Category: Memories

Utah, USA, Celebrates Pioneer Day! (Along with People All over the world!)

“A pioneer should have imagination…” ― Willa Cather, O Pioneers! Happy Pioneer Day to Utahns and to all who celebrate the spirit of adventure, the courage of ancestors who sacrificed to make a better life for themselves and for their posterity, and to all who are modern-day pioneers in this world of ours. A beautiful day of gratitude for your...

Remembering Memories

Editor’s Note: Thanks to Peter Thorne, a missionary at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City and long-time journalist, for sharing this article with us. Stories are a window into our lives. They are your personal soap opera. They tell us about the why of our lives, our feelings and emotions. Stories provide an opportunity to put some humanity...

What Matters Most

  Mitchell’s Journey is a tender, heartbreaking, inspiring story about an incredible young boy who was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy at an early age, and eventually died from the disease. His father, Christopher M. Jones established a Facebook page to chronicle his son’s journey and continues to post photos, essays, and videos about Mitchell’s story. His personal reflections on...

Inside the Guide: Using Newspapers for Family History Research

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! If you looked through old newspapers, you would find startling headlines, amusing anecdotes, and a glimpse of everyday life for the people who lived in the particular place and time period. Old newspapers are not just full of stories about abstract people and events; they are also a valuable genealogical tool that you can use...

The Power of Family Recipes

It may be making mom’s potato salad (though it never tastes quite as yummy) or mixing up grandpa’s famous peanut butter fudge that spurs childhood memories and turns an ordinary moment into a bonding one. Cooking recipes from our heritage can bring a sense of togetherness that spans generations by strengthening ties with the living and the dead. Family recipes are...

The Amazing Audio Feature of The FamilySearch Memories App

A few weeks ago, my husband and I took my eighty-seven-year-old father to visit his ninety-seven-year-old brother in a nearby city. Holding each other’s hands, they reminisced about memories such as planning to run away from home as young boys. They laughed at how their mom offered to make them sack lunches to take along in case they got hungry....

Inside the Guide: Interviewing Relatives

As part of a recent research project, I was asked to conduct an interview with my oldest living relative. Being the shy and quiet person that I am, I felt a little uncomfortable with this task because I didn’t really want to interrogate my grandma. However, once I was with her and asking her questions, I recognized the long-term value...

Capturing Memories In A Family History Time Capsule

Today my maternal grandmother, May Catherine Rasmussen Clark, would have been 127 years old. She was my first piano teacher and her home was always warm and inviting–filled with homemade bread, hand-crafted toys, and the smell of fresh linen. For much of my young life, my siblings and I could walk from our house to her house in just a...

Tips for Hosting a Virtual Family Reunion

If you are planning a family reunion and face the challenge of how to gather everyone in the same place at the same time, this blog post is for you! In his 2016 RootsTech Video Presentation, Joseph Richardson offers a solution to the issue of families being spread far and wide: host a virtual family reunion! The Family History Guide Activities Section...

Think “Family History Gifts” for Mother’s Day

With Mother’s Day approaching in many parts of the world, it is a perfect time to share some fun ideas for “family history” gift giving. After all, what mom would not like to receive a gift that represents her heritage and teaches others about her ancestors? What about a gift that helps her share her story, aids in preserving her...