A genealogy website needs to help people find records, discover programs, and connect with a community that shares their interests. For the Family History & Genealogy Society of Marin County (FHGSM), I brought those needs together through a WordPress redesign, refreshed branding, and integrated membership and event tools.
Client Overview
FHGSM is a volunteer-run organization supporting family historians through education, research resources, and community engagement. Its website serves both newcomers exploring genealogy and established members accessing historical records, publications, and society programs.
Working as the web designer and developer through Bright House Media, I focused on supporting those different audiences while giving volunteers practical tools to manage the website.
The Challenge
The project called for moving from Wild Apricot to WordPress and bringing the society’s public information and membership functions into one platform. The website needed to accommodate research collections, educational programs, membership information, donations, and protected member resources.
The design also needed to reflect the society’s refreshed identity. Just as important, the board and volunteers needed clear instructions for handling memberships, publishing events, and controlling access to content.
A Refreshed Brand and Website Design
I developed the website around a refreshed visual identity, with a tree-based logo, a coordinated green palette, and consistent typography. The brand guide defined logo presentation, colors, heading styles, icons, and buttons, giving the society a reference for future materials.
The website design translated that identity into a custom homepage and interior layouts. Responsive templates, a clear heading hierarchy, and consistent navigation supported the goal of making information approachable across desktop and mobile devices.
The main navigation centered on the tasks visitors came to complete: explore resources, view meetings, join the society, make a donation, or access the members area.
Organizing Research and Community Resources
The content structure brought together information about Marin County records, research support, publications, and special interest groups. Public research information and members-only materials needed distinct destinations so visitors could understand what was available and where to go next.
Client review played an important role in shaping the website. Feedback focused on reducing repeated content, refining button labels, correcting links, and placing information in the most relevant sections. This kept the review grounded in how members and volunteers would actually use the site.
Membership and Event Management
I implemented MemberPress to manage membership accounts, membership options, and protected content. Access rules connected selected content and event categories with the appropriate membership levels, supporting the society’s members-only resources.
The events system provided tools for publishing meetings, organizing event categories, and managing program details. Virtual event workflows included Zoom meeting configuration, helping connect the society’s online calendar with its educational programming.
Together, these features made WordPress a working platform for the society’s community activities as well as its public website.
Documentation for Volunteers
I provided illustrated administrative documentation covering member accounts, membership plans, event creation, event categories, and MemberPress access rules. A separate event guide explained the steps for configuring virtual events with Zoom.
These guides gave board members and volunteers a practical reference for recurring tasks and a resource for introducing future administrators to the website.
The Result
The project brought refreshed branding, public information, membership tools, and event management into a WordPress website tailored to the society’s needs. Research resources and community programs had dedicated sections, while membership rules supported access to protected materials.
For FHGSM, the value was a website built around both its mission and its daily operations. The project demonstrates how I connect visual design, website development, and administrative documentation for organizations with complex content and volunteer teams.
Build a Website That Supports Your Organization
Your website should help visitors take the next step and give your team tools they can use. Bright House Media designs and develops WordPress websites for nonprofits, membership organizations, and businesses throughout Marin and Sonoma Counties.
Contact Bright House Media to discuss your website redesign.