Taking them with you

In March I had the wonderful opportunity to speak at the North Florida Genealogy Conference in Jackson.  What a great time we had. Our dear friends Alzina and Joel Warner took such great care of us.  I got to bring my daughter with me and we had a great trip together.  It was fun to have some mother daughter time together and it was so nice to get to know the Warners better.  The Warners absolutely spoiled us, taking us to the beach, and to St. Augustine.  It was a great trip.

And it was a wonderful conference.  I gave the keynote about Family Search Family Tree Friday evening and then gave three lectures on Saturday.  Sunday evening I spoke at an LDS fireside for youth.  That was where I think the greatest benefit for me came.  #1 I think my daughter was absolutely astounded that so many youth were actually anxious to listen to her mother.  and #2 My daughter had to sit and listen to me talk about all the benefits of family history and how easy it is to get involved.

The other great thing that came out of the fireside was the flash of inspiration I had.  I told the youth that I wasn't going to tell them how to do research--they already know how to get started.   I just asked them to get a picture of ancestor and put it out where they could see it in their room, and then tell their parents that instead of doing the dishes one night, they wanted to see if they could find more information about their grandparents or great-grandparents.  I think any parent would fall for that.  I certainly would.

I think that taking your youth with you when you teach is a great way to get the youth in your family involved with family history and I've heard other people say it worked for them too.  Just take them with you when you teach someone else how to search for their roots.  Be it the neighbor down the street, or across the country, letting them see other people excited about family history is a great thing.