenters will teach from international locations. 

A Nov. 12 RootsTech press release announced the first four keynote speakers:

  • Nick Vujicic, a New York Times bestselling author and international motivational speaker
  • Lorena Ochoa, a retired top female world golfer 
  • Francesco Lotoro, musician, composer and collector of music composed in captivity during the Holocaust
  • Sharon Leslie Morgan, author and genealogist dedicated to promoting healing by providing resources for African American genealogical research.

Nick Vujicic was born in Melbourne, Australia, with neither arms nor legs. Despite his disabilities, he has achieved remarkable goals. He has spoken live to 6.5 million people in more than 65 countries, met with 21 presidents and addressed nine governments. His New York Times best seller, “Unstoppable,” is now published in more than 30 languages. 

Lorena Ochoa is considered the best Mexican golfer and best Latin American female golfer of all time. She was the top-ranked female golfer in the world for 157 consecutive weeks in the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA). She published her book “Dream Big” in 2012, which shares the goals from her childhood that set her on that course. 

Francesco Lotoro is an Italian pianist, composer, conductor, and professor at the Umberto Giordano Music Conservatory in Foggia, Italy. For the past 30 years, he has worked tirelessly to recover, study, archive, execute, record and promote tens of thousands of remarkable musical scores composed by prisoners in concentration camps. 

Sharon Leslie Morgan founded Our Black Ancestry (OBA), an online community to provide resources for African American genealogical research, preserve historical materials and properties and promote healing of wounds that are a legacy of slavery. Morgan has co-authored several books including “Gather at the Table: The Healing Journey of a Daughter of Slavery and a Son of the Slave Trade.”

Throughout the three-day RootsTech Connect event, livestream and on-demand content will be offered to accommodate participants’ time zones. Sessions will also be available to watch on-demand after the event concludes. Live chats and question-and-answer sessions will allow attendees to interact with presenters, exhibitors and other attendees. 

Register for RootsTech Connect for free at RootsTech.org.

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