The St. Tammany Genealogical Society and the St. Tammany Parish Library have teamed up for an Aug. 13 presentation on the 300-year history of Louisiana’s “German Coast” to be led by Jay Schexnaydre, president of the German-Acadian Coast Historical and Genealogical Society. 

The 10 a.m. event at the Causeway Branch, 3457 U.S. 190 in Mandeville, will feature Schexnaydre’s overview, including the European origins of the founding families, their reasons for immigration, and their settlement and migration patterns in south Louisiana.

Schexnaydre is a 10th-generation native of Convent in St. James Parish, along the Mississippi River, where his ancestors have resided for 300 years. He has served as president of the society since 2016, is on the board of the Lafourche Heritage Society and has actively researched his genealogy since 1996.

This event is free and open to the public, and offered in-person with a virtual option. There will be a meet and greet with light refreshments 30 minutes before the event begins. Seating is limited to adults, but registration is required at bit.ly/STPLGermanCoast.

Also at the libraries, there is help for nonprofits seeking grants and wanting to learn how to best navigate available grant opportunities. Nonprofits are invited to come learn how to use the library’s Foundation Directory, a comprehensive research tool for fundraisers with more than 239,000 grant-maker profiles.

Participants will learn how to search for grant-makers who have funded organizations working on causes with communities similar to those served in St. Tammany. Windows 10 computers will be provided for each participant for the duration of the class. This free event will be held at noon Aug. 25 at the Covington Branch, 310 W. 21st Ave. It is open to the public, and seating is limited to adults. Register online at bit.ly/IntroToFoundationDirSTPL or call the branch at (985) 893-6280.

On Aug. 6, bring the entire family to the library’s Back to School Bash at the Slidell Branch from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. There will be tons of treats, including a real firetruck and two school buses for first-time riders to board and explore, to give the little ones a feel for what the first bus ride to…