Sonya Backovich

Hello and welcome to The Velvet Album.  My name is Sonya Backovich, and I am a native of Amador County in the beautiful foothills of Northern California.  My ancestors were immigrants from Serbia, Spain, Ireland, England, and Native Salinan of California.  Many of my ancestors were part of the Gold Rush, and because of that, I have always been intrigued by their history and the history of California. I am a graduate of the Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy Certification program, where our class identified a lead in an unidentified human remains case.  With 20 years of traditional Genealogy experience, I have been able to reunite over 200 lost/orphaned photographs, heirlooms, and albums with their families and help families with adopted ancestors build/identify their ancestors.  I look forward to helping you research, catalog, archive, and/or organize your photography, ephemera, and heirlooms to preserve them for future generations to come.

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-Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy Certificate Program Graduate Spring 2026

-IGGA (Investigative Genetic Genealogy Association) Founding Member