Johni Cerny

Birthday: August 27, 1943 in Kansas City, Missouri, USA

Birth Name: Jonnette Elaine Cerny

Johni Cerny is a professional genealogist and family historian who first began her career in 1979. She founded Lineages, Inc. in 1983, left the firm in 2005 and returned as the company's Presiden ...Show More

Johni Cerny is a professional genealogist and family historian who first began her career in 1979. She founded Lineages, Inc. in 1983, left the firm in 2005 and returned as the company's President and CEO in 2011. Between 2005 and 2012, she was the lead genealogist for several television series that have aired on PBS, including African American Lives 1 & 2, Faces of America and Finding Your Roots, which will begin airing on PBS in March, 2012. Those productions were under the direction of her dear friend and Executive Producer, Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Kunhardt-McGee Productions, Ark Media and Inkwell Films. She's been the family historian of choice of nearly 100 famous Americans. Johni specializes in tracing American, African American, English, Scottish, German, Slovakian, Swiss and Italian ancestors. Johni grew-up in her native Kansas City, Missouri and Los Angeles. She graduated from Van Nuys High School and Brigham Young University with majors in Genealogy and Social Work. Unable to make a living as a genealogist before "Roots" exploded on paper and television, she served on active duty in the United States Army from 1972 to 1979 and inactive duty from 1979-1983. Reaching the rank of Captain, she spent her last tour in Germany as the first female commander of a forward support unit. She returned to Utah in 1979 to live her dream by launching Lineages, Inc. Johni lives and works in Draper, Utah. Hide