Cathie Sherwood

ProGen Member Overview

Passionate about history and addicted to family history, Cathie Sherwood, the principal and founder of Ancestor Discovery has been researching her Irish, English and Scottish ancestors for over forty-five years. On her father's side, she has a Scottish grandfather who was born in India, educated in Scotland, emigrated to Australia and married the daughter of an Irish immigrant, a genealogy scenario shared by many. She also has an English (or Welsh) ancestor who, to this day, continues to be her main brick wall. Her mother's family are predominantly Irish, from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Cathie has managed her own consultancy business and worked in universities for over twenty years, as a lecturer in information technology and education, and, for a period of time, as Director of a university-wide research and development centre, retiring as an Associate Professor. As a university academic, she presented at international conferences in the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Greece, England, Sweden, Singapore, Japan and Norway as well as undertaking research and developing innovative courses in information and communication technology.

Cathie is a great believer in the value of family history education and regularly attends conferences, seminars and institutes in Australia and overseas. She shares her knowledge by volunteering at family history societies and presenting at numerous conferences, seminars and other events on a range of family history topics. She is considered to be an engaging and knowledgeable speaker and has presented at RootsTech 2019 in London and RoosTech 2021. Cathie was featured in an episode of the Australian version of Who Do You Think You Are 2020.