Biography

Judy Rosella Edwards is a freelance writer and new media specialist who creates web content in addition to writing for local newspapers. Her focus is genealogy, history, and Central Illinois history.

She writes a monthly column for GenWeekly and is a writer for Suite101's Museum & History Studies. Edwards is a contributor to the Dictionary of Unitarian and Universalist Biography and is a past presenter at the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency's annual Conference on Illinois History.

She says, "I'll write about just about anything——and I have!" She has interviewed U.S. politicans, middle school spelling bee winners, artists, entertainers, business owners, school officials, and UFO experts.

"Flexibility is the key to getting freelance work in a small market," she said, revealing the secret to her success. "I'll write about anything except sports. Any sport. I don't know anything about sports and I'm not willing to learn. But give me any other topic and, even if I don't know the subject inside and out, I'll research it until I can write intelligently about it."

In her spare time, she teaches computer applications. A Microsoft certified Office Specialist, Edwards is currently pursuing Adobe Certification.

Edwards is also a Wikipedia editor. "I have heard a lot of cricitisms against Wikipedia," she said. "The wonder of Wikipedia is that, if you find an error or are aware of discrepancy, fix it! Wikipedia is a collaborative website. Share your knowledge. Share your expertise."

Edwards challenges that, if you find your world is less than perfect, do something about it. If you wish things were different, find a way to make it so. That commitment inspired her to create a local Freecycle project.

"I liked the Freecycle concept, but there was no Freecycle group in my area," she said. "There is still this misperception that the average end-user lives in a major metro area and is a recent high school or college graduate. I was living in an unincorporated community of 1,500, was nearly 50 years old and hold a master's degree! I started the Pekin-Peoria Freecycle site that exploded into two, and then three... I saw it as a unique way of using the internet to solve a community issue."

The original project split into the Peoria and Pekin Freecycle sites. Now there is also a Woodford County Freecycle. Other Tri-County Freecycles have come and gone.

"Now there are more than 3,000 participants in the Peoria Freecycle and many of us live in what might be considered remote areas but participate anyway," she said. "It is a challenge to use a template to create this kind of a community. Freecycle really wants each community to be independent."

That became a challenge early on, but it also led to some really creative solutions. "The reason I started with Peoria-Pekin as a single group was I understand the local economy. Many people work in Peoria or Pekin, but live elsewhere. At one point, seven or eight of us had posted items we were going to exchange with various people. I needed to be on the North Side of Peoria, on business, and was going to drop off a bathtub whirlpool I was giving to someone. We agreed that I would meet him in the parking lot where he worked and we would make the exchange during his coffeebreak. As it happened, all of us could be at the parking lot within about a 30 minute span. Someone came from East Peoria, someone from Chillicothe, a couple of people from Peoria, and someone from Pekin!"

Edwards said that, if these Freecyclers had been members of only Pekin or Peoria Freecycle, they never would have known about each other's offers and needs. Members post on a Yahoo Group what they are giving away or what they are needing. They post to the list when the item has been spoken for and then privately make arrangements for when and where to pass on the item.

"Some of the moms created another solution and began having group exchanges at area parks where the kids could play," she said. They would post what they were going to bring to the exchange, load up their cars, and set up exchanges in a park pavillion.

"They created that on their own and rotated among towns throughout Tazewell, Peoria, and Woodford counties. Thank goodness, other people took over management of the groups," she said. "I just didn't have time for it any more. But it is a great concept, to give away useful items instead of putting them into a landfill. And I still participate!"

Edwards says she still feels like the potential of the web has barely been discovered, in spite of innovative projects like Freecycle. But, she is excited to be a part of it.

If you are searching for an experienced content provider or designer, contact Judy Rosella Edwards at judy@judyrosellaedwards.com. Watch for classes she is scheduled to teach, or contact Judy directly to create an individualized training solution at judy@judyrosellaedwards.com.

She is also a lifelong genealogist currently pursuing board certification. She maintains a number of genealogy websites as part of the Genealogy Trails Project: Christian County, Effingham County, McLean County, Macon County, Moultrie County, and Shelby County.

She is the author of The 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Genealogy & Family History, and The 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Disappearing in the U.S. Edwards is a featured columnist for  GenWeekly News & Information Service.

Judy Rosella Edwards is a writer and new media specialist. She holds a Master's degree in Instructional Systems Technology from the College of Education at Indiana University. She lives in Central Illinois with her husband, Jeff Imig, and their cats.