The Family History Center located in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints invites the community to be part of the search to find their ancestors via webpage from 7 to 8:30 p.m. every Tuesday and Wednesday.
The search is made on familysearch.org, and there are volunteers to help attendees in every step of the process at the center.
Phyllis Clipper, center director, said the process is easy and even addictive because one wants to know more and more about their family history.
“Today, we are actually still searching for family, because you never stop searching for your family, it is from ourselves to the beginning of time,” she said. “We do this because we want our families to be joined to us and united to us forever; that is our belief.”
Clipper has been investigating family history since the ’90s and said by using the webpage the process has become a lot easier. She said by learning who their ancestors were, they become not just a name but someone real.
The process starts by building a family tree on familysearch.org, exploring the family fan chart, sharing and preserving photos, uploading stories and working with others.
“Everybody wonders who their grandmother is, who their grandfather is, who is their great grandfather and they become real to you, they are not just a piece of paper or empty words,” Clipper said. “We continue to do that, we want them to be sealed to us so we continue to do the work.”
Family Search uses information from Ancestry, Find My Past, My Heritage and Geneanet. The access is free and open to the community, even if they’re not part of the church, Clipper said.
“As they enjoy doing this, they will be so connected to their family,” she said. “It will become real.”
Ida Silguero, consultant from the Harlingen Family History Center, said the process brings a lot of joy and it is like a puzzle because getting information makes them want to know more and more.
“It brings a lot of joy. Yes, you’ve heard of your grandfather from your mom but actually finding the record and verifying he was alive, it is a wonderful family knowing that the family is expanded, that we are not here and that there are more people that are related to us out there,” she said.
For more information, visit the Church of Jesus Christ at 114 E. Price Road.
