Genie Milgrom, author of My 15 Grandmothers, explains how she investigated her family tree documents in Spanish archives. Genie's research unveils hundress of Jewish family names in Zamora region through marriage and death certificates, Wills, and inquisition trials both in Spain and Portugal.
Her work, she says, has raised awareness among many Hispanics/Latinos in Miami on their potential Jewish ancestry rooted in Spain. "Most people who get interested on this - she comments- don't want to convert to Judaism, but yet they want to integrate their Jewish Sephardic heritage into their personal traditions".
Genie also travels the world, including Latin America, lecturing on her ongoing research project. Her goal is to educate Jewish and non Jewish communities on the history of the Sephardic heritage underlying that this is a very alive culture that is now coming back to light. Genie's recent work explores Crypto Jewish (and Bnei Anusim) codes, symbols and signs both in Zamora region and Portugal. She is currently Vice-President of the Society of Crypto Jewish Studies.