History: The South West Branch held the first Heritage Dinner in February 1989. The Heritage Dinner was held to celebrate our ancestors and their heritage. February was chosen as it is mid- winter and the members thought it was a perfect time to hold the dinner after a long period of cold weather. In 1993 the Ruth Tester Award was initiated and the executive at the time proposed that the award be presented at the Annual Heritage Dinner.The Heritage Dinner date was changed from February to April in 2008 and was often combined with a genealogy workshop or seminar.The executive decided in 2012 to have the workshop on a biannual basis and to have our Heritage Dinner each year. The dinner is an excellent opportunity for genealogist to gather in a social atmosphere, enjoy a delicious meal and an interesting speaker. It is a well attended event.