Members of the Douglas, Isle of Man, congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently opened their chapel doors to around 75 family history enthusiasts when they hosted a family history open day. Held on Saturday 9th November, the day before Remembrance Sunday, around 20 volunteers helped members of the public research their family trees and reconnect with loved ones who had passed away.
| Temple Square is always beautiful in the springtime. Gardeners work to prepare the ground for General Conference. © 2012 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved. | 1 / 2 |
The event was the culmination of much hard work by the local Church members, who had loaned computers, set up displays and printed materials ready for use by their visitors. Family history websites, training videos, displays and the use of micro fiche readers were all available to help visitors in their research. The day was a resounding success, with 44 people leaving contact details to be informed of future events. “Many found lost ancestors, friends and family that they had searched for,” explained local Church leader Bishop David Preece. “They found new websites and ways to search further back.”
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have long been encouraged to research their own family histories and this event gave them the opportunity to share their enthusiasm and skills with members of the public, also keen to find out more about their ancestors. “The atmosphere was buzzing at Church the next day, due to members helping and participating in something which was amazing,” Bishop Preece added. “This experience was magic for all involved. Will we do it again? Absolutely!”
Family history research can be conducted for free on the Latter-day Saint Church website www.familySearch.org, which also provides free software for recording family tree information.